12v battery maintenance, issues, etc.

[FearlessRock]

Oct 2022 Toyota Yaris Hybrid Design, approx run twice daily for 10 mile trip, yet Battery has failed twice in the last fortnight

[Roy124]

21 minutes ago, FearlessRock said:

Oct 2022 Toyota Yaris Hybrid Design, approx run twice daily for 10 mile trip, yet battery has failed twice in the last fortnight

How long did each journey take?  Assuming that is 2x20 minutes per day, it is not very long.  Then the electrical load could increase the demand on the 12v system which reduces the effective recharge each trip.  After that first failure the Battery has been weakened and this could hasten the second failure.

Only a hypothesis as there are other possibilities.

[Joby1]

Hello all

It’s Joby1. I started this thread back in Jan 2022 after having to call Toyota Assistance due to a dead v12 Battery. 3 more call outs due to a dead Battery in Jan/Feb I managed to pursuade Toyota to fit a new v12 Battery during my April service. 
I use my car everyday for work driving at least 16 miles Mon-Friday and most weekends I drive approx 75 miles on the motorway. 
Last week I’d left my car for 12 days whilst on holiday. Yet again, I returned to a dead battery. Waited over 3 hours, until 4.20am in the morning, for Toyota Assistance to come to start it. I’d hoped the new battery had resolved the issue. But this was the first time I’ve left the car I driven since the battery was fitted. 
I’ve spoken to the Toyota Dealership again but they are just not interested in the issue  and are not willing to acknowledge it’s a design fault.

It’s not acceptable. Toyota customer just should not have to accept this level of unreliability. Having spent circa £20k on the car it’s totally ridiculous that I have to be prepared to expect that if I don’t drive my car for 12 days then it won’t start and that I’ll have to be prepared to spend time and effort calling out Toyota Assistance, at the end of my patience and only option it seems for me to have a car that starts reliably is to get rid of my 2020. Yaris Hybrid.

Heyho, a very disappointed long standing Toyota customer 

 

[anchorman]

Question.  Do these solar chargers have any parasitic drain during darkness or do they go open circuit?

[Cyker]

Just for some balance, I haven't had any Battery problems since owning mine. I have left it for up to 2 weeks (e.g. Xmas school holiday) and it's fired up straight away when work resumes.

I've also left the lights on all day once too, but no dramas enschewed.

I do drive a lot more than most tho' as my car is a workhorse to get me from site to site during the day.

 

[Max_Headroom]

 

Quote

I have left it for up to 2 weeks (e.g. Xmas school holiday) and it's fired up straight away when work resumes.

I would appear having read so many posts on this subject that there are those that know how to look after the 12v Battery and those that struggle and end up having issues.

[Cyker]

It's tricky - I do feel some people have gotten cars with half-dead batteries, but there is also an element of user culpability too.

I think one of the best things I did was take the car on a 2 hour hoon immediately after I took possession of it, as I reckon that gave the Battery a good start (And helped me get a good feel for the car  ) Compare this to the person who picked up their new car, drove it home, then immediately went on holiday for several weeks...

 

[Cyker]

It is so weird some people are having such problems with the 12v...

I wonder, do you have the connected services enabled on yours?

That's one thing I declined on mine.

[TruBlu]

2 hours ago, Joby1 said:

Hello all

It’s Joby1. I started this thread back in Jan 2022 after having to call Toyota Assistance due to a dead v12 battery. 3 more call outs due to a dead battery in Jan/Feb I managed to pursuade Toyota to fit a new v12 battery during my April service. 
I use my car everyday for work driving at least 16 miles Mon-Friday and most weekends I drive approx 75 miles on the motorway. 
Last week I’d left my car for 12 days whilst on holiday. Yet again, I returned to a dead battery. Waited over 3 hours, until 4.20am in the morning, for Toyota Assistance to come to start it. I’d hoped the new battery had resolved the issue. But this was the first time I’ve left the car I driven since the battery was fitted. 
I’ve spoken to the Toyota Dealership again but they are just not interested in the issue  and are not willing to acknowledge it’s a design fault.

