12v battery maintenance, issues, etc.

[Hicardo]

There are horror stories I know, but most people don't have any problems. Touch wood ive never had a problem with 4 Toyota hybrids over the years. 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Similar topics merged.

[Joby1]

Well, I’m very pleased for those of you who haven’t had any issues - including having parked at Tilbury for 2 weeks - but very sadly, many of us, through no fault of our own (I drive my car approx 450-500 miles a month) are. 

[Roy124]

Just had 4 straight days with the car garaged and unattended. 

4 hours after shut down on Monday night the voltage was 12.66v. By midnight Tuesday it was 12.49v.

By midnight Wednesday it had decayed to 12.42v. Today, Friday, it is around 12.41v.

From this I conclude that my Yaris Cross has an insignificant loss after 2 days. 

A tentative conclusion is that some Yaris Cross will not have a problem. 

And it may be possible that Toyota has actually made changes from earlier models.  For obvious reasons they have not publicised that they have fixed a problem some people never had 😊

[Yugguy1970]

I think it was an issue affecting 2020 and 2021 made Yaris, possibly a bad batch of batteries, but I've no way of being sure.

[cruiserOAP]

I carry a rechargeable starter pack in my car. I also have a smart trickle charger. When I collect my Yaris Cross, and I get this problem, I will check with the dealer where the trickle charger should be connected.

It's important to report any issues to the dealer for the record, even if you have found a way to cope with the problem. I carry the starter pack as I don't want to have to wait for assistance when I can get it going in 5 minutes, and I have already rescued a couple of neighbours with flat batteries.

 

[cruiserOAP]

On 2/13/2023 at 8:37 PM, Roy124 said:

Max, no. You would need a tester or monitor. 

You remind me, some cars used to have proper instrumentation such as ammeters and oil pressure gauges. 

On my Triumph 1300 I added a reversing light, voltmeter and oil pressure gauge.  Today we just have warning lights. 

Given that Toyotas are basically computers with a motor and wheels there is no reason why they can't send battery status to MyT. 

I think some makes can be remotely monitored so the roadside assistance already knows the fault before they arrive - BMW I think? I know that Rolls Royce monitor their aero engines live 24/7 and can adjust parameters remotely 

[Roy124]

Mike, if your charger had a tail that can be connected to the Battery and then the charger plugged to that as required, get the garage to fit the tail before handover.  Mine did at no charge.

[Roy124]

2 minutes ago, cruiserOAP said:

I think some makes can be remotely monitored so the roadside assistance already knows the fault before they arrive - BMW I think? I know that Rolls Royce monitor their aero engines live 24/7 and can adjust parameters remotely 

Mike, indeed.  My son in law was rammed on the A34.  Not only did the Volvo report back, it also recorded the extent on the damage which was not obviously visible.

[cruiserOAP]

If the dealer is making you wait you wait for the workshop to test the 12v Battery, go to Halfords, who will use their smart Battery tester, which measures the Battery capacity as a percentage, not just the state of charge, for free. They also pointed out the small window in the top of the battery which changes colour when the battery needs replacing. 

[tfc]

I had problems with my i30, it would go flat for no apparent reason, the other half would go to the local Tesco which is .6 mile away jump back in the car and its totally flat, I would go out with a set  of jump leads fire it up and its ok for maybe a couple of weeks and the same would happen anyway changed the Battery and had no problems.

Now I replaced the Battery 27 months ago and I kept the old Battery gathering dust on the garage floor, well I've just gone out and tested the battery and its never been on charge  whilst its been on the floor and here are the results and I think it would start a vehicle up in its current state. 

[Max_Headroom]

58 minutes ago, cruiserOAP said:

go to Halfords, who will use their smart battery tester,

Or go to Halfords and buy a meter for £8 and follow the instructions (obviously a ICE but the info is still relevant)  

 

 

[Hibird]

1 hour ago, tfc said:

I had problems with my i30, it would go flat for no apparent reason, the other half would go to the local Tesco which is .6 mile away jump back in the car and its totally flat, I would go out with a set  of jump leads fire it up and its ok for maybe a couple of weeks and the same would happen anyway changed the battery and had no problems.

Now I replaced the battery 27 months ago and I kept the old battery gathering dust on the garage floor, well I've just gone out and tested the battery and its never been on charge  whilst its been on the floor and here are the results and I think it would start a vehicle up in its current state. 

12.19 Volts & 27 months I think it's had it John but update us with any news

[cruiserOAP]

2 hours ago, Max_Headroom said:

Or go to Halfords and buy a meter for £8 and follow the instructions (obviously a ICE but the info is still relevant)  

 

 

A multimeter will show you the Battery voltage at the time of checking, but a professional Battery tester will show the charge capacity and highlight other issues. I checked my Battery with a meter, which didn't indicate a problem, but the meter test showed that the charge capacity had dropped to 75%, still within serviceable limits, but replacement before winter probably a good idea.

