Check Hybrid System

Asked by Freddy Feb 26, 2019 at 12:50 AM about the 2011 Toyota Prius Base

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Hi There.
Prius 2011, about 103k miles, maintenance up to date, fairly new 12v battery.
Lost power while driving, the Check Hybrid System heading came up on the
dashboard. Made it to a shoulder safely and got the car towed home,
thinking that I could maybe reset it. Tried restarting it but it won't turn on. The
check engine, check hybrid system, slip indicator, and tire pressure lights all
come up, and I am unable to shift to D to get it moving. The Check Hybrid
System heading keeps coming up on the dashboard. Disconnected the v12
battery but nothing changed when reconnected.

Is there a way to reset this with a start button procedure or anything else?
Should I get a scanner and check for errors myself? Just trying to find out
what I can do to avoid getting scammed at the dealer with some "let's try
changing this for this much" bs. Thanks!

10 Answers

200

This happened to me last night -- any insight into how I can fix?

20 people found this helpful.
120

This exact thing happened to me and I bought a new 12v battery because I was informed by autozone that the one in my car was bad. I just received my battery and had it put in and the car still has the same error message. Did you figure out what was causing this @leonardo.

12 people found this helpful.
30

This is exactly what I did. Everything seemed well and driving it felt better than ever when I replaced the 12v from autozone. Exactly a week later the error message came back. Did you find out anything? @abiane

3 people found this helpful.
180

To all that are fighting the fight with all the "Lights of Death" on, beware that this can also be caused by a faulty FUEL PUMP! My fuel pump went bad but you had to run it for 3+ hours solid before it died. So Toyota replaced this and that, reset codes, recharged/balanced battery, cleaned throttle control three times, and it kept doing the same thing. I told them repeatedly that the gas engine would die and all the lights would come on and I would get but a block or so before it stopped. 3 months, $3200 later they said "all we can find is that just before it dies, it loses fuel pressure"... DUHHHHH.... "Might" be the fuel pump, and it was. That's what I told them the very first time in. The gas engine died. But mechanics think that they are the smartest people in the universe and how could a lowly and stupid Prius owner/driver KNOW when his gas engine dies? They wouldn't refund any money as they said "we did the work that we charged you for", which they did, although none of it fixed the problem until the fuel pump on the FOURTH trip, and after $400+ in towing bills.

18 people found this helpful.
140

So, I don’t want to sound too “conspiracy theory guy,” but this all happened to me within 2 weeks of making my last payment on my Prius. Anyone else?

14 people found this helpful.
10

Mine came on just after I finished rebuilding the engine of my 201 prius. 250k+ miles and original battery pack. Still trying to see if it's the pack or a faulty connection.

1 people found this helpful.
30

Running out of petrol puts car in EV mode and you may not notice that so main battery depletes, so error comes up at restart after parking up. See u tube for battery reset AFTER putting fuel in. ICE engine should then start to recharge main battery

3 people found this helpful.
120

The most likely cause involves Toyota service bulletin 0003-21, failed inverter. It is increasingly common with all Toyota hybrid models so obviously a defective part/design so should be replaced at no charge.

4 people found this helpful.

Your Answer:

Prius

Looking for a Used Prius in your area?

CarGurus has 6,631 nationwide Prius listings starting at $1,000.

ZIP:

Own this car?

Share your experience with others.

2011 Toyota Prius

Review another car

CarGurus Experts

  • #1
    T_S_T
    Reputation
    1,560
  • #2
    Guru5WT6J
    Reputation
    1,390
  • #3
    TupeloMS
    Reputation
    1,320
View All

Know more, shop wisely

Search

Related Models For Sale

Used Toyota Corolla
1,663 Great Deals out of 24,787 listings starting at $975
Used Toyota Camry
2,091 Great Deals out of 37,807 listings starting at $575
Used Toyota Camry Hybrid
175 Great Deals out of 2,749 listings starting at $1,600
Used Honda Civic
1,371 Great Deals out of 29,067 listings starting at $600
Used Toyota Prius v
45 Great Deals out of 593 listings starting at $1,550
Used Toyota Prius c
42 Great Deals out of 549 listings starting at $4,500
Used Toyota RAV4
1,949 Great Deals out of 29,514 listings starting at $1,450
Used Honda Accord
1,513 Great Deals out of 29,433 listings starting at $600
Used Toyota Prius Plug-In
8 Great Deals out of 152 listings starting at $4,999
Used Honda CR-V
2,066 Great Deals out of 42,002 listings starting at $500

Used Cars for Sale

2024 Toyota Prius For Sale
7 Great Deals out of 809 listings starting at $28,621
2023 Toyota Prius For Sale
31 Great Deals out of 330 listings starting at $25,650
2022 Toyota Prius For Sale
36 Great Deals out of 421 listings starting at $16,550
2021 Toyota Prius For Sale
15 Great Deals out of 273 listings starting at $14,995
2020 Toyota Prius For Sale
21 Great Deals out of 144 listings starting at $14,999

Content submitted by Users is not endorsed by CarGurus, does not express the opinions of CarGurus, and should not be considered reviewed, screened, or approved by CarGurus. Please refer to CarGurus Terms of Use. Content will be removed if CarGurus becomes aware that it violates our policies.