^^^ I wonder if that holds true with LED headlights. They use a lot less power so a spike might damage them, too.
Battery jump fried ECU
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Originally Posted by Uphill_Both_Ways
^^^ I wonder if that holds true with LED headlights. They use a lot less power so a spike might damage them, too.
If anything I'd think they would be more likely to be damaged--due to the LED drivers used. [But I think they too are designed for the un-friendly enviroment.]
^^^ I wonder if that holds true with LED headlights. They use a lot less power so a spike might damage them, too.
If anything I'd think they would be more likely to be damaged--due to the LED drivers used. [But I think they too are designed for the un-friendly enviroment.]
I've jumped countless vehicles over the years to get them into my dad's shop and family/friends/co-workers. This has never happened. Most likely it's the hood up in a rainstorm caused water to get into places it shouldn't and short out things thereby back feeding power into circuits and causing electrical damage.
Example: Current Dodge Caravans has a TIPM (Totally Integrated Power Module) under the hood with all the vehicles fuses on the upper side and a soldered board of relays and power distribution lines right below it that connect to each other. If water got into this it would literally wreak havoc on the cars electrical system and could fry the ECM. IMO it's a stupid design especially in a high moisture area like under the hood right by the seem.
Example: Current Dodge Caravans has a TIPM (Totally Integrated Power Module) under the hood with all the vehicles fuses on the upper side and a soldered board of relays and power distribution lines right below it that connect to each other. If water got into this it would literally wreak havoc on the cars electrical system and could fry the ECM. IMO it's a stupid design especially in a high moisture area like under the hood right by the seem.
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Get a second opinion, it is common for dealerships to try to scam customers into buying a new ECM when they already KNOW it is not the problem. I'm not saying it happens 100% of the time, there are good dealerships out there but far far too many just see a sucker when a customer comes in.
If you are in a position where it was replaced, insist on the old one back before paying the bill and install it yourself to see if the new one made a difference. Usually the scammer dealership just fixes the real problem without telling the customer.
If you are in a position where it was replaced, insist on the old one back before paying the bill and install it yourself to see if the new one made a difference. Usually the scammer dealership just fixes the real problem without telling the customer.
So I got to look at the receipt as to what all was damaged in the incident. Again this is a friends car and I wasn't there to witness any of it, so it's hard to say wether or not they used a 24v pack, or crossed it, or really anything.
According to the dealer the car had PO328(knock sensor fault) when it was brought in. Replaced the knock sensor and the issue wouldn't go away. They called Toyota and was told by an engineer that if a vehicle was jumped in reverse it would damage the PCM PIN, and it would require replacement, otherwise the CEL wouldn't ever go away.
The intake manifold gasket, knock control sensor, and sub assembly vent valve was also replaced by the dealer. Not sure if that means anything
I'm gonna assume a Toyota engineer knows more about a Prius than any of us...
But AAA is saying their charge packs have reverse polarity protection and it's impossible for them to jump it in reverse. Are they just blowing smoke? I'd assume maybe AAA hooked up the pack in the wrong order or had a bad/wrong battery pack?
Or did the dealer just screw her over with a "new" PCM lmao
According to the dealer the car had PO328(knock sensor fault) when it was brought in. Replaced the knock sensor and the issue wouldn't go away. They called Toyota and was told by an engineer that if a vehicle was jumped in reverse it would damage the PCM PIN, and it would require replacement, otherwise the CEL wouldn't ever go away.
The intake manifold gasket, knock control sensor, and sub assembly vent valve was also replaced by the dealer. Not sure if that means anything
I'm gonna assume a Toyota engineer knows more about a Prius than any of us...
But AAA is saying their charge packs have reverse polarity protection and it's impossible for them to jump it in reverse. Are they just blowing smoke? I'd assume maybe AAA hooked up the pack in the wrong order or had a bad/wrong battery pack?
Or did the dealer just screw her over with a "new" PCM lmao
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I doubt AAA is at fault, no way to know 100% but the bottom line is the car wasnt working and that is why they were called to jump it. Obviously some issue caused the need for it to be jumped.
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we are missing something here. and the owner's manual probably hasn't been consulted. I'm not a prius owner - we had a hybrid escape which was a system ford licensed from toyota, so they are very similar. thoughts:
They jumped the 12v battery, but a prius normally starts off the primary pack.
