What You Can Do When Your Toyota Prius Battery Life Expires

Posted by admin on Sunday Jun 5, 2011 Under Toyota News

TOYOTA PRIUS BATTERY LIFE

No one has been able to give the exact span of the Toyota Prius battery life. It is a hybrid battery that lasts a fairly long time. Toyota people state that the Toyota Prius battery life is not measured on years but rather on the mileage. They claim it can run for about 100,000 to 150,000 miles. When the Toyota Prius battery life has expired the owners of the Prius will have to look for ways to get their car back on the road. The Toyota dealers do have replacement batteries available. The cost for a replacement battery is about $4000.

Who wants to pay such high cost for a used car?

There are other ways which can be used instead of buying a new battery from the Toyota dealership. You can search for ways in which you can make use of your old Prius battery and recycle it to make your car active once again.

Doesn’t this sound better?

I used this guide available on the internet when I faced the problem of my Toyota Prius battery life expiring without any warning. It gave way and I had to search for techniques to replace it. This guide to rebuild a battery yourself really helped me. It was cheap and economical. If in case you are a busy man and do not have the time to rebuild the battery yourself, don’t worry. You still won’t have to pay $4000 for a new replacement battery. You can hire a local mechanic for this work. I have found local mechanics will only charge you regular shop labor rates to fix your Prius battery. They did ask me to provide the guide for them so they could fix it to my specifications.

This option was still better than buying a new or used battery for your old Toyota Prius car. I came across this problem a little bit ago and at first I was going to have a mechanic rebuild the battery for me. However I had some time and I was able to tackle the project myself with no complications. Once you have the battery rebuilt you will not have to worry for the next seven or eight years. The rebuilt Toyota Prius battery life is expected to be like the original one. I am happy with my rebuilt battery and I am glad I invested the little bit of money I did to get the guide.

About the Author:

Stephen is the owner of a Toyota Prius and has used this guide to fix his own Prius. Discover how to save thousands of dollars when your Toyota Prius battery life has expired. Use this guide to fix the battery yourself or give it to your local mechanic and have them fix it for you. Either way you will save a lot of money to have your Prius back on the road. http://priusbatteryguide.weebly.com

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TOYOTA PRIUS BATTERY COST

The Toyota Prius is a mid sized car that is completely hybrid electric. It has been developed by the Toyota Motor Company. The Prius is believed to be one of the most fuel efficient cars sold in the US as per the United states Environment Protection Agency.

The main problem many customers our having with the Prius is related to the battery life. In a lot of cases the Prius batteries are only lasting 150,000 miles or only between 8 – 10 years. The Toyota Prius is a great car, but if you are ever in need of the batteries to be replaced, you have a big problem. Let us give you your options and provide you with some help.

When you are not in the warranty period then you will have to pay a high price for your hybrid batteries. Some used Prius battery packs are offered on websites which will cost around a $1000. However, this can be risky. You should be looking for other dealers that can give you high quality hybrid batteries at a good price. This can be hard to find because a lot of dealers are still charging outrageous prices for new hybrid batteries.

The Toyota Prius battery cost has come down recently. Earlier they were priced at around $3000. When you look around you will be able to find them for approximately $2300. These quoted prices of the Toyota Prius battery cost are outrageous and are not affordable for the typical Prius owner.

Another quick and cheaper option to reduce your Toyota Prius battery cost is to buy a rebuilt battery from other dealers other than Toyota. This will save both your time and money. You can even find lots of people who are ready to sell Toyota Prius rebuilt batteries online. This is still a little risky but a lot cheaper than paying your money to Toyota to fix what should of never broke in the first place.

I myself decided to use the lowest cost option. I have found a guide online which you can use for rebuilding your battery yourself. I didn’t want to rebuild the battery myself at first so I talked to my local mechanic shop and they said if I give them the guide they will look it ocher and rebuild the battery for me at shop rates.

I could not justify giving Toyota my hard earned money so I did some research and discovered this excellent guide. The guide was not expensive and it saved me a ton of money and hassle. I was back on the road for under $500 and had plenty of money in my pocket and not Toyotas.

About the Author:

Stephen is the owner of a Toyota Prius and has used this guide to fix his own Prius. Discover the way I did to save thousands on your Toyota Prius battery cost. Use this guide to fix the battery yourself or give it to your local mechanic and have them fix it for you. Either way you will save a lot of money to have your Prius back on the road.

