Hi folks,

Every venture has a start and today, I listed a rebuilt Prius accelerator on Ebay, item 120180227528. This is one of Doug's rebuilt units, currently running in my 2003 Prius. After this one goes, I'll be offering ones I rebuild.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson
CEO, chief engineer and shipping clerk, 625k Inc.

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.

Bob, what happens when these pack it in? Does the ice idle only or does it run rough? H

What happens is the signal from the dual-potentiometers disagree. The control computer see this mismatch and tries to get the car home in a 'safe mode'. This typically results in slow performance and some hesitation. There may be some relief by turning off the car and cycling the accelerator many times (trying to knock out the crap in the gap) and then trying to drive.

The right answer is to remove the accelerator assembly and clean the wipers and resistor traces. But this is not a trivial task and Doug had developed a fairly extensive process. It isn't such a hard job, just tedious with a lot of fine points that must be paid attention to.

I've got three failed units to upgrade and one I'm testing in the car (been testing it for three months.) So the next person who needs one, get the one in the car and I'll get the other units reworked and on a testing schedule.

Bob Wilson

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.

Thanks Bob. Nothing from the HCH2 yet? I suppose it wont be long! H

Harold,

The potentiometer-based accelerator sensor discussed here is for the Classic Prius (2001-2003). The 2004+ Prius (and all other Toyota Hybrids) uses a "Hall Effect" sensor (Toyota noticed the failures) and hopefully will not have this problem.

I don't know what type of sensor is used in the Honda hybrids.

JeffD

My understanding is they use a mechanical connection but I could be wrong. I haven't studied them.

Bob Wilson

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.

Some comments, again, specific to the 2001-2003 Prius. The certain symptom is a distinct hesitation in acceleration and sometimes speed holding. In some cases a DTC is set. Toyota apparently replaced a large number of these, and the post-warranty owners did not all enjoy the retail price

DIY is entirely possible, but if you make a mistake there is little alternative to buying a new one. Also your car won't function in the interim. Building a simple jig to keep all the parts aligned when the sealing-up epoxy is setting is a key point.

Probably somewhere there is a failed unit where the potentiometer traces have fallen off. Such a thing would not be fixable.

By the time Bob does his 10th one, I reckon the labor time will be down to 20 minutes

DAS

Thanks, Jeff. H

Hi folks,

The Ebay bidding has ended and I've learned valuable lessons about how it works. Not unexpected, the rebuilt accelerator didn't sell. However, the unit is now being offered at my corporate web site:

http://625k.com/products/pri_acc.html

My PayPal "Buy Now" button has a problem but I anticipate correcting it after today's business holiday.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.