30-Month Maintenance Service 
and Special Service Campaign 40G
(October 4, 2004)

What this service includes:

-Replace engine oil and oil filter
-Rotate tires

What the Special Service Campaign 40G includes:

"...Toyota would like to inspect and repair the HV Battery in your vehicle by opening, cleaning and re-sealing the positive HV battery terminals." This is preventative maintenance to prevent "a possibility that a very small amount of electrolyte may seep from the HV Battery around one or more of the positive HV battery terminals. If this should occur under high humidity conditions, the HV Battery Computer will detect a drop in the resistance and illuminate the Master Warning Light and Hybrid System Malfunction Warning Light."

Visit Summary:

The 30-month service is the last one provided for free under Toyota's Prius warranty, so I asked how much my 36-month visit next spring should cost, and was told approximately $50.

The Special Service Campaign procedure can take as long as 5 hours, so I was given a ride home until both the 30-month and 40G service were complete.  I dropped my car off at approximately 8:15AM. At 1 PM I got a call that the car was ready and they would send someone to pick me up.. 

It would seem clear that as part of the 40G procedure, the car was idled for a while, as well as given a short test drive. When I dropped my car off, the screen mileage was 44.2, the trip odometer read 68.2, and the gas gauge had dropped one bar. Upon picking the car up, the screen mileage had dropped to 41.5, the trip odometer had been reset and accumulated an additional 0.8 miles driven, and the gas gauge had dropped an additional bar. So it would appear that my next fill-up will yield lower than normal results. If this proves true I will note this cause in my mileage log

I was fairly concerned when I found out the battery needed to be re-sealed, but after driving the car home today my hopes are high that there will be no future complications from it.

It is also worth pointing out that the dealership performed a complimentary "Frigi-fresh" treatment on my AC system to help eliminate the musty AC smell that is so common in newer cars, and was beginning to present its unpleasant stench in my own Prius. Hopefully it will last through the winter, as temps are already falling to the 30s at night so I won't have much use for the AC until next spring!

Cost of Service: $0.00 (Provided free under warranty)