It’s not acceptable. Toyota customer just should not have to accept this level of unreliability. Having spent circa £20k on the car it’s totally ridiculous that I have to be prepared to expect that if I don’t drive my car for 12 days then it won’t start and that I’ll have to be prepared to spend time and effort calling out Toyota Assistance, at the end of my patience and only option it seems for me to have a car that starts reliably is to get rid of my 2020. Yaris Hybrid.

Heyho, a very disappointed long standing Toyota customer 

 

I totally agree and have the same issue for the last 2+ years. Toyota doesn't seem interested in the fact that customers are continually worried if their car will start or not.

£22,000 pounds worth of worry.

[Roy124]

Cyker, actually that is more of less what we did. Not something we could control as we booked the holiday before we bought the car. 

No problems at all. 

[Cyker]

Damnit stop poking holes in my theories!!

 

[Roy124]

3 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Damnit stop poking holes in my theories!!

 

We are doing about 900 miles per month. 

[CPN]

2 hours ago, anchorman said:

Question.  Do these solar chargers have any parasitic drain during darkness or do they go open circuit?

They effectively go open circuit (extremely high resistance). You cannot back feed a solar panel because of its built in protection. Which is why it is safe to plug it into the OBDII port. While the sun is out and even in fairly good daylight, it will trickle charge the Battery. When the light level drops sufficiently, it simply stops charging.

[CPN]

51 minutes ago, Cyker said:

It is so weird some people are having such problems with the 12v...

I wonder, do you have the connected services enabled on yours?

That's one thing I declined on mine.

I didn't on mine and have had no problems with my 12v Battery... So that's another theory gone for a ball of chalk! 😉🤣

[Dala]

I use this one: 

https://optimate1.com/solarduo/

[Mojo1010]

Maybe it could mean the 'new battery' was not in a good state to begin with? (No holes is my theory)

[Roy124]

On 2/13/2023 at 8:54 PM, Max_Headroom said:

 

 

 

[Mojo1010]

10 hours ago, TruBlu said:

I totally agree and have the same issue for the last 2+ years. Toyota doesn't seem interested in the fact that customers are continually worried if their car will start or not.

£22,000 pounds worth of worry.

A member has fitted a bigger capacity Battery of 45Ah, it's in the forum thread, maybe that is something to consider.

1 hour ago, Mojo1010 said:

Maybe it could mean the 'new battery' was not in a good state to begin with? (No holes is my theory)

*In 

[Dala]

today

[Roy124]

Dala, interesting, and more so comparing it to my profile.  When I start, and that is probably opening the door, I show a large drop in voltage to near 12v before ready mode shows a larger spike.  The profile then is more akin to yours. 

What we don't normally see under the cloak 😁

[Bassa]

Thank you, very interesting information. 

[Bassa]

14 hours ago, Roy124 said:

Dala, interesting, and more so comparing it to my profile.  When I start, and that is probably opening the door, I show a large drop in voltage to near 12v before ready mode shows a larger spike.  The profile then is more akin to yours. 

What we don't normally see under the cloak 😁

 

[Impith]

So two weeks ago in the middle of the freezing spell with snow on the ground, I parked my car at Tilbury Docks to join a cruise. Having read all the horror stories about how awful the Toyota Hybrids are at keeping a charge in their 12v Battery for anything over half an hour, it was with some trepidation that I approached my car on my return this morning.

It started without issue… 😊

[Bernard Foy]

21 minutes ago, Impith said:

So two weeks ago in the middle of the freezing spell with snow on the ground, I parked my car at Tilbury Docks to join a cruise. Having read all the horror stories about how awful the Toyota Hybrids are at keeping a charge in their 12v battery for anything over half an hour, it was with some trepidation that I approached my car on my return this morning.

It started without issue… 😊

It’s great to hear a good story on the 12v Yaris Battery. I’ve never had any trouble either with my last three Yaris Hybrids and I never drive more than 4K miles a year mostly very short journeys too.

[Yugguy1970]

We only had an issue with our old one when it was left for 3 weeks.  Be interesting to see how the new one fares.