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Old 05-22-2012, 02:55 PM   #9
XDCX
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Join Date: Nov 2007
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Originally Posted by XDCX View Post
That's a great point - What happens to a Toyota Prius when the market value of the car falls to the point it's no longer worth replacing the battery pack?

At first I was thinking it would just become a low powered gasoline vehicle that had to lug around a heavy/worthless battery, but the more I think about it I start to wonder if a Prius with a bad battery pack would even be drivable?

I'll do a Google search later today when I get some time and see if I can find the answer.
OK, I did the Google search and it appears a person could still drive a Prius with a bad main battery but it wouldn't be a great experience.

The vehicle would be very slow off the line because it doesn't have any assist from the electric motors and I don't think the A/C or the electric power steering would work.

The other negative is the driver would have to keep the 12 volt battery that starts the gasoline engine charged because the battery typically receives its charge from the main battery pack.
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