12v battery maintenance, issues, etc.

[Dala]

29 minutes ago, chazbri said:

... Any advice?... 

In this time? Dont buy new modern car. Only those who rent a car will be happy. Maybe it's planned.  You don't have to worry about a car that isn't yours.

[Cyker]

53 minutes ago, chazbri said:

Ive read the ideas and advice given but all I want is for my Cross to work without any battery charging extras. My travel needs may be decreasing as I get older and perhaps Toyota Hybrids are not the correct choice of car for me. Ive had Hybids for the last 6 years or so and the issues discussed here are making me think more about changing types. Any advice?

The best advice is to just use the car - The new hybrids are very expensive for what they are, and IMHO unless you use the car regularly you'll never make the money back.

If you're not going to drive much, like 2k a year or something, you can get much more luxurious 2nd hand cars for cheaper, and yes they'll use more fuel but if you don't drive much the difference will be negligible.

My dad's Verso does literally half the mpg my Yaris does, but he still spends less on fuel than I do over a year!  

TBH the 12v issue is a bit overblown on here - It does exist, but it's manageable for anyone who uses the car at least a reasonable amount, and there's always a booster pack for the odd occasion it does happen. I've had my Mk4 for nearly 2 years, and haven't had a problem with the 12v even once so far, even the time I'd left the lights on all day!

 

[Derek.w]

22 hours ago, TopGeek said:

Same here, partly because it's too much hassle to fit the extension lead to the battery and partly because I don't like the idea of having a loose lead dangling under the back seat.

I have no problem with a 4 loose wires coming out from under the rear seat they are insulated again with extra wrapping ie insulation tape on top of that the mat under them plus side panels are also extra insulation.

If that was not to work then its own fuse would blow its only 5 amps..

Some people prefer to take the wires over the seat plastic trim and out under the cushion.

[Derek.w]

13 hours ago, Roy124 said:

If I was younger, and planning to keep the car for some years, I would drill the plastic and mount a 12v socket connected to the battery.  Live feed if needed and plug in the charger as required.

 

If you go down that route you need a extra plug inside/male & female or another means of quick disconnection of wires from plastic trim when its serviced.

You can use insulated spade connectors of some discription hoping the service engineer donot just rip the panel out.

[TopGeek]

1 hour ago, Derek.w said:

I have no problem with a 4 loose wires coming out from under the rear seat they are insulated again with extra wrapping ie insulation tape on top of that the mat under them plus side panels are also extra insulation.

If that was not to work then its own fuse would blow its only 5 amps..

Some people prefer to take the wires over the seat plastic trim and out under the cushion.

I just meant that it's not very professional to have wires dangling, whereas connecting to the jumper point is easy, at least in my case, where the power points are at the front of the garage. It'a matter of personal choice as either method is fine.

[Roy124]

12 hours ago, TopGeek said:

where the power points are at the front of the garage.

Quite.

In my case OK in summer but in winter, with garden furniture at the end, much less convenient. 

[Lawnmowerman]

On 7/15/2023 at 10:18 PM, jthspace said:

if you are taking a spanner to the + terminal, wrap it in insulation tape to keep it away from bodywork. A spanner will quickly weld itself to (in my case) the hinge of the boot lid on the Eunos. Hammered it off but it destroyed the Gel battery. 😳

Always disconnect the earth lead first - but you know that now 👍

[Derek.w]

On 7/16/2023 at 10:43 PM, TopGeek said:

I just meant that it's not very professional to have wires dangling, whereas connecting to the jumper point is easy, at least in my case, where the power points are at the front of the garage. It'a matter of personal choice as either method is fine.

I have to disagree with dangling wires with end connectors if you have a good look around under the car or in the engine bay you can find wires with plugs on the end for connecting into other components these are for other model.

At the same time they are not a trip hazard and mine push discreatly into the side when not in use.

[CPN]

3 hours ago, Derek.w said:

At the same time they are not a trip hazard and mine push discreatly into the side when not in use.

