MarkATH10W

• Engine oil was fresh full synthetic with new denso filter.
• Notable observations at time of import:
  • visible valves under the oil cap showed darkened / hardened build up; I have never seen this in any of my other previous toyota's (all 5-6 of them), which were generally remarkably clean.
  • one of the valve cover bolts was different in apperance; is that standard? or evidence of previous repair work?
  • fresh off the boat, the vehicle stuttered due to an extremely dirty MAF sensor.  problems went away
  • engine seemed to make unrecognizable sounds that I attributed to hybrid system when vehicle was idling? only occured sometimes.

Follow up.  My engine is blown.  metal shards in oil. game over.

If you read my threads, I suffered an engine failure and no start.  Japanese mechanic found evidence of blown engine.  This occurred up a steep incline @ highway speeds while stressing the engine.

Good luck.  I roughly had my vehicle for 2 months.  It is now being shipped off to the wreckers with approx 110 thousand km.

I will not be buying another ATH10W; nothing to support their repairs in north america.

old thread, but just wanted to point out that the original OEM is an AGM battery as well.  Its completely sealed which is what i consider the main benefit as our batteries are inside the cabin.  I've seen a lot of regular unsealed batteries leak,vent, etc...

Picasso, thank you for your reply.  Appologies, no offense intended.  I appreciate any help/sourcing/info that you provide.

The documentation I have states that my vehicle identification is ATH10-0003548.  Is that the number you are looking for? The vehicle is at the mechanics currently.  I am awaiting battery diagnostics/reconditioning.  I am trying to source cells in event that I have bad cells.

So far, these are my leads:

1) I have heard that gen 1 prius cells may be compatable with our ATH10 Alphard hybrids; I have not cross referenced the Part numbers yet.

2) I may be able to buy a complete gen 1 rebuilt AHR10 estima hybrid battery pack;  I do not know if this unit is useful, again I have not been able to cross reference any part numbers yet.

I am open to any suggestions for any solutions  that you provide.

Cheers,

Mark

On 11/5/2023 at 1:37 PM, Picasso said:

If you check on here I help a lot of users on here I have access to all part no.s and can x reference to suitable parts if your not happy to supply me a vin number by normal open chat pm me it  if not I can not help you . Was only trying to help you .

0003548

Why do you ask?

If theres a scenario where we need to replace individual cells rather than an entire battery for the sake of cost savings, I've heard Gen1 Prius has hybrid battery cells.  Im wondering if the Estima Hybrid has compatiable battery cells as well.

Has anyone already performed such homework?

7 hours ago, Richard11 said:

I had all those lights and the vsc. It was a overheating problem. The inverter coolant pump was knackered so not cooling the inverter. New pump was about 200 quid from autojapanesespares on ebay. The vehicle would start and run for a few minutes then just cut out then not start until after about 10 minutes. You can check if the pump is working by opening the right radiator cap in front of engine. If the coolant rises to the top then falls then rises, then the pump is working. If it doesn't then your pumps knackered. They're a robust little pump that last but they are not the best and I think they all fail at some point. Worth checking... also my dad said that he was surprised that in my case the wiring had not burnt out or any fuses or relays gone as power was obviously going to the pump but being dead ended. When I hooked my old pump to a small 12 volt battery it sent sparks flying instantly, smoked, and the heat of the wires burnt my fingers. I guess on my vehicle a fuse or relay or just the engine computer saved this from starting a fire as the old pump when hooked up was very dodgy. Hope this helps. I changed the pump myself it was a very easy job if I can do it anyone can.

4 hours ago, Rojie said:

 

"Power being dead ended".

 

I am intrigued what that means ?

 

A short circuit will create large currents and blow fuses, and create heat (and could melt wiring) until the fuse blows.

Hence the use of fuses.

 

An open circuit does not blow fuses, or create heat.

However, if current is not flowing, voltages can rise and create other problems !

Thank you for the Replies.  Were you able to pull any specific codes that hinted at what part of the hybrid system was failing?  In my case, I don't get any dash lights.  My ready light is on.

Cheers,

Mark

Our Alphard Hybrids have a belt based transmission, unlike 99% of the other toyotas which use a planetary gearbox.  Perhaps the nissan mechanic can help you, as their CVT transmissions are notoriously bad...

Thank you.

I need more information.  I just purchased a "washinglee" brand ODB2 lead to work with tech stream Verion 14.30.023

PaulE shows that it can grab full codes about the hybrid battery system in this thread here:

That sounds super sketchy.  Is it charging the battery the whole time as you descend to the bottom of the tunnel?  What is the battery level according to the display on your the hybrid information system on your display?

I wonder if it is cutting out to prevent overcharge; something to do with that?

Can you tell me which version of techstream you use?  It is good news that you found a version of techstream that has full readings for the Alphard hybrid.  It might be visible under the menu: Help > About

*EDIT* I see that you are using version Ver 14.30.023 - 21084 from your screenshots.

I am going to purchase the same washinglee lead.

Cheers,

Mark

thank you for your reply.  i forwarded the same question to the mechanic, as P3000 is very generic.    I can't justify replacing the entire battery without some more information if it doesn't actually fix it.

I found these posts informative:

https://www.torquenews.com/8113/toyota-prius-p3000-check-replacing-your-hv-battery

https://uk.alphardclub.com/forums/topic/3383-hybrid-battery-condition-application/#comment-14043

Any ODB2 reader error codes you can share?

Any mechanics you can recommend on the island or in BC?

