The owner of Black And White Taxi service in Cairns, Queensland Australia reports that two of his 32 Toyota Prius taxis exceeded the 200,000 mile mark before requiring battery replacement. One of the vehicles accumulated 341,000 on its original battery pack, while the other hit the 218,000 mile mark on its original battery cells. The owner also reports that the most serious consequence of the battery failures was a low-voltage reading.
The revelation should quell concerns about the overall longevity of the Prius battery pack. The fleet owner says that the cars log about 125,000 miles per year as taxis. That represents highly abnormal use for an individual driver, but depending upon how the usage is calculated, a Prius driver could expect to get 15-20 years or more of normal use from the vehicle’s original battery pack.
Prius critics note that Toyota does not have sufficient data to suggest when the multi-thousand dollar batteries for the vehicle would need replacement, giving rise to fears of expensive non-warranty repairs after several years of use. The accelerated usage figures indicate that a single battery pack may successfully serve the vehicle throughout its entire useful life.
The endurance testing only covers mileage and doesn’t exactly duplicate other types of wear (e.g., cold weather, exposure to the elements) that the battery might experience that could diminish its performance or life expectancy. The owner of the taxi fleet has ordered eight more Priuses, to bring his total fleet to 40. Even so, Toyota maintains that the car was never designed for fleet use.
The revelation should quell concerns about the overall longevity of the Prius battery pack. The fleet owner says that the cars log about 125,000 miles per year as taxis. That represents highly abnormal use for an individual driver, but depending upon how the usage is calculated, a Prius driver could expect to get 15-20 years or more of normal use from the vehicle’s original battery pack.
Prius critics note that Toyota does not have sufficient data to suggest when the multi-thousand dollar batteries for the vehicle would need replacement, giving rise to fears of expensive non-warranty repairs after several years of use. The accelerated usage figures indicate that a single battery pack may successfully serve the vehicle throughout its entire useful life.
The endurance testing only covers mileage and doesn’t exactly duplicate other types of wear (e.g., cold weather, exposure to the elements) that the battery might experience that could diminish its performance or life expectancy. The owner of the taxi fleet has ordered eight more Priuses, to bring his total fleet to 40. Even so, Toyota maintains that the car was never designed for fleet use.
