How Often Do the Batteries Have to Be Replaced in Hybrid Cars?

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Kyle with Toyota, Tampa Bay, and I'd like to talk to you about how often hybrid batteries need to be replaced. Now, it's a common myth that hybrid batteries need replaced every three or four years on the hybrid cars. It's not the case. In fact, with the nickel metal hydride batteries the Toyota uses they've proven to be so reliable that Toyota's actually put an eight year, one hundred thousand mile warranty on them. There's been a lot of stories that have come forth on websites such as the hybridexperience.com where people have driven their hybrids for two hundred and fifty to three hundred thousand miles on the original battery. Now in certain cases, Toyota has actually bought those vehicles back from the owners to tear em' apart and see how they held up. Now, what they've found is on those nickel metal hydride batteries that they were holding a charge almost like the day they were brand new. Now, what most people don't know is there's actually a second battery on Toyota hybrids. It's just similar to your normal car where you have a twelve volt battery, and its main job is not to drive the car but it's actually to just run your accessory systems, such as your stereo, your power windows, and your power door locks. Now, that's going to go undergo a regular maintenance interval similar to any car out there, although you're putting a lot less strain on it because on a normal car your electric battery is actually start, starting and stopping the vehicle, running the accessory systems, as well as doing all the other functions; where on the hybrids it's only doing your accessory systems. The hybrid battery's main job is just to power the vehicle, and and everything else is left up to your normal twelve volt. Again, it's been very, very reliable because it's it's splitting up the job of two batteries into that one. I'm Kyle, with Toyota, Tampa Bay, and that's how often hybrid batteries need to be replaced."