Cheers,

Mark

Thank you for your reply:

I am getting ready for the scenarios, if it can be properly diagnosed.

1) dead battery: (will techstream seems to be be able to see dead banks/cells of batteries according to threads in this forum?  Dr prius app is not compatible according to threads in this forum).

options:

• a) replacement from 3rd party battery manfuactoring is likely the way to go.
• b) cell level diagnosis and repair from specialty hybrid shop
• c) parts pull from japan... not going this route unless im desperate
• d) new battery from japan: $$$$$$

2) dead inverter:

a) purchase used from japan

https://autoparts.beforward.jp/detail/Cooling-Components/Other-A-C-Parts/PA83949062/

Vehicle broke down on the side of the road a month ago without any engine management lights.  Now it won't start.  Dash lights looks OK, and ready light is on, but won't turn over. 2 shops have looked at the vehicle and they can't tell me what is wrong;  auxiliary battery replaced.

Im not sure that they are equipped to make precise diagnosis of the hybrid systems.   They state that a P3000 code is coming up now.

1) Have any of you experienced the same issue?  Where the ready light is on, but it appears that the vehicle won't attempt to start?

2) Beyond ODBII, is there a hybrid specific computer that needs to be scanned and read?

3) Im looking for some help as to what I should be looking at for a diagnosis?

Cheers,

Mark

Hi all. 

Hoping to find some answers?

What are the symptoms of a total inverter failure? (will the vehicle start / run?)

What are the related codes on the ODBII?

Will replacing the inverter fix the problem? or is system complex and has many points of failure outside of the inverter box?

Cheers,

Mark

Gavins, my shuddering issue was caused by a extremely dirty MAF sensor.  problem prevalent especially in hilly situations.  CEL would turn on most times though.   I thought it might have been a bad CVT, and did a drain and fill of the fluid. ANSEL JP700 code reader gave fuel system related warning (i have a long post on this forum).

replaced MAF and issue went away.

Hi all, my van broke down on a freeway going up hill at high speed and under load and now won't start.  Looking for help as to what the issue could be if you have had similar experiences.

Over a 10 second period the following happened:

-going up major hill at high speed, i felt a slight loss of power

- I let off the gas pedal and re-engaged... no power response and engine mechanical sounds got much louder, then sound of a belt squeal, then a clunk that i felt in the drivetrain

- car engine stops, but continues rolling and hybrid electric system is active and tries to compensate.  Power steering is still on, brakes still work.

- I pull over.  Car wont start.  I notice that my electrical system is wonky, I can't power slide the door shut, mirrors, etc.  I believe my auxiliary battery is low.  Hazard lights work for a while.

- prior to the breakdown, no issues with the vehicle, no Check Engine Light, no warning lights that I can think of.

Key Points:

After the breakdown, my immediate thought is that my engine seized.  After being towed, all fluids good, no belts that I can see have snapped. 

The nearly dead auxiliary battery is suspicious.  Can this be related?

Boosting the vehicle has no effect;  the ready light flashes and stays flashing.  I believe I can hear the vehicle attempting to start, but it sounds very weak

I have no time to fully charge the aux battery.

Vehicle was towed to a nearby random mechanic in a small town while I took my kids home, several hundred kilometers away.  Looking for some expertise or experience regarding such issues?

All.  Thanks for your responses.

To clean/replace Do the sensors pop out from the front?  If not, can i reach from behind without taking plastic bumper cover off? or does it require disassembly?

Cheers,

Mark

Hi all.  I am trying to determine if my parking sensors require replacement:

1) front corner sensors seem to not beep until im very close to an object, and japanese lady starts talking... not really useful for helping me judge distances

2) rear corner parking sensors have never come on

3) rear center parking sensor have never come on

4) no errors indicated in the visual display upon turning the vehicle on...

Is this a settings issues? or is this because they are fried?

Sounds like my alphard hybrid... but I have a CVT.  I thought the transmisison was shot.  culprit was the MAF sensor, but it threw a code on mine.

2 hours ago, Alphie said:

Mark, can I just check that you are talking about the surging under load issue, which on the face of it might seem to be a CVT problem, and that this has been solved by replacing the MAF sensor. I ask because I too am starting to notice this uneven drive when the vehicle is heavily loaded and accelerating/climbing. I had though it was some sort of slippage in the drive train. So far it has not raised any fault codes. Thanks Chris

Correct.  when going up inclines or accelerating at speed, it felt like a misshift in the CVT.  but it turns out that it was caused by the MAF sensor.  lean fuel error was thrown.  Upon inspection of the MAF sensor, it looked very dirty.  I replaced mine, but common practice is to clean first with MAF cleaner.  The location of the MAF sensor is a pain compared to other toyotas and I didn't have time to experiment.  Taking out the front fuse/battery terminal box will facilitate access (ull see what i mean once u attempt the job).

On 5/24/2023 at 8:52 PM, atlanticcobra2023 said:

I am not familiar with that product so I cant really give any opinions on it, be interesting to know if it works so please let me know how you get on.

Just got it and tested and it works great, better than expect. 

1) It works seemlessly everytime I turn on my vehicle and auto connects; i don't need to do anything to start or shut down 

2) Sound quality is honestly amazing, on your phone's bluetooth profile for the device you can even turn on the LDAC /  atpX HD setting for higher bitrate / sound quality... so make sure you do this.  normal audio bluetooth sounds flat compared to this, and honestly blows the bluetooth to radio option out of the water, especially when the volume must be cranked up on the bluetooth to radio option...  Im really happy with this device and my theather sound system on my alphard.