Help! Won’t start, various lights on, SOS mode?

[GreenMountainOwl]

2014 Limited

Wife drive my 4Runner earlier today and now it won’t start. The SOS switch has a little red light on near it that says Safety Connect. Dashboard shows battery and check engine light. Engine won’t crank. Tried numerous jump packs with no luck.

At one point while trying to start, the screen asked me to put my key fob near the start button. I did that and nothing changed.

My wife is about to leave for a week and I need my vehicle to work!

Suddenly as I wrote this I hear a strange fluttering sort of noise from the brake booster! What the heck? It’s a little cylinder with a yellow label on the top and a hex but in the middle.

 

[GreenMountainOwl]

Thank you. They are very secure.

Now the battery and check engine lights are still on even with the key fob away from the vehicle. There was a loud beeping sound until my wife walked away with the fob. As if it was telling me it was running and the fob was out of range.

 

[jrandom]

So weird, I was hoping it was something quick and easy. I haven't got keyless start so sadly, I haven't a clue as far as that goes.

 

[GreenMountainOwl]

Update, got out my Schumaker battery charger and it read 5.5v or so and 10 percent charge. I began the charge process and it now reads 10 percent and 6v.

The thing near the brake booster is clacking and making tons of noise. I’m worried about leaving this alone to charge. Or to walk from it away at all.

Edit to add: another clacking sound seems to be coming from the MAF sensor area...?

Another edit: this may be the original Panasonic/Toyota battery...could it simply be dead?

 

[Mutant138]

Update, got out my Schumaker battery charger and it read 5.5v or so and 10 percent charge. I began the charge process and it now reads 10 percent and 6v.

The thing near the brake booster is clacking and making tons of noise. I’m worried about leaving this alone to charge. Or to walk from it away at all.

Edit to add: another clacking sound seems to be coming from the MAF sensor area...?

Another edit: this may be the original Panasonic/Toyota battery...could it simply be dead?

If your reading 6v off the battery I would call that too dead. You can jump dead batteries but 6v seems really low.

If it's doing weird stuff I would unplug it till you get a fresh battery.

Seems odd tho. I could be wrong.

 

[GreenMountainOwl]

A neighbor brought over a 200A jump starter and it started!

Now the automatic running boards light is flashing...and I don’t even have them!

Voltmeter reading 13.8 under throttle and 13.2 at idle.

 

[Mutant138]

A neighbor brought over a 200A jump starter and it started!

Now the automatic running boards light is flashing...and I don’t even have them!

Voltmeter reading 13.8 under throttle and 13.2 at idle.

Above my pay grade. Hope you figure it out. Something is definitely not right.

Are your battery terminals clean?

Have you modified your electrical system at all?

 

[daytonaviolet]

idle/drive it for a while and see idiot lights go away

 

[ElectroBoy]

If your truck lived in the cold Northeast for six years with the original Panasonic battery consider yourself lucky. That’s really pushing it even for a well tended battery in a mild climate. You can’t even begin to reliably troubleshoot electrical problems with a crap battery or corroded connections. Go get yourself a new battery, install it, then report back your findings.

 

[GreenMountainOwl]

If only my wife would believe my very first suspicions as have been discussed above, that the darn battery is simply at the end of its life!

But she won’t.

Drove around town, parked, sat for a few minutes, and it started up. Drove home and had similar luck.

Silly running board light is still on.

Time to go down to the auto parts store first thing in the morning.

 

[00Sebby]

Yep, as others have said. 6yrs is a good run on modern batteries. When any of my vehicles won't start, I check:
1) Did I leave anything on or open... headlights, dome lights, etc.?
2) Has the season changed? Corrosion between the battery clamps and posts can expand with temp/humidity changes causing a weak connection. Sometimes this reveals itself as a loose terminal if the clamp wasn't real tight to begin with.
3) Is there significant corrosion built up around one of the terminals?
4) Is the battery old? If everything else looks good and the battery is old, I go ahead and replace it. It's not worth the time recharging, hoping it holds up for another few months, etc.

 

[flyrv9]

Problems with automatic running boards are pretty common. Chances are pretty good they are unrelated to your starting problem. I'd get a new battery - it's time!

 

[GreenMountainOwl]

My apologies for walking away from this thread and never logging back in. My wife had to travel for something that turned out to be a real big deal and life is only now getting back to normal.

The culprit turned out to be simply a dead battery. I replaced it and things have been fine ever since.

Thanks to all who read and responded. I was really stressed out at the time.

 

[4FL]

This reminds me that I need to get off my lazy rear and replace mine before it goes bad. Still got the original, bought October 2014, so nearing six years old.