As do mine hidden under the flap at the back of the boot floor mat.

[MCatPG]

17 hours ago, Derek.w said:

I have to disagree with dangling wires with end connectors if you have a good look around under the car or in the engine bay you can find wires with plugs on the end for connecting into other components these are for other model.

At the same time they are not a trip hazard and mine push discreatly into the side when not in use.

Agreed. I copied the arrangement posted on here by @Dala, the dealer fitted the lead for me as part of the PDI, and you'd never notice it unless you were looking for it. Because I have an electric hatch I prefer to have everything inside the passenger compartment including the Starter bank.

[Parker87]

I collected my new-to-me Yaris LE yesterday and attached my Ctek charger not long after arriving home as I reckon that all the prep mallarkey before handover will have strained the 12V. I used the special positive pole in the fuse box and all is well - the charge has gone to Pulse overnight and everything on the car works as it should. P.S. First impressions of the car are very good but I am yet to master all the fancy media and ACC stuff 🤔....

[CruxisCore]

42 minutes ago, Parker87 said:

I collected my new-to-me Yaris LE yesterday and attached my Ctek charger not long after arriving home as I reckon that all the prep mallarkey before handover will have strained the 12V. I used the special positive pole in the fuse box and all is well - the charge has gone to Pulse overnight and everything on the car works as it should. P.S. First impressions of the car are very good but I am yet to master all the fancy media and ACC stuff 🤔....

I guess you didnt check what the voltage was before charging?

I'm kinda planning on doing the same. 3-4 weeks on the road with no love, not surprised if half of these tiny 12v batteries will get irrepairable damage in the transit so rather try to fix it while it still may be possible 😄

[Roy124]

Core, I will make a note to check when I do my PDI (P=post) as last time the tyres were up at 3 bar or more.

[Xerapin]

Okay, I probably should have read this thread sooner. There are 50 odd pages and I've skimmed a load. On my new 23 plate Toyota Yaris X, should I be worried?

Typical usage is going to be 100 miles one day a week (Mon-Fri), varied trips over the weekend (upto 200miles, sometimes 0miles) and ~5-10min trips daily first thing in the morning (for the doggo walk).

Are the short trips going to drain the Battery? I'm guessing the longer 100+mile trips once a week should keep the batter topped up?

Is there any way in the car software / app / etc to see what state the 12v is in? Guessing from the above this will need some under the hood trickery which is not something I've done with my car before, so maybe I should start..

[CruxisCore]

20 minutes ago, Xerapin said:

Okay, I probably should have read this thread sooner. There are 50 odd pages and I've skimmed a load. On my new 23 plate Toyota Yaris X, should I be worried?

Typical usage is going to be 100 miles one day a week (Mon-Fri), varied trips over the weekend (upto 200miles, sometimes 0miles) and ~5-10min trips daily first thing in the morning (for the doggo walk).

Are the short trips going to drain the battery? I'm guessing the longer 100+mile trips once a week should keep the batter topped up?

Is there any way in the car software / app / etc to see what state the 12v is in? Guessing from the above this will need some under the hood trickery which is not something I've done with my car before, so maybe I should start..

I'd wager you'll be just fine, but I guess it wouldnt hurt to top off the Battery a few times a year.

Sadly there is no built in way to see the 12v voltage (which feels stupuid cos we can see tyre pressure too), that's why I bought this combined 12v voltage meter/usb charger that goes into the 12v cigarette lighter socket. I get extra USB charging ports and always have a way to glance how the Battery is doing. If you dont feel like doing any more permanent installations, that's probably the easiest way. Or then just check with a multimeter every now and then.

[Xerapin]

5 minutes ago, CruxisCore said:

If you dont feel like doing any more permanent installations

I'm intending on keeping this car for the next 10 years all being well, so I need to get confident with doing these things. I popped the hood for the first time this morning just to take a look and then realised I had no idea where anything was, I made a decent educated guess and then grabbed the manual and had a read through it but that hasn't got much on the maintenance of the 12v, mostly where it is and how to jump start it.

