Battery Question
- Thread starter JPL
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NCSCOTT
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You can pop the rectangle caps off the battery and add water. Distilled water. Use a flashlight or bright sunlight and look at the side or front of the battery and give it a little shake you should see the water level lower and upper limit lines on the battery. Ideally the water/acid should be toward the upper line. If not pop the caps and fill to the upper line. Maybe even put the battery on a trickle charge over night. If you don't have a charger just add the water before you plan to drive for maybe a half hour. That is just a guess. It will take a little bit for the water and acid to properly mix.
You can expect your factory battery to last 4-5 years. After that failure can come at any time. Since you have an 06 your battery was more than likely made in 05 and you are already on the tailend of the life expectancy. If you got the cash go get a new one. I installed a Optima redtop 34R (R = reversed post, needed for our 4Runners) It was $142 shipped free from amazon. It will last 6-10 years. You will need the height adapter that comes with it and it will bolt right in. The factory battery is 720CCA the Optima 34R is 800CCA and 1000CA.
I replaced the battery in my 04 this past summer, actually I put the redtop in my 08 and put the factory battery from the 08 in my 04. The battery in the 04 was made in 03 and was 6 years old when i replaced it. It did not outright fail but had sounded weak on cold mornings the previous winter. I used a CCA tester on the original battery and it only tested to 500CCA. That was over a 30% loss of capacity. 20% loss is a good point to start looking for a replacement.
You can expect your factory battery to last 4-5 years. After that failure can come at any time. Since you have an 06 your battery was more than likely made in 05 and you are already on the tailend of the life expectancy. If you got the cash go get a new one. I installed a Optima redtop 34R (R = reversed post, needed for our 4Runners) It was $142 shipped free from amazon. It will last 6-10 years. You will need the height adapter that comes with it and it will bolt right in. The factory battery is 720CCA the Optima 34R is 800CCA and 1000CA.
I replaced the battery in my 04 this past summer, actually I put the redtop in my 08 and put the factory battery from the 08 in my 04. The battery in the 04 was made in 03 and was 6 years old when i replaced it. It did not outright fail but had sounded weak on cold mornings the previous winter. I used a CCA tester on the original battery and it only tested to 500CCA. That was over a 30% loss of capacity. 20% loss is a good point to start looking for a replacement.
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JPL
New member
Thanks but it's a sealed battery, no caps...............
SkylineGTRracer
New member
I'd go to an auto parts store. normally they perform free battery testing.
JPL
New member
"Adding water is really just a band-aid but will get you by."
How would you add water to a physically sealed battery?
JPL
New member
I just called the dealer, they said you can't add water to the battery that tells you to add water, anyway, $89 for the battery, $49 to install, discard the old one, and maintain current to the truck during the change so I don't have to normalize the window & moonroof........is that a good price?
sheik
New member
Like I said, the battery I put in my 4-wheeler said Sealed all over the box and on the battery itself, yet the instructions showed how to open the top of it so you could fill it with acid.
I wouldn't pay them $49 to install it. It's simple to do. In addition, you might want to shop around for a battery. There's no reason you have to buy one from the dealer. I've had good luck with Interstate. Sears carries a lot of batteries too.
I wouldn't pay them $49 to install it. It's simple to do. In addition, you might want to shop around for a battery. There's no reason you have to buy one from the dealer. I've had good luck with Interstate. Sears carries a lot of batteries too.
NCSCOTT
New member
If it is the factory panasonic battery it can be opened. I have done it. it is not completely sealed. The circle caps can be screwed with a large flat blade screwdriver without damaging the battery on the newer batteries. It will open 1 cell with each cap. They are a VRLA battery. Valve Regulated Lead Acid.
The older panasonic battery had a rectanglar cap that opened 3 cells at a time.
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074.0Runner
New member
No, it isnt. Just go to the dealer and pick up the battery for $90. It takes a 10mm socket to take the terminals off, and normalization is easy, it is outlined in your manual. To get rid of your battery, most scrap-yards or junkyards will buy the old battery from you for $5-$10.
Not all of the normalization stuff is in the Owners Manual, but it is here.
$89 is good for the Toyota battery, but $49 to put it in is nuts when it's easy to do yourself. The Toyota TrueStart battery is a good battery - 84-month warranty and same specs as the factory original.
As posted above, I just topped off the water in my battery. The key is peeling off the "Maintenance Free Battery" sticker shown in the pics.
$89 is good for the Toyota battery, but $49 to put it in is nuts when it's easy to do yourself. The Toyota TrueStart battery is a good battery - 84-month warranty and same specs as the factory original.
As posted above, I just topped off the water in my battery. The key is peeling off the "Maintenance Free Battery" sticker shown in the pics.
074.0Runner
New member
Its in mine.
toto I'm sure the price is based some arbritary set scale price, not necessarily the difficulty of the job. i.e. minimum of a 1/2 hour charge per job, based on $98. per hour.
JPL
New member
Will adding water at this point extend the life of the battery, or should I just get a new Toyota battery?
scottm
New member
I have an adapter that connects a 9V battery to my cigarette lighter, to keep the computers powered while changing batteries. I don't think the cig lighters are connected to the electrical harness with the key out on this truck, but I can rig something up to connect a 9V or other battery to my electrical system for much less than $49.
JPL
New member
074.0Runner
New member
Yeah, but why? It takes 5 minutes at the most to normalize your windows and reset your clock. You guys are overthinking something as simple as changing a battery.
scottm
New member
On some vehicles it's worth keeping power on, like a Phaeton or big BMW. Probably not on these trucks, but if it concerns you it's easy to do.
