Why is my battery out at 40K

[eddiebx]

Danny, have you tried doing what I think I suggested earlier? Drop by any auto parts store with the loose battery and they will fully charge it and test it for you and tell you the actual condition. More peace of mind

Not to be nosy, but if you do intend to replace your battery with an AGM type the Sear's Platinums might be your best bet IMO. Readily available and great warranty that you can use nationwide (should the need arise). Good luck sir!

 

[huntsonora]

I would just go get an Interstate or a Sears Die Hard Platinum. They cost a little more but the peace of mind is worth it IMO

My 07 Tundra left me stranded twice and it was the stock battery that failed both times. I sold the Tundra because of it. I have got to depend on my vehicles, especially in the areas where I guide hunts.

 

[DannyLlama]

Danny, have you tried doing what I think I suggested earlier? Drop by any auto parts store with the loose battery and they will fully charge it and test it for you and tell you the actual condition. More peace of mind

Not to be nosy, but if you do intend to replace your battery with an AGM type the Sear's Platinums might be your best bet IMO. Readily available and great warranty that you can use nationwide (should the need arise). Good luck sir!

I did drop by autozone.. I thought I mentioned it before, maybe not.
They told me that the battery is fine and just needs to be driven around. That was over a week ago.

I, however, did not ask them to fully charge it, nor was I aware they can do that. I will drop by again, going to return the jump starter I bought from them. Which is another story of it's own... Nothing on Amazon has good solid reviews (in regards to jump starters).

Thanks eddie

 

[kenski]

So..... Over a week and my battery is not fully charging. I don't know if I need to drive it for 4 hours straight or what..

Just curious, Danny. How do you know it's not fully charged?

 

[Barry694]

Batteries

I think it is the luck of the draw. I had a 96 4Runner and never replaced the battery. It was 8 years 4 months old at the time I sold it. My wife had a Lexus SC and it went out in 23 months. I later had a Tacoma and the battery was fine when I sold it at 5 years 3 months. Presently have a 2012 LS 460 and a 2011 4Runner and they both have the winter package, which comes with a heavy duty battery. Hopefully, they will last for a long time.

 

[eddiebx]

I did drop by autozone.. I thought I mentioned it before, maybe not.
They told me that the battery is fine and just needs to be driven around. That was over a week ago.

I, however, did not ask them to fully charge it, nor was I aware they can do that. I will drop by again, going to return the jump starter I bought from them. Which is another story of it's own... Nothing on Amazon has good solid reviews (in regards to jump starters).

Thanks eddie

I think you might have to pull the battery out and give it to them for them to charge it, but they might have a charger they can roll out to your car too? I am not sure about that because I usually just drop it off and pick it up later.

Why not be daring and just go camping and put your new Goal Zero goodies to the test :naughty:

 

[DannyLlama]

Just curious, Danny. How do you know it's not fully charged?

The truck stutters when starting it after leaving the door open for a few and not turning it on over night.. Any variance that will drain the battery without the truck running.

Take it to a store and start it up, starts up fine.


I'm going to try what Eddie said and take it to autozone to have them fully charge it.

 

[harper7]

The truck stutters when starting it after leaving the door open for a few and not turning it on over night.. Any variance that will drain the battery without the truck running.

Take it to a store and start it up, starts up fine.


I'm going to try what Eddie said and take it to autozone to have them fully charge it.

The battery will take a long time to charge if just making short little trips if you ran it down far enough and you can damage a starting battery if you use it for slow drain and then recharge again.That's what deep cycle batteries are for or these days combo starting/deep cycle are the way to go.
Battery Myths | Motoring | RACQ

I've had a Sears battery charger for over 25 years now along with 2 or 3 voltage and Fluke meters and consider them a tool every man should have in his arsenal being that tools make life easier.They are not that expensive and last a lifetime if you take care of them.But then I'm kind of a tool guy or is that a tool??lol

Diehard 10/2/50 amp. Battery Charger: Charge with Sears

Craftsman Digital Multimeter: All You Need at Kmart

 

[-JD-]

Curious about the story of pouring hot water on the battery. Isn't there a risk of shorting the battery and or electrocution? or do you make sure water doesn't touch both terminals? or do I not know what I'm talking about? :laugh:

 

[eddiebx]

Curious about the story of pouring hot water on the battery. Isn't there a risk of shorting the battery and or electrocution? or do you make sure water doesn't touch both terminals? or do I not know what I'm talking about? :laugh:

Lol, it's fine unless you're pouring maybe like hot salt water and simultaneously licking the battery terminals. 12 volts is way too low to electrocute you.