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Various Toyota Hybrids Get Tax Credit Certification From IRS

Posted by admin on Wednesday May 11, 2011 Under Toyota News

Starting in 2006, individuals buying hybrid cars will get a tax credit instead of a tax deduction. The IRS has just started to kick out the exact amounts you can claim for your new hybrid.

Various Toyota Hybrids Get Tax Credit Certification From IRS

Under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the tax benefits of owning a hybrid vehicle underwent significant changes. Whereas you could previously claim a tax deduction, the new law converted the deduction into a tax credit. Tax credits are FAR more valuable than deductions, because they reduce the amount of tax you owe on a pound for pound basis. Tax Deductions, on the other hand, merely reduce your adjusted gross income prior to determining the amount of tax you owe pursuant to the tax tables. In laymen’s terms, this conversion is a very good thing.

Not every hybrid car qualifies for a tax credit. The Internal Revenue Service must first evaluate it and then issue guidance on which cars qualify and the size of the credit you can claim for each. The maximum the IRS can designate per car is £3,400. Here are the numbers it recently kicked out for various Toyota hybrid models.

2005 Toyota Prius:    £3150

2006 Toyota Prius:   £3150

2006 Toyota Highlander 4WD Hybrid: £2600

2006 Toyota Highlander 2WD Hybrid: £2600

2006 Lexus RX400h 2WD:  £2200

2006 Lexus RX400h 4WD:  £2200

If you purchased your hybrid car prior to 2006, you are restricted to claiming a tax deduction in the amount previously designated by the IRS, usually £2,000. If you waited until 2006, you can claim the above amounts with a few hitches. First, the amount only applies to the first 60,000 cars sold for each model. If you purchase a hybrid in the 60,0001 to 120,000 sales range, you can claim only half of the tax credit. Sales 120,001 through 180,000 can claim on a quarter of the amount designated above. Exactly how you are supposed to know the sales figures is a bit murky, but Toyota will undoubtedly take steps to make it clear.

Hybrid vehicles make sense from an environmental aspect. Throw in significant savings on gas costs and a large tax credit, and they should fly off the lots.

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Toyota Reeling Again From 2010 Prius Braking Concerns

Posted by admin on Thursday Apr 21, 2011 Under Toyota News

On the heels of their Sudden Acceleration Recalls, Toyota is now under pressure for braking issues on the Prius, Toyota’s popular hybrid. According to Ray LaHood, Transportation Secretary, Transportation officials will begin an inquiry after reports were received that the Japanese government has initiated an investigation in brake malfunction complaints, according to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association.

A Toyota spokesman in Japan indicated that the braking complaints received were involving situations where the drivers were on a bumpy road or frozen surface. According to one complainant on record at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), “My 2010 Toyota Prius has a serious braking problem, the car lunges forward after (I) apply my brakes over a bumpy surface. This is very unexpected and luckily no one was in front of me otherwise I would have hit them. This already happened several times, took my car to the dealer and no solution, I don’t know what to do with a brand new (car) like this.” There are many complaints with similar descriptions around braking/acceleration problems when encountering even minor bumps and potholes with the 2010 Prius.

Brakes in the Prius and other hybrids operate differently from those in standard cars. Hybrids use an engagement system between their braking system and electric motors to generate electricity for recharging the batteries along with standard brakes. The braking problems could lie within this engagement system.

This latest issue with the Prius is on top of Toyota’s recall of 3.8 million cars in November 2009 to fix accelerator pedals and software to address what has been reported as sudden acceleration problems. Toyota dealers were making modifications to the gas pedals by removing inches from the bottom so the gas pedals would not get trapped under the floor mats. Toyota then followed up that recall with another recall for sudden acceleration on January 21, 2010. On that day Toyota Motor Sales announced a recall of 2.3 million vehicles which included:

* 2005-2010 Avalon
* 2007-2010 Camry
* 2009-2010 Corolla
* 2010 Highlander
* 2009-2010 Matrix
* 2009-2010 RAV4
* 2008-2010 Sequoia
* 2007-2010 Tundra

According to a USA article titled “100 Toyota drivers filed complaints before recall”, “she would become one of more than 100 drivers, according to a USA TODAY search of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration complaints database, who over the past few years have had their Toyota vehicles take off when they weren’t expected to.”

Apparently Toyota was not as aggressive at dealing with the issue as they have let on. According to LaHood, “The recalls involving pedal entrapment and possible sticky gas pedals on Toyota vehicles are some of the largest in automobile history. Every step of the way, NHTSA… officials pushed Toyota to take corrective action so that consumers would be safe.”…”Today, Toyota is apparently taking the right steps to address these safety issues. Unfortunately it took much effort to get to this point.”

