Got a rust free Prius for $750 and it just needs a



So it has a code for "random misfire" and I had some slightly used plugs from my camry with 30k (left) that went in there. But my barely used plugs still have a nice little mini-prong (iridium) on the ground electrode, something missing from the plug on right, which came from the car.
 
A beater Prius? Somehow, if anyone here ran across such a thing, I'd expect it to be you. Now you just need to find an equally rust free tow dolly.
LOL!
This car is obviously worth more than seven fiddy and I know you'll enjoy bringing it back to full function.
I am a little envious, since a cheap Prius is every fuel economy loving cheapskate's dream.
These are among the top five best cars Toyota ever built. Others might be the original V-8 Lexus cars, the old Land Crushers and the nineties Camrys.
They also remain a must-have fetish item among academics and other nerdy types.
Good for you having found a cheap Prius that appears to need only the same sort of minor tinkering any 235K car would need. Judging by the look of that plug, this car was not over-maintained during its prior life, so I'd expect some oil consumption that might be cured with a dose of Kreen.
 
If you have the 185/65R15 tires, try 205/60R15...

General RT43's get good ratings...

A Fram 3600 oil filter / Purolator 20195 may fit, longer....
 
I'm going to reuse my 195/65/15 snow tires. A little bigger but hey.

Artist's conception:

Donk-Prius-680x510.jpg
 
Be very careful about not electrocuting yourself. When you get lightly zapped with AC your muscles do not totally lock up because the AC lets go during the part of the cycle when the voltage is low. If you get zapped with DC your muscles lock up because it is continuous and you can not get your muscles to move for you to break the connection.
 
point taken. I've taken 120VAC and know the pulsey feeling.
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
I'm going to reuse my 195/65/15 snow tires. A little bigger but hey.

Artist's conception:

Donk-Prius-680x510.jpg



A tastefully pimped out Prius?
Love it!
Got any images of a riced out JDM Prius?
That would be even funnier.
 
With something like that, you win every stoplight drag simply because the other driver would be laughing so hard while staring and wouldn't see the light change.
This would also be a fun thing to cruise faculty parking lots with simply because of the outrage it would provoke.
 
So I wondered how they make these thing safe for ripout. Turns out, pretty easy. There's a big orange "grenade pin" that you pull, which then allows you to remove a tin cover over the zappy bits. With the "grenade pin" out there's no voltage. (You can reinsert it after the cover is removed if you're curious; I found 223 Volts.)



Double check for the presence (absence!) of voltage before removing the little nuts.



Removed. I'd say under or around 80 lbs, you don't "need help" unless you're a Nancy.



Let's yank some covers and see all that glorious tech that 7.5 Benjamins gets ya:



Corrosion on the negative terminals, and only negative. Ions, dudes!



I know, from the codes, what the car thinks it hates. Assuming the module closest to the computer is number one, my voltmeter readings jive.



All the other pairs make 16.06 volts within a couple hundredths. Crazy how tight the compliance is!

 
Followup, I did another voltage test of each individual "cell" and found the 11th from the BCM low at 6.7V while the rest were stunning 8.02s.

123691_upload_2017-4-20_17-46-24.png


This puts me in "bank 9". Codes were P3019 and P3020. It seems that the car's sensors only read "pairs". Like the goof I am, I already ordered two modules when potentially I only need one. Oh well, a spare!
 
Not long at all! I could probably do it again in 90 minutes or so. Got the battery pack broken down to extract my dud cell module and now I'm just waiting for my fedex truck. The work's easy enough... not on my back under the car, not up on jack stands, not dealing with salt water rusty fasteners. (There is slight corrosion on the bus bar nuts but it's powdery and should clean up easily.)

One weird note, my Innova 3160 scantool asked me what mfr for the specific P30xx codes and I said "toyota" but apparently the bad module is 1-2 16 volt "blocks" (of two modules) off from what Techstream said. *However* it is easy enough to run down the line with a voltmeter and find duds. I would *not* take the exclusive word of a (generic) scan tool on this system.

There's a megathread on priuschat of users discharging, cycling, and recharging modules with a hobby charger to enchance their lives. This battery is so easy to ripout and reinstall though I think I'll just get the voltage to match on my new used module and slap 'er in there.

Apparently the same thin sensor wires that check the 16 volt blocks can also be used by the onboard charge controller/ computer to equalize cells/modules/blocks. This explains the epically close 8.02V readings on the rest of them.

Lotsa engineering in this puppy!
 
Nice that you get get in there quick! It does look interesting and fun to work on, i'm not sure i'd care to drive one again!
 
I used to buy hybrids and fix/replace/grid charge the battery packs and either use them as a daily driver or resell them. Usually would purchase under 1k and sell for 3+ k with only a few hundred invested. Good luck! My last prius went 245k with 0 issues. Sold it when my wife crashed it for a profit
laugh.gif
 
Very interesting thread. I have a winter car refurbishing project lined up that will take me probably into the spring. After that, I might give a go at this. Looks interesting, cheap, and educational. I also want a cheap car for a new driver before awful long (he just turned 14), this could be a fun way to achieve that. I have ridden in and driven once a 2nd gen Prius and was impressed with them from that brief encounter.
 
So, update. Yesterday I put 'er all together except for the one on the end. "They" say the middle modules get more heat and die faster so it's good to mix 'em up. I get my package in the mail, priority mail from Florida
crazy.gif
Two modules, I check voltages, 7.6 and 7.8 and replace the bum one with the 7.8 volt one. Incidentally due to cool weather or parked status my other modules dropped to 7.8 as well so they were nearly perfectly matched.

Hooked em up, put enough interior back together to be safe, and no-go.

Turns out the "grenade pin" orange handle wasn't clicked in precisely. There's a safety sensor for this.

Go, go go.

I go three miles to pick my kids up and the orange triangle turns on when I pull into the parking lot. Crud. But it's still hybrid-ing, with the ICE shutting down and the battery fan isn't going nuts.

Cautiously optimistic, I drive home with normal performance. P3191 "Cruise control malfuntion" which is actually "Clean your throttle body". Done.

Longer drive to work tomorrow. Will work the bugs out.

I'll add this is the first time I've driven one of these things, and it was night. I have the nav system and the menus are crazy to just get to HVAC to get a little defroster action. What a crazy future we live in!
 
You should grid charge the pack. Either Hybrid automotive full grid charger/discharger is the easiest but more expensive or buy a single cell grid charger used in hobby AV's and such and grid charger the individual packs and then discharge them almost to 0 and then grid charge them back up. This will show you which cells are the weakest. Let me know if you have anymore questions. There are also a lot of forums where they discuss this in depth. The charge/discharge cycles also help with the memory like crystal structure of the battery chemistry. Pretty interesting stuff.


Also make sure you have the orange grenade pin in correctly. The first time I worked on my 08 prius I put in back on but backwards or something and it wouldn't work. Contacted Hybrid auto and they told me to check the pin and I told them they were wrong and that the pin was on correctly and after many more hours of trying to figure it out myself I discovered the pin was indeed not on correctly....woops
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

B
I bought a 2010 Prius for $3000
2 3
Replies
47
Views
5K
We're Metals
G
  • Locked
Hack your car with a Nintendo Gameboy
Replies
1
Views
1K
drm7
Back
Top