Would an OBD Trickle charger work with this car or would it need to be directly attached to the Battery points?

Appreciate the help on this one!

[CruxisCore]

The Battery is actually located under the rear passenger seat. There should be a maintenance hatch but I'm not sure how much room you have to fiddle with it from there, a lot of the folks here have just disassembled the rear seat cushioning to get proper access when doing some extra installations (like CTEK trickle charging quick connector).

Under the hood you will find a fuse/relay box on the top right. In there is a positive terminal, usually under a small red cover. You would attach the positive red there and the negative black to anything grounded, basically anything that is bare metal that you can reach. The manual also shows the "official" place for the negative, but not every charger/jump starter will reach that place, but again, like an unfinished head of a bolt will do.

I have no experience with OBD charging, so wont comment on that, but I do know alot of folks here have solar panels that connect to the OBD port, so I suppose its doable but I guess someone smarter on that topic will reply as well 😛 

[Roy124]

33 minutes ago, Xerapin said:

 

 

[Xerapin]

Brilliant, thank you both - thats put my mind at rest.

I'll pickup a voltage monitor as has been described from the cigarette socket if that looks reliable and get the mains charger 🙂

.. thank god its payday tomorrow 😄

[anchorman]

40 minutes ago, Xerapin said:

I'm intending on keeping this car for the next 10 years all being well, so I need to get confident with doing these things. I popped the hood for the first time this morning just to take a look and then realised I had no idea where anything was, I made a decent educated guess and then grabbed the manual and had a read through it but that hasn't got much on the maintenance of the 12v, mostly where it is and how to jump start it.

Would an OBD Trickle charger work with this car or would it need to be directly attached to the battery points?

Appreciate the help on this one!

It’s an old Derbyshire saying “dunna worry till tha’s summat to worry about”.  I’m at Chapel en le Frith if you fancy a brew.  I’ll show you how to attach a charger and use a jump pack.  

[Roy124]

2 hours ago, anchorman said:

It’s an old Derbyshire saying “dunna worry till tha’s summat to worry about”.  I’m at Chapel en le Frith if you fancy a brew.  I’ll show you how to attach a charger and use a jump pack.  

And no doubt answer many other questions including the ones you don't know to ask.

[CruxisCore]

I just picked up a Noco GB40+ "just in case".  Pretty sure my driving habits will keep it charged, but I also work in sort of a sensitive field that car not starting one time could cause some pretty awful scenarios and there wouldnt be time to wait for roadside assistance most of that time. But also since Toyota says to not boost other cars with a hybrid car, might as well have something around to help the others. This should be able to jump my lady's V70 even in the winter too 😄

 

[Max_Headroom]

1 hour ago, CruxisCore said:

just picked up a Noco GB40+ "just in case".  Pretty sure my driving habits will keep it charged, but I also work in sort of a sensitive field that car not starting one time could cause some pretty awful scenarios

I will definitely be purchasing a booster pack even though like you i dont think i will need one, its a cheap price to pay for peace of mind.

They can also power other things -

• Charge Everything - With USB-C Power Delivery, you have the power to charge almost everything. Its internal power bank provides 60-watts of power - both in and out - to effortlessly power your favorite USB-C devices, like phones, tablets, laptops, wearables, and more

 

[Max_Headroom]

In most demos they tell you to attach Red clamp to the + terminal and black to earth (a bolt head etc) but in this its suggests only using both Battery terminals is this correct?

 

TBH this was the way we always used to do it back in the day i assume the newer method its something to do with not frying the ECU.

 

 

I

[jthspace]

The leads on my booster with the Croc clips is fairly short and will only reach about a large Battery width in any case. Boosting a Battery under the bonnet (or on the tab in a Yaris fuse box) means there are limited places to clamp the black lead to. The clips on mine would make it challenging to attach to the Battery under the seat where space is at a premium as they are "chunky".