During a Congressional hearing on Weds, February 3rd, the Transportation Secretary said that owners of recalled Toyotas should stop driving them until they are repaired. He was quoted as saying, “… stop driving it, take it to a Toyota dealer because they believe they have a fix for it.”

Toyota has stated that they have a solution to deploy for the accelerator issue, but there hasn’t been any official Toyota release regarding the 2010 Prius braking problem. Toyota’s U.S. sales have plunged 16% in January as an apparent reaction to the sudden acceleration recall, even as sales of other automakers rose. What the affect of this Prius issue will be, no one knows. It is apparent that Toyota’s image has suffered severe damage and we’ll have to wait and see how long it will take for it to recover.

To read an in-depth article on this situation from a 3rd party go to Consumer Reports article on the Toyota recall.

Albert Hunter

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Toyota Recalls the Prius Over Faulty Brakes

Posted by admin on Wednesday Apr 13, 2011 Under Toyota News

Amidst numerous concerns over its vehicles, Toyota has issued yet another recall. Previous recalls have focused on problems with the accelerators on a number of their vehicles, leading to sudden uncontrolled acceleration. These acceleration incidents have led to the deaths of multiple people. This time, the company is addressing a computer issue with the brakes on its popular Prius hybrid. Could the accelerator issues also be a computer problem?

In modern vehicles it is not rare for the brakes, steering, and even acceleration to be partially computer-controlled. Although some customers fear a loss of control to a computer, most of the time these systems actually increase the vehicle’s safety by responding to problems before the driver is aware of them. However, unless automobile manufacturers take extreme care, mistakes in these computer systems can have disastrous results.

As a hybrid, the Prius makes use of both electrical and gasoline-based drive systems to increase its fuel efficiency. One of several methods it uses to recharge its batteries is known as regenerative braking. When the driver hits the brakes, the vehicle stops the car by using its momentum to drive a generator. If the driver needs to stop suddenly, however, the computer must give control to a standard braking system. Difficulties switching between these two systems are what led to the most recent recall.

Steve Wozniak, one of the co-founders of Apple Computers and a long-time Prius enthusiast, owns dozens of Priuses and has claimed to have discovered a software issue that might be behind the acceleration issues. He reports that some vehicles can experience sudden acceleration without any input from the driver. And this is in addition to the brake issue that has already triggered the new round of recalls

The acceleration and braking recalls are a serious embarrassment for Toyota. Other automobile manufacturers use computer-controlled systems very safely. In fact, many European car companies have had systems in place for years that automatically prevent uncontrolled acceleration. Apparently this is too much to pay for Toyota, a company that has been gradually reducing the quality of its components for years to cut costs.

If you or someone you love have been seriously affected by a sudden Toyota acceleration or braking incident, you are entitled to seek damages for your losses. The compassionate and experienced personal injury lawyers of Habush Habush & Rottier are here to help you seek justice.

No one should have to suffer because of a company’s negligence. To discuss your case with a lawyer, call the acceleration injury lawyers Habush Habush & Rottier today.

Joseph Devine

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Toyota Recalls Now a Public Relations Nightmare

Posted by admin on Monday Apr 4, 2011 Under Toyota News

The car manufacturer Toyota is not having a good year so far is it? And it’s only February! Several million Toyota cars had been warned and then recalled about a floor mat issue that caused the gas pedal to get caught. Then the recall was expanded to more models and years plus the public was informed it was more than a floor mat issue; it was mechanical.

Why did Toyota wait so long to tell the public the truth? By waiting to divulge that it wasn’t floor mats, but a mechanical part in the gas pedal they may very well have caused more injuries and lives to be lost. At least now they seem to be doing the right thing by getting all the cars in and fixed. But does this action come too late to restore the public’s confidence in Toyota?

By first saying the problem was a floor mat, and then identifying the problem as the gas pedal while expanding the recall, many Toyota owners have to be wondering if their car is safe or will it be recalled as well. Is Toyota sitting on another mechanical failure without telling anyone?

Well, it’s not looking to good because the Toyota Prius is the next Toyota car with problems showing up. There have been rumors and stories floating around the Internet that the new 2010 Toyota Prius has braking issues. Toyota states they have already fixed the problem in the cars on the production line, but they aren’t ready to do a recall yet. Why aren’t they doing a recall? Are they waiting for fatalities to pile up, as the case with the sticking gas pedal?

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration isn’t very amused by Toyota’s handling of these recalls, and has issued a formal inquiry in to the 2010 Toyota Prius braking issues. The N.H.T.S.A. has only received 124 complaints but that number will no doubt climb much higher once more Prius owners realize that the braking system is indeed faulty and they aren’t crazy.

