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2015 Prius C: 'Check Engine' light on - nothing else.

Discussion in 'Prius c Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by OhioM38A1, Apr 20, 2020.

  1. OhioM38A1

    OhioM38A1 New Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Ohio
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius c
    Model:
    N/A
    2015 Prius C; original owner; 39755 miles. Remote start installed at purchase.
    Car not driven for one week due to virus interruptus. Would not start - only light on dash was 'check engine'.
    Attached battery charger to jump-points under hood, charger set to 'high / start'.
    Turned key - dash lights came on and 'Ready' indicated. Disconnected charger. Engine cycled on for a couple minutes then cycled off.
    Backed car from garage; I shut it off for ~5 minutes; car restarted / cycled properly.
    I did not check voltage or use a tester on the battery - Yet.

    To me, it appeared as if the system went into a 'lockout'?
     
  2. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    Probably a discharged 12v battery.

    Which trim is your car? the one and two use a plain steel twist key, and their 12v systems can tolerate longer parking sessions.

    The three and four trims have a smart key system which uses 12v battery power to listen for the smart keys all the time, and their power use will vary, but will always be higher than the dumb-key setup.
     
    AlphaFox and dig4dirt like this.
  3. OhioM38A1

    OhioM38A1 New Member

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    Location:
    Ohio
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius c
    Model:
    N/A
    The trim, I believe, is a two and uses the smart-key on the column to start. It does have that red light indicating that it's searching.
    I thought perhaps there was some sort of system lockout at play here.
    Tomorrow I'll yank the rear seat and unhook & test the battery.
    Thanks for the assist.
     
  4. AlphaFox

    AlphaFox New Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    you dont need to pull the whole seat, just the cover. sounds like the battery is low / bad.
     
  5. OhioM38A1

    OhioM38A1 New Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius c
    Model:
    N/A
    I have not yet tested the battery, plus the problem has not reoccurred (yet).
    I agree that the battery is probably on its way out although the intermittent red dash light for the remote combined with the two blue intermittent lights on the remote start antennae (indicating locked doors) may have slowly drained the battery while the car sat for a week.