Prius Archives - Arnold Solof

Replace 2010 Prius Cabin Air Filter

Arnold — Fri, 03 Nov 2017 17:41:04 +0000

Replace 2010 Prius Cabin Air Filter

Procedure:

Open lower glovebox.
Push one side inward while pulling out to release tab.
Do the same for the opposite side.
It is enough to lower and tilt the box downward without completely removing it to access the air filter.
Pull the right tab on the filter cover to release it, then remove the filter cover.
Remove the old filter (note it’s orientation with the arrow facing forward and pointing up).
Insert the new filter (same orientation).
Replace the filter cover snapping the right tab in place to lock it.
Reinsert the glovebox tabs one side at a time.

In my case, the plunge rod on the right fell out (an “oh shit” moment). It took me a little while to figure out how to put that back on.

Tabs on filter cover circled in red.

Shows where the plunge rod goes if it falls off and you need to put it back.

Shows dirt trapped in the old air filter. Better there than in your lungs.

Toyota says to replace this filter every 30000 miles or every 3 years.

EPAuto recommends that it be replaced every 12000 miles or every 12 months.

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Replace 2010 Prius Engine Air Filter

Arnold — Fri, 03 Nov 2017 16:56:16 +0000

Replace 2010 Prius Engine Air Filter

Engine Air Filter on Amazon Costs $8.87.

Procedure:

Pull the 2 clips circled in red to the side.
Lift off the filter cover.
Remove the old filter
Insert the new filter
Place the cover back on.
Pull the 2 clips to the center locking the filter cover.

The entire procedure takes about 1 minute.

Toyota recommends replacing the engine air filter every 30,000 miles or every 3 years (whichever comes first)

EPAuto recommends that it be replaced every 12,000 miles.

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WEN 6010 6-Inch Waxer/Polisher

Arnold — Fri, 03 Nov 2017 14:38:27 +0000

WEN 6010 6-Inch Waxer/Polisher

I needed to replace my Harbor Freight rotary polisher which I managed to lose. Shopping around I came across this unit on Amazon which had a 4/5 rating and only cost $20.75. I looked up the different applications of rotary vs. orbital polishers. Rotary is more powerful and does a faster job, BUT, because of its power, it can more easily damage the surface if you are not careful.

This unit comes with 2 polishing bonnets. They fit very tightly which is both good & bad. Good in that they stay put. Bad in that they are difficult to put on.

The current project was to polish out the haze on the headlight lenses of my 2010 Prius. Most cars today have acrylic headlight lenses that have a protective coat. The protective coat wears off eventually and then the plastic is degraded by UV rays causing the haze. This not only looks bad but reduces the amount of light the headlights project and therefore how well the driver can see and be seen.

To remove the haze (surface scratching) you can polish out the scratches with abrasive compounds. You start with one for heavy scratches and follow up with one for fine scratches.

Before Photo:

After Polishing

In the last photo you can see some deep scratches which remain. The polishing removes most of the haze.

Based on the ease of use, effectiveness, and low cost I recommend this tool.

Wen 6010 on Amazon

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Effect of the 12-Volt Auxiliary Battery on Prius Gas Mileage

Arnold — Sat, 21 Oct 2017 04:05:54 +0000

Effect of the 12-Volt Auxiliary Battery on Prius Gas Mileage

Optima Yellow Top Battery

I forgot (again) and left my lights on at the RC flying field. My 2010 Prius is a sort of smart car and will turn the lights off if you forget; unless you leave a door open. Its computer considers the hatch a “door” and that is normally left open for hours during a flying session. I drive with my lights on during the day to improve visibility (a habit from motorcycle riding). A few years ago I had to get jumped because I left my lights on at the field. I had been good about remembering to turn the lights off since then until recently when I got lax and it slipped my mind. I had to get jumped again. When I got home I charged the battery up fully and then planned to load test the battery with my Harbor Freight 100 amp load tester. Perceiving the location of the auxiliary battery was not conveniently located, I did some internet research first.

If your Prius has a multi function the display (like the screen in models with a GPS) you can access a maintenance menu which will give you a battery voltage readout. If you then leave the engine off but turn on the accessories including the lights, you can place a low to medium load on the batteries to see if it has an abnormal drop in voltage. I tried this and the voltage dropped from 12.7 volts to 10.9 volts, which I considered an excessive drop; indicating a weak battery. (after later removing the battery I confirmed the “weak” state with the 100 Amp load tester).

I called my local Toyota dealer for a battery price, with and without installation. They wanted $210 for the battery + $40 core charge if you didn’t exchange the old battery. The price including installation would be $265.

I got the Optima Battery on Amazon.for $138.74 (including free Prime Shipping and no core charge). However, a week later at the time of this writing, the price is now $202.99.

Optima Batteries 8171-767 (DS46B24R) YellowTop Prius Battery

There are good how-to replace the Prius Auxiliary Battery videos on YouTube. Although it looks like a lot of steps and the access on first glance looks awkward, it is actually very easy and the steps go very quickly.

I had read some reviews on the auxiliary battery and heard mention that some people had observed improved gas mileage following replacing their auxiliary battery, however, I dismissed them as bullshit. But, immediately after replacing the auxiliary battery I noticed a dramatic improvement in gas mileage. Depending on the type of driving, we are talking about an additional 10 miles per gallon. Holy crap! (I got 62/57 to/from MPG on a trip to a town 15 miles away after changing the battery)

Although it happened, I didn’t understand why. I did some more research and what I found does make sense. To explain it, let’s first review how the Prius Hybrid gets high mileage.

Lightweight
Aerodynamic frame.
Efficient gas engine
Electric “traction” engine
Regenerative brakes (the brakes act as electric generators to recharge the batteries
Computer control algorithms that continuously monitor the state of the vehicle and appropriately optimize the use of available energy.

So, for example, if the batteries are sufficiently charged and less energy is momentarily required, the gas engine use is minimized or totally turned off and the car runs more (or totally) on electricity. If a lot more power is needed and/or the batteries are in a relatively low charge state, gas is used to charge the batteries in addition to powering the gas motor.

The computer programing is based on normal fresh batteries that are working as expected. When the auxiliary battery weakens, its maximum peak voltage drops some, and the change of voltage over time with the application of a charge current is also affected. The result is that the computer spends more time attempting to charge a battery that can’t accept a complete charge. Much of that time with a normal, fresh battery, the gas engine would have been decreased or turned off while running on electricity. This wastes gas.

So I did some calculations to estimate how much that would cost and I calculated that I could buy one battery per year for the money wasted on excess gas purchases. If you consider the drop in gas mileage a proxy for a weak auxiliary battery I estimate the drop in mileage occurred 2 years ago. My Prius is 7 years old. I was still on my original auxiliary battery. What many Prius owners may not realize is the 12-volt battery is not used for the starter motor. It only runs the electronics. However, if the electronics don’t run, you still won’t be able to start the car. The result is until you see the red triangle and your car is totally dead, you don’t get a prior warning (weak starter motor).

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