This is really turning into a public relations nightmare. Toyota has always been known for safety and reliability, but that is now turning rapidly into distrust and fear. The completely lack of concern over consumer’s lives, consumer’s that bought their cars, is chilling. Yes you’ll lose money in a recall, but aren’t human lives more important than money? I shudder to think at the answer Toyota would give at the moment.

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Toyota Prius Battery Problems

The Toyota Prius battery is an excellent powering device. It has numerous advantages over the other leading products for supply of power. However, there are certain problems which are noticeable and quite prominent in many cases. Some of the familiar and mass experienced Toyota Prius battery problems are:

- The battery from Toyota has to be charged once every two weeks to maintain performance and to prevent discharge, in the event the vehicle is idle for a longer period than two weeks.

- The car some times, as reported by some owners, goes dead. The car battery simply breaks down without a reason.

- Service is not up to the mark and the service guys are not always ready to help.

- Batteries are powerful yet very surprising as no one knows when it is going to become discharged and it will die without warning.

These are the some very common Toyota Prius battery problems faced by the Toyota users.

Any problems faced by users within the warranty period are taken care of by Toyota themselves but after that it can be very costly to pay for the battery replacements and services.

There are options to fix your battery in the event you are not under warranty. Most of them will cost you anywhere from $1500 for a used battery and around $3800 for a new one. The best option which will save you a lot money is the guide to re building your battery.

This is the best solution for your Toyota Prius battery problems. The problematic batteries can be either disposed off and a new battery can be built or the old battery can be used and rebuilt to a fresh one. The best fact about the guide for Toyota battery problems is that it offers one of the best methods for recycling your old car battery instead of buying a new and costly one.

Why would you pay high for a new battery for your old car? When there are scopes for making use of the old battery in the best possible way and there is no need to spend a lump sum on the Toyota Prius hybrid batteries.

Keep in mind you do not have to rebuild these batteries yourself if you do not have the time or don’t like this type of work. There are many local mechanics which will rebuild the battery for you when you provide the guide for them. This option will cost a little more than building the battery yourself however it usually will only cost you about $500 dollars to get your Prius back on the road.

You can carry out the research work as I did however I would like to offer solutions for the Toyota Prius battery problems you may be having, as I am getting good results from my own rebuilt battery. I was able to rebuild it myself for only a few hundred dollars.

Stephen R Williams

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Toyota Prius Battery Life

Posted by admin on Thursday Mar 10, 2011 Under Toyota News

What is the average span of the Toyota Prius battery life?

There hasn’t been a for sure answer found on the estimated life of the Toyota Prius hybrid battery. There are people who are not getting longevity with their Toyota Prius battery life. Before this started to happen it was found they can run for over 200,000 miles and for about nine years.

The Toyota Prius battery life does last longer compared to the others because of the fact that they get only 60% charged. This also offers scope for regenerative braking. Normally the system usually offers the battery to vary its charge level by a maximum of 10- 15%. Therefore the battery is never allowed to get fully charged.

In the US the entire hybrid system has a warranty of 8 years for 100,000 miles and it does include the Toyota Prius battery life. When you live in California, you can get a longer lasting warranty for your Prius battery. They offer a warranty of 10 years or 150,000 miles.

According to Toyota they have not made a single replacement of their battery till date.

Toyota’s nickel metal hybrid batteries are expected to last for 150,000 miles while other brands are estimated to last for only 36,000 miles or three years. This estimation of the Toyota Prius battery life has been based on the laboratory bench testing.

Statements regarding the Toyota Prius battery life by Toyota say the life of their Prius batteries is not determined by the time. Rather they are calculated depending upon the mileage. It has proved to be worthy of 180,000 miles quite easily. But they also state that some Prius batteries sold, already are running for more than 200,000 miles without having any problems.

The expectancy of the Toyota Prius battery life is about eight years and you can expect them to last for nine years without any wear or tear. After eight years it might need some replacements. Those who face problems regarding their battery are suggested to try out all the options which are easily available to them. We have found 3 main options you can consider,

* You can buy a brand new battery from a dealer. This will set you back between $3000 and $4000 for something Toyota should have never let happen.
* You can check out eBay there are some people are selling Toyota Prius batteries for half the cost of the Toyota dealers. They are usually ranging from $1500 to $2500. This can be risky because you will not know how much were and tear or how many miles the battery will have on it.
* The best option I have found was on the internet. You can find a guide on the internet which will show you how to rebuild your own Prius battery using just regular old tools you would have in your garage. Some people feel this is a not a task they can handle. They can still save money using this option. There are shops other than Toyota dealers which will actually use the Prius Guide you provide for them and will rebuild the battery for you. This option is a lot cheaper than any of the above options because in most cases you can have your battery rebuilt and your Prius back on the road for about $500 dollars.

