Solar charging for auris hybrid any good .??

[Buellboy]

Twice I have left my 2015 Auris in Gatwick airport long stay for 3 weeks and twice I have needed to call Toyota assist to get me started!

my local dealer insist my 12v. Battery is fine despite both Toyota assist guys saying ‘your Battery is knackered mate’. My dealer is happy to sell me a solar trickle charger for £40.00 but does it work??

[Parts-King]

yes they work, get the OBD fitting, it is easy to plug in and leave the charger on the dash. Remember it is a TRICKLE charger, it keeps the Battery topped up if you are not using it regularly, it will not charge a flat battery 

[Buellboy]

Thanks. OBD fitting? Can you explain please.

[Cyker]

There is a diagnostic port (The "ODB2 port") under the dash on the driver's side that can be used to charge the 12v Battery with the solar charger - It's just convenient because you can just plug the solar charger into it.

Otherwise, you need to route a cable to the Battery terminals or some other always-on 12v line (i.e. not the lighter socket, as that is only on when the car is on, in most modern cars), which is more of a faff.

Just be aware that unless the solar charger is a fairly high wattage, it won't work very well if you have tinted windows. They work best when on the outside of the car, but as that makes them easy to nick. The next best place is on the dashboard as the windscreen is the next clearest source of sun, but even that cuts the output down by quite a lot, so it'll likely just extend the battery's time but not actually raise the charge it has.

(Esp. if it's a day like today! Cold and overcast! Brrrr!)