Prius maintenance in owner retirement

The HV battery will fail eventually, that much is certain, but if the car will be driven every few days, it will not fail prematurely, in my opinion. I would be more concerned about the 12V battery that you've just replaced. If you are generally making short trips every few days, that may not be enough to keep the 12V fully charged and its life will be shortened. Since you say you have a garage, you are an ideal candidate to purchase a battery maintainer for $50 to $75 to keep the 12V fully charged all the time. Other than that, check your tire inflation regularly, as you would if it was driven regularly and keep up with regular maintenance. Your Oil Change Interval may now be more dependent on time (say every 6 months) instead of miles (say 5k).

 

Where do you park? Is there a plugin handy where you park. If so have a battery maintainer installed so the 12 volt battery doesn't drain if the car sits for weeks at a time. Go to CarParts Warehouse for a battery maintainer and see if they can install it at the jump point under the hood. I attached a pdf with pics where the maintainer should be installed. Print it out and show it to the parts guy at Carparts Warehouse, they are an independent and have some knowledgeable counter persons.

https://carpartswarehouse.net/about/
Carparts Warehouse
18489 Pearl Road
Strongsville, OH 44136
(440) 238-6555

Here is a link to a similar discussion for maintaining the 12 volt and the hybrid battery.

prevent dead battery | PriusChat

 

There are other expensive repairs that can cost more than a HV battery replacement, such as the Brake Accumulator and the AC system.

A new HV battery is fairly cheap when you amortize it over 10+ years, and assuming a DIY installation, the cost is about .45 cents a day.

Now is a great time to sell, you may recover up to 50% of your purchase price if you can find the right buyer. Then go out and find a basic econobox (civic, corolla, etc) for the same or less and pocket the difference, never having to worry about a HV battery replacement again.

If you carry any furries, hippies or other long hairs around, you may want to inspect/clean up the HV battery fan as a preventative maintenance item. Consider reconditioning or 'top balancing' your existing HV battery, as a DIY grid charger is fairly inexpensive, and your vehicle has plenty of down time for it.

Generally speaking, driving a hybrid is better than letting it sit. What is the current mileage, and how many hours a week are you driving?

 

I would be hesitant to tell her to sell, and buy another vehicle. Are you going to guarantee she does not buy an overpriced lemon?

 

i would sell if i could find a non hybrid in decent condition. at least the parts are cheaper, and mechs easier to find.
but agree, you must be able to locate and analyze a decent car.

short of that, there isn't much you can do but follow the above advice and try to drive it a bit more frequently.
hybrid batteries do fail from non use, especially older ones.

if you are capable, a prolong conditioner might be helpful:prolong-battery-charger

 

No mention of how many miles nor if OP has changed fluids, belts, etc., regularly, accident history and how it was driven. These factors weigh heavily on deciding whether to keep it.
Knowing the history of a car is key and if you’re the original owner then you have that.
Buying a used car is always a crapshoot.

 

You can call Eric Becky and get some recommendations for hybrid service in your area. Or take a day trip to Madison WI and have him diagnose the state of your HV battery and/or your Prius.

EV Powers Hybrid Battery Service and Repair
Your Hybrid Battery Hero
Madison, WI
[email protected]
608-729-4082

 

how many miles on her?

cat theft is a uge problem

 

Like most posters you could not be bothered posting the mileage but i can tell you for certain if you do not drive the car everyday for at least 5-10 miles the hybrid battery will fail on you.

 

?

 

Seriously?

 

fake

 

I feel the 2nd Gen Prius because of age of original hybrid battery should be drive at least every other day for at least 5 miles to keep the battery cells from degrading. As they age they are harder to keep charged if they sit long periods of time.

Android ?

 

Many other variables including climate

 

Our 2010 was built in August, 2009. We bought it, new, in November 2010, with maybe 10 kms on the odometer. The first few years it accumulated anywhere between 10~15K kms yearly. Then our usage tapered off, to now where we're lucky to put 4K kms on it yearly. Often the car will sit for upwards of a week between uses, and that use might just be 3~4 kms.

I do keep the 12 volt on a maintainer, but have done nothing special for the hybrid battery, which is still going champion, Dr Prius happy with it, little difference between the blocks. My 2 cents: as long as you do an occasional long drive, say at least once a month, the hybrid battery will be just fine. We're occasionally enlisted to do airport runs (thanks to YVR's onerous parking rates...), and we do the occasional recreational drive, and that seems sufficient.