Dead battery at 400 miles

Probably had been run low before you picked it up; doors open whilst they vacummed it out etc. If you don't do too many miles then the 12v won't have had chance to charge back up and eventually ran down.Maybe check the rear hatch is fully shut too - this was an issue on the gen2 and some gen3's.

Quick tip for anyone new to any Prius. If you're sat listening to the radio (such as whilst the wife has gone shopping), leave the car in Ready mode instead. This will take the strain off the 12v and will also allow it to charge.

 

I would have hoped whoever checked it would have advised if it were beyond repair or not. You can get away with running a 12v flat once or twice but do it a few more times and it'll get damaged. If this was a one off, the chances are that it'll be ok. Take the car for a good 3 hour drive or charge the battery off the car with a battery charger. Either of these should sort it out and charge it up nicely.

 

i think you're okay as grumpy says. if it happens once more tho, i would change it.

 

Buy a small portable jump starter for maybe $50 and keep it with you and know how to use it. Keep it accessible since you may not be able to open the hatch to get to the under trunk storage. Also be sure you know how to use the mechanical key in the remote to get into the driver's door.

Second, turn off the hatch light permanently using the switch next to it. If the hatch is left slightly ajar, the hatch light in normal position will run down the battery. An extra measure is to replace that light bulb with a LED version. LEDs left on overnight probably won't discharge the battery. The rest of the interior lights will go off automatically if a door or hatch is left ajar but not the hatch light.

I would not change the battery. It's brand new and another one is expensive, perhaps more than $300 at the dealer and hard to find anywhere else. Plus the car will charge it up pretty quick, personally I would not do any special trips or take it out to charge. It's buried in the back of the car, not that easy to pop in and out.

 

Make sure it's a portable jump starter, not a charger. The jump starter has a battery inside and jumper cables built in. Actually the smallest jumper cable ends are better on a Prius since you have to jump to a red connection inside the fuse box. That's the part you need to get to and some gigantic jumper cables are too big.

 

It is/ was suspected that radios were played on the boat, dealers abused batteries ( unknowingly ) while on the lot, one dealer told me that they deliberately let the battery run down in the showroom so people cannot play with the car and it cannot catch fire, which is rediculous. Apparently they never thought of just disconnecting the battery! This is not a ordinary 12V battery! Once it is drained all the way it is ruined. If you can prove the battery is bad, then you can have them replace it free. Go to a pro battery shop like Batteries are us, they have instrumentation that determines the health of the battery. Toyota can't do this, it takes an inexperienced 18 kid from Batteries are Us, See-if you can get them to write a statement, even if you have to pay. After having my 2005 a few months I also had problems and had been to the shop once. My multimeter just barely read 12v, so I went to Toyota again, this time while awaiting inspection, I ran everything I could think of in accessory mode. By the time they got to it, they could not start the car, next thing I saw was a charger connected to it. After keeping the car overnight with a free loaner, they said they would give me a new free battery for customer relations. There are thousands of 12 V bat writeups on the Prius.

 

A big difference between a battery being run too low to start a car once and a 2005 model year car having a 12v issue due to age/wear and tear.

The op has only covered 400 miles. If the 12v wasn't run totally flat and left that way for some time, then it'll be ok, though as you say, it would be prudent to get it professionally checked to put their mind at ease.

The thousands of bad 12v writeups on the Prius as due to an aged 12v which silently fails because you don't notice the slower engine cranking you get in a traditional car.

 

That sounds like a low 12v issue again. Did you make sure the 12v was fully charged after the last breakdown? If so, then it sounds like the 12v is failed. If you didn't fully charge it, then you need to do so. Take the car for a long 2-3 hour run or charge the 12v off car as normal.

In a traditional car the 12v is very quickly charged by the vehicle after a jump start. In the Prius it isn't, hence the suggestion to take the car for a 3 hour drive. If you have done this and still had to open the car with the key the next morning, it sounds like the 12v is damaged/failed and after 400 miles should be replaced under warranty. If you're not confident about how to explain this issue to the dealers, then take someone with you who is. My girlfriend had a similar issue with her new Honda a few years ago and kept getting fobbed off by the dealers until the time when the AA man (the UK version of AAA) towed her there (after it had failed again) and demanded they sort her out whilst he waited with her. A new battery was fitted within 20 minutes.

 

RIDiculous, it is an ordinary sealed 12 v battery just smaller since it does not have to run a starter with a 400 amp surge. Ordinary batteries can have a reduced life due to a normal and reversible chemical process called sulfination but it usually takes years and many total discharges. Not any different than in a Mustang or a Corolla but with a conventional car a new battery is generally required after 3 or 4 years.

What is more likely in a Prius is it's sealed 12 v battery will outlast one in a conventional car by years. The Prius battery is expensive and somewhat unique, not because of it's technology but because it is located in the passenger compartment. That fact caused Toyota, in typical well engineered zeal, to include a vent tube for the unlikely event it might outgass. Most conventional cars put the battery in the engine compartment which then requires no special ventilation.

Placing the Prius battery in a heated space actually extends battery life, as does the low surge demands in a hybrid since it has no 12v starter. Without the vent requirement, an equivalent 38ah AGM battery can be bought at my local Ace Hardware for less than $70.

Could Toyota do a better job by turning off loads before discharge? Yes. Particularly the rear hatch light.

My take on Toyota dealers is they have no problem spending Toyota Japan's money on a battery or anything else under warranty, or even giving a used car buyer a new one at their expense to keep a future repeat customer happy.

It's easy for the dealer when they have the best product that virtually sells itself. The guy to watch out for is the commissioned car salesman. For him it might be a case of Win All He Can instead of Win / Win.

 

My problem was within the first year.

 

I just replaced my original battery {12v} in my 2005. Had weird starts with 1 non-start until I played with "smart key". then replaced btry in key and started ok,,,but thought I'd check the life of the 12v, by "Batteries Plus" and discovered it was almost dead-had "Batteries Plus" replace it....seems ok, first day using it.

how long did your 12v battery last? how did you know it needed replacement?
what did it cost to test/replace? Dealer vs other shop?

thanks
Berkley

 

I just replaced my original battery {12v} in my 2005. Had weird starts with 1 non-start until I played with "smart key". then replaced btry in key and started ok,,,but thought I'd check the life of the 12v, by "Batteries Plus" and discovered it was almost dead-had "Batteries Plus" replace it....seems ok, first day using it.

how long did your 12v battery last? how did you know it needed replacement?
what did it cost to test/replace? Dealer vs other shop?

thanks
Berkley

 

I have every hope your battery is fine, but if not: Optima DS46B24R Optima battery direct fit replacement for Prius 2004 + with Instructions

 

I used the same procedure on my 05, Batteries Plus. They had an advanced meter for checking battery condition. I replaced after 7 years. Bought car in 04.

 

My battery on my 2010 Prius trim/model 5 w/Advance Technology package went dead after two years. I replaced the battery with a new Toyota 12v battery at a Toyota dealership. A new 2010 Prius 12v battery cost me $274 installed.

 

Very typical story that we constantly hear.

 

Grumpy! you know the engine does not crank!