[Translation] Toyota wanted to charge me $ 4,400 for replacing the battery. I fixed it myself for $ 10
This is a translation of a post from reddit, which seemed informative and proving to me that many things that even seem complicated at first glance can be repaired independently.
ATTENTION: In the text there is a description of the repair of the high-voltage battery system. Observe safety precautions! Careless intervention can be fatal!
I worked as an electrician with my father (he is an expert in this field) when I was younger, so I have an idea what I am doing. Once again I warn about safety!
')
Now, actually, the story ...
This happened last Saturday on the way home (see the title picture). Immediately lit all the warnings on the panel. Arriving home, I googled and found out that in the Camry models the cause could be a malfunction of the brake actuator. In this case, the manufacturer eliminated the malfunction with an extended warranty. It was possible to assume that the “Check Hybrid System” malfunction signal caught fire erroneously and I will easily get rid of, because This error could lead to costly repairs! I was very worried because I bought the car with it, without warranty, just a couple of weeks ago (I haven't even received a number yet).
I went to the service center in the morning and after 4 hours of diagnosis, they reported that my battery had come to an end and needed replacement. The price of the issue is $ 4,400.
But I just bought this car! 4000 bucks ?! This is more than half the cost for which it bought! I contacted customer service and after a couple of days they offered me only $ 500 in reimbursement of the cost. My breakdown was a guarantee, but my mileage was exceeded. It was becoming sad.
Then I remembered reading somewhere when I bought my first Prius, about repairing the battery system by replacing one single faulty battery. And, I bet that in this Camry there were identical battery systems (or similar). There is only one way to find out ...
I pulled out the battery system and brought it to the garage. She looked the same as the Prius. It made me think: they are interchangeable! I decided to discover those cells that might give less voltage than normal. The thing is that it is possible to replace one defective cell for only $ 45. It will be easy.
Started to test.
He took off the busbar (these are orange pieces - they contain copper connectors that connect all the batteries into a common system) and began testing the batteries separately:
8.11v, 8.10v, 8.10v, 8.11v ... everything looked serviceable.
These small lamps were not enough for testing, so I used a coil of magnet wire.
I noticed that there is rust on the connectors. So it should not be.
I tested each cell three times and always the voltage was at acceptable values. I waited a couple of hours and repeated testing. And again everything is fine. Strange.
Attach a coil (to add resistance) and test again. And again, the batteries were normal. That is, all the batteries were intact, without malfunctions. This meant that replacing batteries, which was offered at a service center, would be a waste of money.
But what about rust? Could rust on multiple connectors cause insufficient power for the entire system? I decided to clean them all.
At first, I soaked all 34 connectors in an acetic solution, then gently skimmed with a metal sponge and washed them with a solution of soda and distilled water to get rid of the residue of vinegar. In the upper picture, I keep the already cleaned connector and uncleaned. I did the same with the bus wire to which the connectors are attached. Everything about everything took me about an hour. Rinse and reassemble.
Repair for $ 10
I quickly put the battery system back in and installed it in the car.
All errors disappeared!
All this time I went on gasoline, and the electrical system did not function. Now, charging and discharging was happening correctly. And all thanks to the cleaning connectors.
My golf cards are back in service!
ATTENTION: In the text there is a description of the repair of the high-voltage battery system. Observe safety precautions! Careless intervention can be fatal!
I worked as an electrician with my father (he is an expert in this field) when I was younger, so I have an idea what I am doing. Once again I warn about safety!
')
Now, actually, the story ...
This happened last Saturday on the way home (see the title picture). Immediately lit all the warnings on the panel. Arriving home, I googled and found out that in the Camry models the cause could be a malfunction of the brake actuator. In this case, the manufacturer eliminated the malfunction with an extended warranty. It was possible to assume that the “Check Hybrid System” malfunction signal caught fire erroneously and I will easily get rid of, because This error could lead to costly repairs! I was very worried because I bought the car with it, without warranty, just a couple of weeks ago (I haven't even received a number yet).
I went to the service center in the morning and after 4 hours of diagnosis, they reported that my battery had come to an end and needed replacement. The price of the issue is $ 4,400.
But I just bought this car! 4000 bucks ?! This is more than half the cost for which it bought! I contacted customer service and after a couple of days they offered me only $ 500 in reimbursement of the cost. My breakdown was a guarantee, but my mileage was exceeded. It was becoming sad.
Then I remembered reading somewhere when I bought my first Prius, about repairing the battery system by replacing one single faulty battery. And, I bet that in this Camry there were identical battery systems (or similar). There is only one way to find out ...
I pulled out the battery system and brought it to the garage. She looked the same as the Prius. It made me think: they are interchangeable! I decided to discover those cells that might give less voltage than normal. The thing is that it is possible to replace one defective cell for only $ 45. It will be easy.
Started to test.
He took off the busbar (these are orange pieces - they contain copper connectors that connect all the batteries into a common system) and began testing the batteries separately:
8.11v, 8.10v, 8.10v, 8.11v ... everything looked serviceable.
These small lamps were not enough for testing, so I used a coil of magnet wire.
I noticed that there is rust on the connectors. So it should not be.
I tested each cell three times and always the voltage was at acceptable values. I waited a couple of hours and repeated testing. And again everything is fine. Strange.
Attach a coil (to add resistance) and test again. And again, the batteries were normal. That is, all the batteries were intact, without malfunctions. This meant that replacing batteries, which was offered at a service center, would be a waste of money.
But what about rust? Could rust on multiple connectors cause insufficient power for the entire system? I decided to clean them all.
At first, I soaked all 34 connectors in an acetic solution, then gently skimmed with a metal sponge and washed them with a solution of soda and distilled water to get rid of the residue of vinegar. In the upper picture, I keep the already cleaned connector and uncleaned. I did the same with the bus wire to which the connectors are attached. Everything about everything took me about an hour. Rinse and reassemble.
Repair for $ 10
I quickly put the battery system back in and installed it in the car.
All errors disappeared!
All this time I went on gasoline, and the electrical system did not function. Now, charging and discharging was happening correctly. And all thanks to the cleaning connectors.
My golf cards are back in service!
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/376517/
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