Anyone using Prolong for a long time?

@Danny or @jeff652 should be able to answer your question!

 

I've had no takers (so far), but obviously the harness would have to be negotiated, and the security deposit etc. etc. (I'd be curious to learn how you deal with those issues - although Jeff mentioned at one point that HA now have a charging harness which doesn't require cutting any of the original wiring!)

 

We each have our own harness, then meet occasionally for the swap of components .

The good thing is we use the Bay Area meet ups for this purpose or if we are passing by, so it makes life a little easier.

He has a Gen2 and I have a Gen3. We went halves on the components which works out well for us.

Maybe it will someday for you.

 

What neck of the Alabama woods are you in?

The guy I share with i met here. Never knew him before and probably wouldn't have met him otherwise. But we are both into the Prius and want to make our rides last as long as possible .

We both respect the equipment and went halves on the Charger and Intelligent Discharger. For us it made sense.

Might be able to find someone who would do the same.

 

Maybe there should be a special thread on PC about Prolong sharing. I would love to participate. In fact I approached a couple of good friends of mine that both drive Prii (one is an '05 gen 2, the other is a '10 C), but they are reluctant because of cost and not really perceiving the value of it (they are not members here). they are still on the fence, but may go in with me on a system. If anyone on here is in Western Massachusetts and willing to share a current Prolong system (both charger and discharger), let me know. I am ready to buy one. Harness is $150 plus installation. I am very handy and am certain I can install it myself and help whoever wants to share. PM me if interested.

 

It is one and the same charger made by Hybrid Automotive. I think the PriusChat Shoppe photos are out of date. I would be surprised if the PriusChat Shoppe have bunch of old stock they are sitting on. In any case, the charger is exactly the same internally, just the external case is prettier (or at least different) on the newer release of the product.

Your Gen II friend is ok, but you won't be able to share with your Prius c friend, as the c has a different (smaller) battery set up.

 

As someone who's been to Jeff's shop, there were no old style black box chargers there. Just the round green and white chargers.

But he had a lot of them on the shelf ready for sale.

 

The one in the PC store looks exactly like the one I got from @jeff652 at Prolong Battery Systems. Extending the life of your hybrid. – Hybrid Automotive . I assume it's the same as what @WilDavis just described that he has since we bought at nearly the same time.

 

Thank you for mentioning that. I did not realize that, but now see that Prius C has a smaller pack. So, the question is: Does HA plan to make an adjustable charger/dishcarger? Do they plan to not support Prius C (I doubt it)? Do they plan to offer a special charger for C? It would make sense to make the charger adjustable to be used on wide variety of hybrid packs. What about other Toyota hybrids? I know there is a Camry, some SUVs... Do they have the same pack as the Prius?

 

I would think @jeff652 should be able to provide an answer to all your questions!

 

No, they do not have any adjustable chargers, and I haven't heard Jeff talk about having that in the future. As for other models of Toyota hybrids, it seems there is a reconditioning package to suit any of the current (NiMH) Toyota hybrids.

 

A quick call to hybridautomotive.com (800) 589-0730 will probably answer all your questions.

My guess is all the gen 2 & 3 Prius chargers are the same as the charge/discharge chart specs are the same. Gen 1 and hycam are different. Honda is completely different. Cables are all different.

 

Jeff has made various chargers for the various models. The packs are various sizes (bigger packs for the bigger vehicles).

The pack in the Lexus RX450h is larger so the setup I have for our Prius will not work for the Lexus.

But as I get closer to the warranty expiration, I'll find Jeff again for preventative maintenance .

 

The Prius c has 120 cells. Our system for it is located here:
Prolong® Deluxe Reconditioning Package - Hybrid Automotive

The 'standard' Gen2 Prius, Gen3 Prius, and Prius V (as well as some Lexus) use a 168 cell pack. For all 168 cell batteries, the Charger and Discharger are the same unit. Only the car harness is different. You can use a higher cell count charger on a lower cell count battery, but the process will take ~40% longer as the charger current will fluctuate and average only around 200mA.

Our consumer line will always be battery size specific to keep end user pricing as low as possible. We do have a universal charger. It's also high output, over 10 times faster than our consumer units. It is called the ProlongPro Charger and it is designed for professional users (i.e. shops). It has a matching universal high speed pack discharger that also does module IR & capacity testing. The first units are coming off the line now. For a mere $3,995 we'd be happy to send one set your way

 

I assume the Gen 3 charger will work on my Gen 4 with NiMH battery if I keep the car that long?