1. why did the primary pack not start it?
2. And why is the 12v battery cooked?
The ECU needs the 12V battery to function. If 12V is compromised, I could see the ECU being confused.
The 12V battery is just a buffer device for running electronics and a backup battery for the backup 12V starter. If the 12V battery is dead, then that's probably the first problem. The ECU needs that to run. The prius has a converter that provides 12V power from the larger traction battery. IIRC there's a hidden button one can use to provide a short charge from the traction battery to the 12V battery, for when the 12V is dead, and can't run devices need to start the car (ecu...).
Put a new 12V battery in it. Find out if the trac battery isn't charged. Go from there.
They jumped the 12v battery, but a prius normally starts off the primary pack.
1. why did the primary pack not start it?
2. And why is the 12v battery cooked?
The ECU needs the 12V battery to function. If 12V is compromised, I could see the ECU being confused.
The 12V battery is just a buffer device for running electronics and a backup battery for the backup 12V starter. If the 12V battery is dead, then that's probably the first problem. The ECU needs that to run. The prius has a converter that provides 12V power from the larger traction battery. IIRC there's a hidden button one can use to provide a short charge from the traction battery to the 12V battery, for when the 12V is dead, and can't run devices need to start the car (ecu...).
Put a new 12V battery in it. Find out if the trac battery isn't charged. Go from there.
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Originally Posted by double vanos
Im with Steve SRT8: I jump start cars no more. The last thing I want is to jump someone's car and find out I damaged MY car!
I thought jumper cables went the way of 8-tracks, or at least cassettes. I haven't used one since getting a jump box 20 years ago.
Im with Steve SRT8: I jump start cars no more. The last thing I want is to jump someone's car and find out I damaged MY car!
I thought jumper cables went the way of 8-tracks, or at least cassettes. I haven't used one since getting a jump box 20 years ago.
I only jump start friend's vehicles now, but I don't exactly jump start them. What I do is charge their battery off of my vehicle at high idle for 5 minutes, then disconnect and let them start themselves.
I gave up on jump starting strangers when i had described and had just started this procedure, and the guy jumped in his car and started it anyway.
I gave up on jump starting strangers when i had described and had just started this procedure, and the guy jumped in his car and started it anyway.
This is why I generally don't offer to help people with a jumpstart or let them use my jump box anymore, not worth the trouble in the event that person tries to blames you later for their S#%^ cars problems. If I'm feeling really humane and it's a broke college kid or an old lady with no cell phone sometimes I'll still break down and help, but it seems to generally be ill advised in our hyper legalistic world.
Wow, I'm really glad my neighbor isn't like some of you guys and offered to boost me when I had left my seat heater on all night and killed my battery. I personally will never refuse to give someone a boost if they need it. I can understand being a little paranoid but where do you draw the line?
What meep said. The 12V just boots the rest of the system. There's no slow cranking to witness so people don't know it's bad until they're stranded. One other funky symptom is if you're sitting there listening to the radio on a bad battery, it'll complain about not being in Park correctly and to use the e-brake. This is when the system hits voltage in the low-11s to high-10s.
Now you know how a bad 12V drags down the alternator on a conventional car? It drags down the inverter on a prius, and those power ripples, if bad enough, can damage other electronics.
So the owner driving around on a poor battery before even needing a jump could have done this. She probably has the car serviced at the dealer 99% of the time, worships the service writer as a god, and latched onto his idea that "some other person" damaged her car.
I'm starting to think that people that owned saturns in the 1990s and never checked the oil are getting into prii now.
Now you know how a bad 12V drags down the alternator on a conventional car? It drags down the inverter on a prius, and those power ripples, if bad enough, can damage other electronics.
So the owner driving around on a poor battery before even needing a jump could have done this. She probably has the car serviced at the dealer 99% of the time, worships the service writer as a god, and latched onto his idea that "some other person" damaged her car.
I'm starting to think that people that owned saturns in the 1990s and never checked the oil are getting into prii now.
Had the exact thing happen about 7 years ago to my Wife's Cavalier. Battery died, I went to jump it. Fried the ECU.
