Quote:
Originally Posted by MetroMPG
Woohoo! 
Never heard of that problem.
And $5k repair cost is just silly talk. If you were facing a repair like that on an older Prius, you could just put in a used drivetrain, which go for peanuts, comparatively. |
I found eighteen Prius alternators that are supposed to fit a 2006 for $50 or less in the Phoenix area. Scotty's video is apparently six years old:
https://youtu.be/gYpIjnBGL-E. I waded through the comments, my goodness those are a ridiculous waste of everyone's time, but someone wrote "The prius doesn't have an alternator, instead it uses an inverter/dc-dc converter module. It inverts the 220v of the traction battery to 480v to run the electric motor, but it also converts the 220v of the traction battery down to 14v to charge the 12v battery. The car does not need to be running for it to provide 14v, and it won't run that generator you're speaking of until the traction battery has been depleted. If that generator you're speaking of was bad, you wouldn't look at the 12v system to see if it's bad, because it doesn't charge that system. You would diagnose it by looking at the 220v traction battery system to see if it's working, because it only charges that battery. The inverter module is that unit labeled "Hybrid System". You can usually get one from a salvage yard for about $200-300. So only a little more than the cost of an alternator."
Someone asked if it was the inverter and he said no. The owner did not believe him, had it towed to the dealer, who told her the same thing, and she scrapped it.