For more information on the Prius battery guide you will find it at the link I have posted below. Check out the guide it may be what you are looking for and you will keep a lot of money in your pocket and not Toyota’s.

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Do you have a dead Toyota Prius Battery and need to know how to fix it? Well, I am sure that you have done some research and know that without warranty from Toyota, the replacement cost for new cells is upwards of $5000. This method is way too expensive isn’t it? Well there are a couple of methods that you can choose if you do not want to pay $5000 to Toyota to completely replace your hybrid batteries (HB).

Purchase Rebuilt Hybrid Batteries From Private Mechanics Online
One way to cut your costs is to buy a rebuilt HB online from private mechanics. There are many websites that offer to sell you rebuilt battery cells online. One of the most common places to look for these rebuilt HB’s is on eBay or Amazon.

However, you may still end up paying 1000’s of dollars for these rebuilt cells as it takes time, labor and new parts to completely rebuild a hybrid battery.

So is there no way to avoid paying 1000’s of dollars to fix your dead batteries? Well actually, there is one more route that you can take if you want to fix your car without breaking your wallet…

Save $5000 By Rebuilding Your Dead Cells Yourself With The Prius Hybrid Battery Repair Guide
If you want to avoid paying 1000’s of dollars to drive your Prius, it is highly recommended to use the repair guide. Using a repair guide is the best economical way to start driving your Prius again!

This repair guide is created from very experienced mechanics that have been fixing and repair dead hybrid batteries for many years. They have taken this knowledge and have created a step-by-step guide with detail pictures to show you how to fix the dead cells yourself for a fraction of the price.

Want to check out this guide for yourself? Visit: Prius Battery Repair.

As you know, replacing your dead hybrid batteries can cost you up to $5000. If you want the cheapest and best option to fix your dead cells, it is highly recommended to use the Prius Hybrid Repair guide.

Don’t want to spend $5000 on new batteries? Visit: Fix Hybrid Batteries.

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Third Generation Toyota Prius Promises to Be Best One Yet

Posted by admin on Sunday Jan 2, 2011 Under Toyota News

Many cars improve from generation to generation as they incorporate the latest technological and design improvements since the previous generation model was rolled out. However, one misstep here or there can throw those improvements out the window, something Ford learned when they updated their edgy Taurus, replacing it with a bland, bulbous model.

Toyota is about to release its third generation Prius, its award winning and highly popular hybrid car. This model may very well be the best one yet, a car that has sold more than one million copies since its introduction ten years ago.

Nice Improvements For The Next Generation Prius

The third generation Prius will likely be a standout for Toyota, for the following reasons:

The new Prius incorporates the latest advancements in Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive (HSD) technology. The updated system is smaller and less costly than earlier HSD technology, although nickel-cadmium batteries are still being used. Toyota says that it’ll eventually roll out lithium-ion technology for the Prius in coming years as the technology takes hold.

Priced from $21,000, the 2010 Toyota Prius is actually one thousand dollars lower than the 2009 model. Initially, Toyota was planning a one thousand dollar price increase, but decided to offer a standard model at a lower price to compete with Honda’s new arrival, the Insight. The Honda Insight retails for just under $20,000, but it is smaller, lighter and less roomy than the Prius. Moreover, the Prius deliver much better fuel economy than the Honda.

Exceptional Fuel Economy, Better Than The Honda Insight

Speaking about fuel economy, the Toyota Prius achieves 51 mpg city, 48 mpg highway while the Honda Insight delivers 40 city and 43 highway. Comparatively, the all new Ford Fusion Hybrid sedan which is larger than the Prius, delivers 41 mpg city, 36 mpg highway.

The new Prius will be offered in five trim levels, allowing customers to spec out the car with a leather trimmed interior, heated front seats with driver lumbar support, advanced navigation system and more. Fully optioned, a Prius could retail for as high as $32,000 which puts it in entry level Lexus territory. Oh, by the way, Toyota is working on special Prius based model for Lexus too.

Perhaps the most noticeable changes for the third generation Prius is that it is quieter and roomier than earlier models. Particularly the latter change will be most welcoming, giving the Prius yet another edge over its Honda rival.

Matthew C. Keegan

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