son leaves Prius on now what?

It's fine. The car won't allow itself to drain the battery completely - the engine engages momentarily once in a while just to charge the battery. Quite a few people have slept in their cars in the same state (with the AC running too). This is assuming the car is left in READY mode (power button light is orange) like your son parked the car after driving and just left it - I'm not sure what happens when the drain-down occurs in accessory-only mode (power button light is green).

EDIT: You might want to air out the garage though, having the engine on for any amount of time can lead to a buildup of carbon monoxide in the garage.

 

Yup, it should charge right back up. I personally wouldn't go and make a special trip of it just to recharge the battery though (however it might be a good excuse to go for ice cream or something).

You should know that the battery "full" and "empty" on the display correspond to (I believe) 70% and 30% total capacity. This is to maximize battery longevity.

 

You may need gas, though. Also, I don't think the Prius makes enough carbon monoxide to be an issue either. This is only about what the person with the cpap machine was planning to do on purpose. At least your son did this with the car in a safe place and not at the mall.

 

You are right to ban him, at least until he can be trained to take the keys and lock the car (it can't be locked the usual way if it's ON). Depending on how airtight the garage etc. is, if the % of oxygen drops enough the car can start to generate carbon monoxide. The cpap guy intended to leave his car running outdoors and so did not have that risk.

 

Yeah, I didn't mean the guy with the cpap machine was wanting to run inside.. the OP was about damage to the car, I think. The CO comment of mine was about another response. Is it likely that the oxygen level can get low enough for the car to start producing CO? (what with oxygen sensors adjusting things and all, and the low duty cycle)

BTW...I did this myself although outside and for a briefer period when I first got the car... and I didn't ban myself. I still learned my lesson in one go...

 

Son...Military School!!
The Prius, should be NO PROBLEM!!!
I did the same thing myself when first got the car, left the spare FOB inside the glovebox, Ooops my Bad! No big deal!

 

Well it could have been worse, like when I took my dad's car for a spin with some friends (whom I was not legally allowed to drive) and smashed the back into a post. He still didn't know it was me :lol:

I've left mine on overnight..with headlights ON, and the car wouldn't turn on at all. Hopefully he learns next time.

 

I would be less worried about the traction battery (whose state-of-charge is displayed on the MFD) and more worried about the 12V auxiliary battery. If the dashboard warning lights were on, that means the car was IG-ON which places a heavy drain on the 12V battery.

I recommend that you hook up a battery charger to the auxiliary battery and leave it overnight. Alternatively, leave the car READY for several hours (or embark on a long drive).

 

It used some gas, and dumped some carbon monoxide in the garage. The car was left unlocked with the keys left inside. It would be interesting to know what it did to the average mileage display. Other than that, everything is normal. The battery display will be back up to normal after a few minutes of usage.

I certainly understand how one can forget to turn off a Prius. After all, it sounds like it's already off whenever you stop it. In order to leave the keys inside a Prius with it still on, the driver has to ignore the three beeps when he exits the car.

 

Dear friends,

The OP says that "all the dash lights <were> on". Therefore that means the car was not READY. It was IG-ON.

If the car was not READY then the gasoline engine would not have been running and no CO would be produced.

If the car had been READY and then ran out of gas (which would cause the Prius to revert to IG-ON state and turn on the dashboard warning lights), the OP would have to tell us this fact.

 

The statement that the dash lights were on is really subject to interpretation. My dash lights all come on when I turn on the car as a normal part of the car operating. Now if she meant that all the warning lights were on, then this is another story altogether.

 

Right. I interpreted this as meaning the speedometer, gas gauge, etc. were displayed. Dash lights in many cars just generally illuminate the dash. Dash indicators are the warning/idiot lights Patrick is referring to, not that people use that term a whole lot, but the manuals do.

 

Right. So lets confirm with the OP (original poster) and clarify what he meant by "all the dash lights on". Rebec, please clarify.