 

[Antman]

Lol, it's fine unless you're pouring maybe like hot salt water and simultaneously licking the battery terminals. 12 volts is way too low to electrocute you.

^^True. Fresh water is a relatively poor conductor of electricity (D/C).

I've been in a swamped boat with the battery completely under water powering the bilge pump (thankfully!).

 

[DannyLlama]

[MENTION=8206]harper7[/MENTION] - Thanks for the link and the equipment recommendation, will probably pick up both of what you recommended. The link is very informative.

I found this to be very useful and new information for me:

"Is a car battery OK to run the fridge in my caravan when I go camping?

NO. Using a car battery to run a fridge will reduce the life of the battery and it will eventually fail. A car battery is designed to produce a large amount of current over a very short period of time to start a vehicle. Once started, the alternator will top up the battery power used. If you are running a fridge, the best option to use is a ‘Deep Cycle’ Battery. These batteries are designed to produce a small amount of power over a long period of time. Usually rated in Amp Hours, Deep Cycle batteries are designed to be drained and then recharged. Ideally for camping you should run two batteries, an automotive battery to start the car and a Deep Cycle battery for the accessories. RACQ sell a range of Deep Cycle Batteries at member prices."

which kind of defeat having a 120 power in the truck, meaning - One can potentially run the power dry if the wrong kind of device is plugged in. Unless a secondary deep cycle battery is installed.

 

[JayceeP]

Not sure if this was mentioned but, personally, I turn off ALL electronics before turning the vehicle off. That includes, the air system/AC, radio, lights etc. I've also read that doing this will also save moderate amounts of gas over the long-term as less energy will be required on start-up.

I have no scientific basis for any of this but, I would have to think that placing load on the battery (radio, lights, AC) before start-up would place incremental strain on the battery over the long term.

 

[Jetboy]

So - I got home from a 2 week trip and my 4runner was dead to the point it wouldn't start or light up the dash. Jumped and ran fine. Drove it to the store. Started fine. This morning it was dead again. Anyone else have an OEM battery die at 25k miles? Seems like a very short lifespan. Nothing is "on" that should be draining the battery. My winch has a master relay that disconnects both the wireless and wired switch terminal so I'm sure it was not accidentally running. The only electronics that aren't OEM would be the winch's solenoid pack that is hard wired. I'll check that for resistance later today. Otherwise I'm looking at replacing the battery that's only 2 years old. And usually new OEM car batteries are pretty good quality.

Has anyone else found the OEM battery to have a very short service life? I have used with the winch, but never enough to fully discharge it.

 

[harkco]

Mine went dead at 35,000 miles. Just replaced it with an Odyssey. Very happy - cranks much better than it ever did with my stock battery. Also solved some other issues I was starting to notice with my Rigid lights.

 

[philsey]

So - I got home from a 2 week trip and my 4runner was dead to the point it wouldn't start or light up the dash. Jumped and ran fine. Drove it to the store. Started fine. This morning it was dead again. Anyone else have an OEM battery die at 25k miles? Seems like a very short lifespan. Nothing is "on" that should be draining the battery. My winch has a master relay that disconnects both the wireless and wired switch terminal so I'm sure it was not accidentally running. The only electronics that aren't OEM would be the winch's solenoid pack that is hard wired. I'll check that for resistance later today. Otherwise I'm looking at replacing the battery that's only 2 years old. And usually new OEM car batteries are pretty good quality.

Has anyone else found the OEM battery to have a very short service life? I have used with the winch, but never enough to fully discharge it.

See? This is how you use search.

:thumb: :first:

 

[e60ral]

Battery life depends more on time and conditions than mileage. However, 4 years is about the average lifespan of a car battery.

for a lot of batteries if you actually read the manual with them they even say replace after 4 years

 

[Murfe]

Just had my alternator go out about 40k as well.

 

[Lester Lugnut]

Just had my alternator go out about 40k as well.

I wonder if it ate too much mud?

 

[phillyd2]

See? This is how you use search.

:thumb: :first:

Shut up. Jerk. :clap2: