2003 TOYOTA PRIUS battery

167
When the ignition switch is turned to on
or off, you may hear a sound coming from
the hybrid vehicle battery in the trunk.
However, this does not indicate any
trouble.
NOTICE
The “READY” light does not come on
when the selector lever is put in a
position other than “P”. Depress the
brake pedal and put the selector lever
in “P” and turn the ignition switch to
“START” again.
If there is a problem somewhere in the
hybrid system, the hybrid system malfunc-
tion warning light will come on in place of
the “READY” light. If this happens, contact
Toyota dealer.
NOTICE
When you start the hybrid system at
a lowered outside temperature, it may
take longer before the blinking
“READY” light changes to stay on.
Always slow down in gusty crosswinds.
This will allow you much better control.
Drive slowly onto curbs and, if pos-
sible, at a right angle. Avoid driving
onto high, sharpedged objects and
other road hazards. Failure to do so
can lead to severe tire damage result-
ing in tire bursts.
Drive slowly when passing over bumps
or travelling on a bumpy road. Other-
wise, the impact could cause severe
damage to the tires and/or wheels.
When parking on a hill, turn the front
wheels until they touch the curb so
that the vehicle will not roll. Apply the
parking brake, and put the selector le-
ver into “P”. If necessary, block the
wheels.
Washing your vehicle or driving through
deep water may get the brakes wet. To
see whether they are wet, check that
there is no traffic near you, and then
press the pedal lightly. If you do not
feel a normal braking force, the brakes
are probably wet. To dry them, drive
the vehicle cautiously while lightly
pressing the brake pedal with the park-
ing brake pulled. If they still do not
work safely, pull to the side of the road
and call a Toyota dealer for assistance.
CAUTION
Before driving off, make sure the
parking brake is fully released and
that the parking brake reminder
light is off.
Do not leave your vehicle unat-
tended with the “READY” light on.
Do not rest your foot on the brake
pedal while driving. It can cause
dangerous overheating, needless
wear, and poor fuel economy.
To drive down a long or steep hill,
reduce your speed and downshift.
Remember, if you ride the brakes
excessively, they may overheat and
not work properly.
Be careful when accelerating or
braking on a slippery surface. Sud-
den acceleration or engine braking,
could cause the vehicle to spin or
skid.
Tips for driving in various
conditions123.

168
Do not drive in excess of the speed
limit. Even if the legal speed limit
permits it, do not drive over 140
km/h (85 mph) unless your vehicle
has highspeed capability tires.
Driving over 140 km/h (85 mph)
may result in tire failure, loss of
control and possible injury. Be sure
to consult a tire dealer to determine
whether the tires on your vehicle
are highspeed capability tires or
not before driving at such speeds.
Do not continue normal driving
when the brakes are wet. If they are
wet, your vehicle will require a lon-
ger stopping distance, and it may
pull to one side when the brakes
are applied. Also, the parking brake
will not hold the vehicle securely.
Make sure you have a proper freeze
protection of coolant.
Your coolant must contain ethyleneglycol
type coolant for a proper corrosion
protection of aluminum components. Use
“Toyota Genuine Long Life Coolant” or
equivalent.
See 217 page in Section 82 for details
about coolant type selection.
NOTICE
Do not use alcohol type antifreeze or
plain water alone.
When it is extremely cold, we recommend
to use 60% solution for your Toyota, to
provide protection down to about 50°C
(58 °F). Do not use more than 70% solu-
tion for better coolant performance.
Check the condition of the auxiliary
battery and cables.
Cold temperatures reduce the capacity of
any auxiliary battery, so it must be in top
shape to provide enough power for winter
starting. Section 83 tells you how to
visually inspect the auxiliary battery. Your
Toyota dealer will be pleased to check the
level of charge. Make sure the engine oil viscosity is
suitable for the cold weather.
See 215 page in Section 82 for recom-
mended viscosity. Leaving a heavy sum-
mer oil in your vehicle during winter
months may cause harder starting. If you
are not sure about which oil to use, call
your Toyota dealer—he will be pleased to
help.
Keep the door locks from freezing.
Squirt lock deicer or glycerine into the
locks to keep them from freezing.
Use a washer fluid containing an anti
freeze solution.
This product is available at your Toyota
dealer and most auto parts stores. Follow
the manufacturer ’s directions for how
much to mix with water.
NOTICE
Do not use engine antifreeze or any
other substitute as washer fluid be-
cause it may damage your vehicle’s
paint.
Winter driving tips124.

172
Before making these checks, make sure
you have followed the correct starting
procedure given in ”How to start the
hybrid system” on page 166 in Section 4
and that you have sufficient fuel. Also
check whether the other keys will start the
hybrid system. If they work, your key may
be broken. Have the key checked at your
Toyota dealer. If none of your keys work,
the hybrid vehicle immobiliser system is
possibly broken. Call your Toyota dealer.
(See ”Keys” on page 18 in Section 21.)
If the instrument cluster dims or the
instrument cluster display turns off
with the ignition switch on—1. Check that the auxiliary battery termi- nals are tight and clean.
2. If the auxiliary battery terminals are O.K., the auxiliary battery is dis-
charged. You may try jump starting.
See “(b) Jump starting” for further in-
structions.
NOTICE
Hybrid vehicles cannot be push
started.
If the instrument cluster is shown in
appropriate brightness with the ignition
switch turned to on—
The hybrid vehicle system is suspected to
be faulty. Contact your Toyota dealer. If the auxiliary battery is discharged,
the hybrid system can be started by
jump starting. Depending on the the ve-
hicle condition, the engine may not
start.
To avoid serious personal injury and
damage to your vehicle which might re-
sult from battery explosion, acid burns,
electrical burns, or damaged electronic
components, these instructions must be
followed precisely.
If you are unsure about how to follow this
procedure, we strongly recommend that
you seek the help of a competent qualified
technician or towing service.
If your vehicle will not start—
(a) Simple checks129.
(b) Jump starting

173
CAUTION
Auxiliary battery and booster bat-
tery contain sulfuric acid which is
poisonous and corrosive. Wear pro-
tective safety glasses when jump
starting, and avoid spilling acid on
your skin, clothing, or vehicle.
If you should accidentally get acid
on yourself or in your eyes, remove
any contaminated clothing and flush
the affected area with water for im-
mediately. Then get immediate med-
ical attention. If possible, continue
to apply water with a sponge or
cloth while en route to the medical
office.
The gas normally produced by a
battery will explode if a flame or
spark is brought near. Use only
standardized jumper cables and do
not smoke or light a match while
jump starting.
Warning: Battery posts, terminals and
related accessories contain lead and
lead compounds, chemicals known to
the State of California to cause can-
cer and reproductive harm. Wash
hands after handling.
NOTICE
The battery used for boosting must
be 12 V. Do not jump start unless you
are sure that the booster battery is
correct.
50p001b
JUMP STARTING PROCEDURE1. Put the selector lever in “P” and apply the parking brake.
2. Turn off the headlight switch and interi- or light.
3. Turn the ignition switch to “LOCK” and remove the key from the ignition
switch.
4. Open the trunk and remove the 3 clips at the left side of the trunk by pushing
the center with a screwdriver. Remove
the auxiliary battery cover.

174
50p002
5. Remove the positive terminal cover ofthe auxiliary battery.
6. If the booster battery is installed in another vehicle, make sure the ve-
hicles are not touching. Turn off all
unnecessary lights and accessories.
7. If required, remove all the vent plugs from the booster batteries. Lay a cloth
over the open vents on the batteries.
(This helps reduce the explosion haz-
ard, personal injuries and burns.) 8. If the engine in the vehicle with the
booster battery is not running, start it
and let it run for a few minutes. During
jump starting, run the engine at about
2000 rpm with the accelerator pedal
lightly depressed.
50p044b
Discharged
battery
Booster
battery
Positive
terminal (“+” mark)
Jumper
cable Positive
terminal
(“+” mark)
9. Connect the jumper cables in the order
a, b, c, d.
a. Connect the clamp of the positive(red) jumper cable to the positive
(+) terminal on the discharged bat-
tery.
b. Connect the clamp at the other end of the positive (red) jumper cable to
the positive (+) terminal on the
booster battery.

175
50p045b
Booster
battery
Negative
terminal
(“” mark) Jumper
cable
Discharged
battery
c. Connect the clamp of the negative
(black) jumper cable to the negative
(–) terminal on the booster battery.
d. Connect the clamp at the other end of the negative (black) jumper cable
to a solid, stationary, unpainted, me-
tallic point of the vehicle with the
discharged battery.
The recommended connecting point is
shown in the following illustrations:
50p043a
Connecting point
CAUTION
When making the connections, to
avoid serious injury, do not lean over
the battery or accidentally let the
jumper cables or clamps touch any-
thing except the correct battery termi-
nals or the ground.
10. Start the hybrid system. Make sure the “READY” light is on. If the hybrid ve-
hicle battery warning light comes on in
the multiinformation display, the hybrid
vehicle battery is also discharged. Con-
tact your Toyota dealer.
11. Carefully disconnect the cables in the exact reverse order: the negative cable
and then the positive cable.
12. Carefully dispose of the battery cover cloths—they may now contain sulfuric
acid.
13. If removed, replace all the battery vent plugs.
If the cause of your auxiliary battery dis-
charging is not apparent (for example,
lights left on), you should have it checked
at your Toyota dealer.

193
Check the interior of your vehicle. Wa-
ter and dirt can accumulate under the
floor mats and could cause corrosion. Oc-
casionally check under the mats to make
sure the area is dry. Be particularly care-
ful when transporting chemicals, cleans-
ers, fertilizers, salt, etc.; these should be
transported in proper containers. If a spill
or leak should occur, immediately clean
and dry the area.
Keep your vehicle in a well ventilated
garage or a roofed place. Do not park
your vehicle in a damp, poorly venti-
lated garage. If you wash your vehicle in
the garage, or if you drive it in covered
with water or snow, your garage may be
so damp it will cause corrosion. Even if
your garage is heated, a wet vehicle can
corrode if the ventilation is poor.
60p001b
Your Toyota is a hybrid vehicle. Pay
particular attention when washing your
To y o t a .
NOTICE
Before washing your Toyota, be sure
to observe the following in order to
avoid the risk of damage to your ve-
hicle.
 Do not bring the tip of the nozzle
of the highlypressurized car wash
closer to the air vent on your
Toyota. If water enters, the hybrid
vehicle battery assembly might be
damaged.
 Do not splash water on the electric
components in the engine compart-
ment. This may cause the malfunc-
tion of the electric components.
Washing your Toyota
Keep your vehicle clean by regular
washing.
The following cases may cause weakness
to the paint or corrosion to the body and
parts. Wash your vehicle as soon as pos-
sible.
Washing and waxing your
Toyota141.

204
Some states have vehicle emission in-
spection programs which include OBD
(OnBoard Diagnostics) checks.
The OBD system monitors the operation
of the emission control system. When the
OBD system determines that a problem
exists somewhere in the emission control
system, the malfunction indicator lamp
comes on. In this case, your vehicle may
not pass the I/M test and need to be
repaired. Contact your Toyota dealer to
service the vehicle.
Even if the malfunction indicator lamp
does not come on, your vehicle may not
pass the I/M test as readiness codes
have not been set in the OBD system.
Readiness codes are automatically set
during ordinary driving. However, when the
battery is disconnected or run down, the
codes are erased. Also, depending on
your driving habits, the codes may not be
completely set.
Also, if the malfunction indicator lamp had
come on recently due to temporary mal-
function such as a loose fuel tank cap,
your vehicle may not pass the I/M test. The malfunction indicator lamp will go off
after taking several driving trips, but the
error code in the OBD system will not be
cleared unless about 40 trips or more are
taken.
If your vehicle does not pass the I/M test
and the malfunction indicator lamp does
not come on, contact your Toyota dealer
to prepare the vehicle for retesting.
147.Emission inspection and
maintenance (I/M) programs