Prius Hybrid

I bought one at 103K miles. I am too familiar with the Prius to be scared by the battery life. If it does fail, I expect to pay under $1000 for a used one.

Worry about something that has a bad reputation - the Prius hybrid battery has a stellar reputation.

Mike

That is good to hear.

The next question that pops into my mind is:

"OK, what is the labor charge for replacing my battery?"

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I believe it is around 4 hrs, mostly wrapped up in the conditioning and testing process afterward. The physical replacement is a moderate DIY job, as the 110 lb battery assembly is behind the rear seat (at least in the pre-2004s). I haven't heard of any DIYers who had to take the job on, though, and I might hesitate to be the first... or maybe not... if I drew a short straw. I have a thorough electrical background but I understand NiMH cells can be tricky.

Mike

i'm an electrical engineer who works with batteries for many yrs. the question isn't "if" it will fail, it WILL fail. batteries have predictable lives - like tires..but i'm not worried enough that it kept me from buying one.

bob

they are EXCEPTIONALLY reliable by battery standards - the batteries will probably last around 10 yrs..the problem is that cars last more than 10 yrs (decent ones)..every prius in its lifetime should se 1-2 battery set replacements - and at the current costs for new ones, that's really tough to swallow.

recall that the prius hybrid hasn't been around long enough for the batts to start failing in large #s yet..give it another 3-4 yrs for the data to come in.

yes, today, that is true..but in 3-4 yrs, when the batts begin failing in large #s, that will change..my hope is for a nice aftermarket developer to get in the game with those batteries.

bob

Fortunately, there are plenty of salvage batteries available for very good prices. Furthermore, battery technologies are improving and prices are going down. Also, there may be a fairly simple way to refubish battery packs by replacing electrolyte in marginal cells and rebuilding replacements. Think of it as the battery equivalent of rebuilding an engine. The technology is not that hard.

However, if you are risk adverse, just sell the car before the battery fails. Do let me know how much your asking.

Bob Wilson

the car's brand new..i plan to sell it at 80k miles, 20k before the batt warranty..i'm asking sticker. :-) hehe

bob

How do you come up with the estimate? Toyota has stated they chose the NiMH over LiIon because the NiMH has no specific life limitations. Like the Edison cell, they could theoretically last centuries. Theoretically, of course, because they are in a vehicle that tends to bump along the road. But so far (and the Prius has been sold for 10 years in Japan) the rise in battery failures that would signal trouble has not yet been seen.

Mike

Mike

Of course you are right that it will fail sometime, but there is not nearly enough data to say when. We can say with certainty the expected battery life is considerably greater than 10 years, the length of time the Prius has been sold in Japan. Since the failure rate on those is still not significant enough to provide useful data, that's all we have. The life will be predictable when we get the data, but not yet. I would be surprised if more than a handful last 50 years, but 20 (already common for industrial lead-acid batteries) wouldn't surprise me in the least.

Mike

hopefully you're right. but they warrant the battery for 8 yrs, makes me believe it has a 10-12yr life.

bob

industrial lead acid work in a/c environments and those are not maintenance free..sealed batteries give 20 yr warranties but rarely last more than

bob

Depending upon the price of gas, you may get it.

Bob Wilson

The basic warranty on the car is 3 years, so does that mean that the car has only a five to six year life? The engine and drive train are warranted for five years; does that mean that their lives are only seven to ten years?

Oh, I almost forgot; in some states, the battery warranty is for 10 years. Does that mean that it has a 13 to 15 year life?

Isn't it amazing that the exact same battery can have different life spans based on local legislation? ;-)

In those states Toyota uses the special batteries from its secret reserve!

no. but batteries have fairly predictable lives depending on cycles and ambient temp.....far different from knowing, when, for ex, a transaxle will crap out..

bob

probably has about a 10-15 yr life, depending on how you drive and how hot a climate.. i'm suspecting you know nothing about battery technology michelle..best to keep quiet on this.

bob

However, she and many others here have a lot of group experience with the NiMH in the Prius application - empirical data trumps theory every time. Science, you know.

Some more you should know about the application: in operation the battery is forced air cooled with air from the passenger compartment. The handful of failures - representing around 0.1% of the Prius sold - and the associated DTCs to date suggest mechanical failure of connections within individual cells, and have not taken on any pattern related to years or miles in service. 2001 models in the US regularly make it to the 200K mile mark on the original hybrid battery. (Michelle et al know all this.) The smart way to bet is that few Prius cars will face battery replacement during their useful life. That has been the experience so far and I don't see any reason that should change.

Mike