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Prius 30k Service -- See the difference between what is minimal and recommended in this article.

When is the HV (high voltage) battery going to fail on my Hybrid?

Thinking about buying a Hybrid? Read our Hybrid Take here!

Check out a yearly cost-benefit analysis for various fuel economy figures.

Can you guys program smart keys? What if i lost all the keys? What about a key I got from [another dealership|eBay|craigslist]? Yes, we can! But you should read this article first.

Need new tires for your Prius? Want to increase your miles per gallon at the same time? Read more here.

Read all our articles about the advanced Hybrid repairs and diagnosis done in this section.

We just documented one of the recent Prius HV Battery replacements! Come check out this article to see what it takes to replace the first generation Prius battery!

Why should you trust us with your hybrid?

If I were looking for a shop to service my hybrid, my biggest concern would be the mechanic's ability to maintain, diagnose, and repair my hybrid competently. At Art's Automotive we've gone out of our way to make sure we have the tools, training, parts, and experience necessary to do the job right, and to keep your hybrid under Warranty.

Hybrids have been on the road for many years now, and not only have we been servicing them, but we have also been jumping into heavy duty diagnosis and major repairs: the type of stuff most independents are shying away from. We won't take your money for routine service, then shoo you off to the dealer as soon as you have a major problem. Body shop sublets and poorly repaired salvaged vehicles have given us early exposure to some real "head scratchers,"the type of diagnosis normally reserved for the top-level dealership techs.

We've also done some major hybrid repairs, often underbidding the jobs just to gain the experience. Not many independents have replaced an HV transaxle or an MG2 or EPS rack on a Prius. Even fewer have rebuilt a CVT (continually variant transmission), resealed an ICE (internal combustion engine), or diagnosed a bad battery control module on an Insight. We have been seeking out the toughest hybrid challenges early, so when we start to see problems with the "normal wear & tear" crowd, we'll be ready.

We also are not camera shy at Art's Automotive! You can find nearly complete documentation of our noteworthy repairs in our Hybrid Car article repository. At this time, there are over 20 articles featuring advanced hybrid projects!

If you bring your hybrid to us, you can rest assured that it will get maintenance done correctly with factory genuine parts and specialty fluids, ensuring that your Warranty remains intact, and also keeping it running long into the future. You can feel confident that we will be able to diagnose and repair your hybrid if something breaks.

Why not just take your hybrid to the dealer? Aren't they experts?

Most of the dealerships will provide very competent hybrid service. However, we believe we can equal their level of expertise, and charge substantially less money for the same services and repairs. We have both Honda and Toyota factory scanners which make it possible for us to do this. Our labor rate is $98 per hour, many dealerships in our area have a labor rate of $150. You may need to forgo the dealer's waiting room with the leather couches and big screen TV, and the handy shuttle to Bart. However, with the money you save on service, you should be able to rent a car for a day and still have money left over to save up for your own big screen TV.