[Max_Headroom]

14 minutes ago, cruiserOAP said:

A multimeter will show you the battery voltage at the time of checking,

You didn't watch the video did you.

Having my own meter means i can check it whenever i want instead of going to Halfords and *trusting them, when the reading gets too low its time to change. 

*I will never take my car to Halfords again having had a bad experience with them in the past,  i am not alone.

[cruiserOAP]

Just now, Max_Headroom said:

That may be the case but i would never take my car to Halfords i have had a bad experience with them in the past and i am not alone.

Any garage with a professional Battery tester will do, but they might charge(hah!) you. A voltage meter will tell you if you have a duff cell, and will show if the Battery is charging when you start the engine, but it won't show the charge current, charge capacity (i.e. number of times it will start the car) or rate of charge degradation.

A voltage meter is useful to show if the Battery is charging in the car, and if you fully charge the battery off the car and it still shows under 12 volts, that's enough to show you need a new battery 

[Max_Headroom]

I think i will leave it there you are obviously not taking on board how i  use my meter following the instructions in the video..

[tfc]

2 hours ago, Hibird said:

12.19 Volts & 27 months I think it's had it John but update us with any news

Mike, I'm not going to do anything with the Battery , I reckon its still good there's  still 360A of CCA after all these months doing nothing. I will put it on charge over night and see the SOC in the morning.

[Roy124]

I have just checked my voltage using a digital multimeter and the BM6 attached to the Battery.  The multimeter reading at the fuse box terminal was about 0.12v higher than the BM6.

Without a bench test and controlled voltage I think I can accept the BM6 or multimeter are close enough for government work 🙂

[Dala]

Roy, did you calibrate the multimeter with the BM6?

[Roy124]

8 minutes ago, Dala said:

Roy, did you calibrate the multimeter with the BM6?

No, simple simultaneous reading.  The multimeter reading was not steady but jittered with the reading higher than the BM6 by a small margin.  

[tfc]

making this brief dont want to hijack the thread, its charged now for about 15 hrs and its telling me to replace but the cca and voltage and soc all have gone up. not bothered it may come in handy for something one day { wedge a door open }.

I wonder if its possible to fit a Battery isolator for people that leave their cars parked up for some length of time so they only have to flip the switch to power the car back up. 

I have a mgb  that I fitted a isolator to and its great for the last 4 years as the car is only used when its dry weather and is parked up in the garage for about 9 to 10 months of the year and I never had to charge the Battery.  

[FJB Yaris]

Hi, I since I order Yaris Cross GR Sport end January 23 have been reading various reviews and came across main problem “12v Battery, owners with low usage facing start problem. I saw some good YouTube videos and found super Battery jump start kits, one it’s a capacitor charger, easy to use, I suggest Toyota should put one such unit in all its Hybrid cars as an accessory. It will save a lot to Toyota’s name.

[dcweather]

So i have exactly the same problem which has not been solved or totally clarified in this thread. My 2014 Yaris hybrid auxilliary Battery has failed to the extent of zero output. There must be a short or someting as the jump terminal now longer makes a circuit. So the car is stuck outside with the wheels locked. £285 to transport to Toyota who will change the Battery for ~£145 incl. So is the replacement Battery really as special as it seems to be. if I put my reg in here:-
https://www.gsfcarparts.com/yabybx3053?   

 

I get a Yuasa battery for £75 but at the top it says this is not compatible with your battery and a link to one it says is but it is £189 !! Other sites like Europarts have a Bosch startup one that looks similar for a reasonable price.
SO will other batteries be ok or does it really have to be ultra specific? I don't see why?

[Knorton]

22 hours ago, dcweather said:

So i have exactly the same problem which has not been solved or totally clarified in this thread. My 2014 Yaris hybrid auxilliary battery has failed to the extent of zero output. There must be a short or someting as the jump terminal now longer makes a circuit. So the car is stuck outside with the wheels locked. £285 to transport to Toyota who will change the battery for ~£145 incl. So is the replacement battery really as special as it seems to be. if I put my reg in here:-
https://www.gsfcarparts.com/yabybx3053?   

 

I get a Yuasa battery for £75 but at the top it says this is not compatible with your battery and a link to one it says is but it is £189 !! Other sites like Europarts have a Bosch startup one that looks similar for a reasonable price.
SO will other batteries be ok or does it really have to be ultra specific? I don't see why?

The only thing I can see would make a difference is that for batteries fitted inside the car AGM type would be preferable as not vent required.