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Car wouldn't start ... but I fixed it!

Discussion in 'Prius v Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Turquo, Dec 8, 2022.

  1. Turquo

    Turquo Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 31, 2020
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    Location:
    Texas
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    I'd let the V sit for three weeks and apparently it was enough to flatten the 12v battery, but thanks to those who had posted before me, I was able to diagnose and fix it

    I'd read once to never jump start with this vehicle, but after reading those posts, I think it's probably never give anyone a jump start, but you can get them all day long if you want, in fact the manual tells you how to do it - just get the polarity the right way round

    I RTFMd and saw (i) where the battery is (which I wouldn't have guessed easily) and (ii) how to remove it - the only problem with that was that I couldn't open the back door because it's an electric lock and even though I took off the inspection panel for it, I figured it's just be easier to do it all through the rear pax side door ("easier" being a relative term)

    So now I have a couple of questions:

    (1) There was an electrical connection attached to the hold down bracket, though it didn't seem to go anywhere or do anything. Any idea what that's for?

    (2) Could I have charged the 12v using the "exclusive" jump start point and I suppose some bare metal on the frame somewhere? - (I'm thinking that probably wouldn't have been a good idea)

    Anyway thanks again to those who guided me through this
     
    #1 Turquo, Dec 8, 2022
    bisco likes this.
  2. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2018
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    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    Nah actually that works great. You can also use the same setup to get the back door open, and then use that improved access afterwards.
     
    #2 Leadfoot J. McCoalroller, Dec 8, 2022
    Tim Jones, Air_Boss and Mendel Leisk like this.
  3. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2008
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    Location:
    Texas Hill Country
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Three
    There is a jump point under the hood. It's not so exclusive. Everybody has one with a Prius of this generation. You can charge or jump from there. You access the car with the mechanical key hidden inside your key fob and then access the hood with the mechanical lever inside the car. At that point you remove the top of the engine fuse box, it will be on the driver side, flip open a red cover on the jump point and use positive there. Connect negative on an any nearby metal piece.

    Realize a completely dead 12 V battery may take may take a period of time to equalize with the jump power source. Normally, this is not a problem or a concern.

    A significant issue with jumping in the front or the back is a reverse polarity connection even for a few seconds.
    It will blow a nearly inaccessible 125a fuse buried in the middle of the engine fuse box. Along with various other fuses that are easier to access. Which makes the next subject a near must have regardless if you are getting a jump or you are giving a jump.

    A small lithium jump pack stored under the driver seat makes the whole process a one man job especially if you can start the car right away. These boxes have polarity verification circuitry used before they apply power.

    Prius jump start gen3.jpeg
     
    #3 rjparker, Dec 8, 2022
    Last edited: Dec 8, 2022
    Tim Jones likes this.
  4. Turquo

    Turquo Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 31, 2020
    17
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    0
    Location:
    Texas
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    rj - it was your original post that I read that helped me (amongst others)
     
    #4 Turquo, Dec 8, 2022
    Tim Jones likes this.
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