New 2003 Prius gen 1 Owner

Congrats on your '03 acquisition.
Some things to keep in mind:
(a) the "build" (2001-2003) is now 20 years old, and certain spare parts are unavailable through Toyota.
Browse places like ToyotaPartsDeal and RockAuto to get an idea of what's available (and unavailable).
(b) as a result of (a), keep on top of maintenance and think "preventive maintenance".
(c) in case something does break, you may need to get creative about finding a functioning replacement part.
(d) regarding the battery: if you are mechanically (and electrically) adept and have a full day,
I would suggest pulling the HV battery out, doing some disassembly
and cleaning all the contacts that charge the battery, plus the battery terminals themselves (all 76 of them).
After 20+ years, the bus bars are likely corroded and could use a scrub/polish to get rid of green gunk.
The multi-pin orange connector that plugs into the battery computer (in the HV battery itself) from the bundle of thin wires
(which sense/charge each cell of the HV pack) is prone to corrosion (sometimes charring; and, rarely, fires) so a good
cleaning once every 10 years is in order with tv-tuner contact cleaner (if you can still find some).
The HV battery system definitely does NOT like to sit unused in a high-humidity environment.
(e) the TechStream on an old XP laptop is an excellent investment.
I hope you never need it; but it's darn important should the situation arise.

Welcome to the tinkerer's society!

 

Shouldn't be hard to find tuner cleaner: https://tinyurl.com/497zem33 (link to Advance Auto Parts web page). I never heard of problems with corrosion in that connector, so I'd leave it alone if I were you, unless you know for sure that there's a problem. As for the bus bars, there was a recall early in the history of Prius, whereby dealer service was supposed to clean and coat the contacts with a special "goo." I had this done on my '02, so check the service records of your '03, if you have them. And finally, as for spare parts, keep in mind that much of the Classic is like non-hybrid cars, and standard replacement parts can be used in many instances.

 

Here's the thread with more of that info.

 

Ooh, nasty! I sympathize with those who've had to deal with this. Knock wood, I won't be one of their number. But I still don't want to go messing around with the HV battery myself!

 

Chap, thank you for linking to the "Prius battery fires" thread for the charring HV battery connector issue.
Trombone, it's a serious enough issue that you may want to have Toyota (or your trusted hybrid mechanic)
do an inspection just of that part (and pay the coin, as required), particularly if your battery pack is more than 10 years old.
There are no warning signs. The corrosion, helped along by humidity, is like rust. Rust never sleeps.
Hope is not a plan.

 

"New" HV battery about four (whoops, check that, seven years ago---tempus fugit) years ago, so I'm OK. Thanks for the tip!