Originally Posted by eljefino
What meep said. The 12V just boots the rest of the system. There's no slow cranking to witness so people don't know it's bad until they're stranded. One other funky symptom is if you're sitting there listening to the radio on a bad battery, it'll complain about not being in Park correctly and to use the e-brake. This is when the system hits voltage in the low-11s to high-10s.
Now you know how a bad 12V drags down the alternator on a conventional car? It drags down the inverter on a prius, and those power ripples, if bad enough, can damage other electronics.
So the owner driving around on a poor battery before even needing a jump could have done this. She probably has the car serviced at the dealer 99% of the time, worships the service writer as a god, and latched onto his idea that "some other person" damaged her car.
I'm starting to think that people that owned saturns in the 1990s and never checked the oil are getting into prii now.
+1.
What meep said. The 12V just boots the rest of the system. There's no slow cranking to witness so people don't know it's bad until they're stranded. One other funky symptom is if you're sitting there listening to the radio on a bad battery, it'll complain about not being in Park correctly and to use the e-brake. This is when the system hits voltage in the low-11s to high-10s.
Now you know how a bad 12V drags down the alternator on a conventional car? It drags down the inverter on a prius, and those power ripples, if bad enough, can damage other electronics.
So the owner driving around on a poor battery before even needing a jump could have done this. She probably has the car serviced at the dealer 99% of the time, worships the service writer as a god, and latched onto his idea that "some other person" damaged her car.
I'm starting to think that people that owned saturns in the 1990s and never checked the oil are getting into prii now.
+1.
Originally Posted by atikovi
Originally Posted by double vanos
Im with Steve SRT8: I jump start cars no more. The last thing I want is to jump someone's car and find out I damaged MY car!
I thought jumper cables went the way of 8-tracks, or at least cassettes. I haven't used one since getting a jump box 20 years ago.
Been there, tried that, jump box was never charged when I needed it.
Originally Posted by double vanos
Im with Steve SRT8: I jump start cars no more. The last thing I want is to jump someone's car and find out I damaged MY car!
I thought jumper cables went the way of 8-tracks, or at least cassettes. I haven't used one since getting a jump box 20 years ago.
Been there, tried that, jump box was never charged when I needed it.
As an AAA Fleet tow tech, I've gotten so many Prius running by a jump start due to the 12V battery never replaced. That's an easy fix, get the battery replaced
However, I am aware of a problem on 1st generation Prius and Highlander hybrids where if the battery goes bad finally and sits for a while, the ECU doesn't like that and becomes for the lack of a better term, a virgin and needs to be re-flashed; apparently this was fixed in a ECU software update so it won't happen again.
However, I am aware of a problem on 1st generation Prius and Highlander hybrids where if the battery goes bad finally and sits for a while, the ECU doesn't like that and becomes for the lack of a better term, a virgin and needs to be re-flashed; apparently this was fixed in a ECU software update so it won't happen again.
Originally Posted by Anduril
Originally Posted by atikovi
Originally Posted by double vanos
Im with Steve SRT8: I jump start cars no more. The last thing I want is to jump someone's car and find out I damaged MY car!
I thought jumper cables went the way of 8-tracks, or at least cassettes. I haven't used one since getting a jump box 20 years ago.
Been there, tried that, jump box was never charged when I needed it.
Yeah pretty much. And I tried one of those litium ion jump packs that people love and they only seem to work a couple of times before they become ineffectual, maybe the LiIon battery becoming damaged with each successive start, I dont know.
So I always have a set of jumper cables in my trunk.
Never had an issue jumping someones vehicle, either with my own or another persons vehicle.
Originally Posted by atikovi
Originally Posted by double vanos
Im with Steve SRT8: I jump start cars no more. The last thing I want is to jump someone's car and find out I damaged MY car!
I thought jumper cables went the way of 8-tracks, or at least cassettes. I haven't used one since getting a jump box 20 years ago.
Been there, tried that, jump box was never charged when I needed it.
Yeah pretty much. And I tried one of those litium ion jump packs that people love and they only seem to work a couple of times before they become ineffectual, maybe the LiIon battery becoming damaged with each successive start, I dont know.
So I always have a set of jumper cables in my trunk.
Never had an issue jumping someones vehicle, either with my own or another persons vehicle.
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