Battery discharge/recharge - a couple of questions .......

[chadr]

The 90 hasn't been in use for a nearly 3 weeks and when I came to try and use it earlier today, the battery seems to have run out of juice; the central locking, interior lights, ICE all work seem to be OK, just not enough power to crank the engine. I've taken it out and it is now on a charger which I will leave overnight.

I can't remember the last time the truck wasn't in use for this long, though I'm sure it always started OK in the past. The current battery is a Toyota "standard" 65Ah one for the 3.4V6, that I bought from a dealer and is about 5 years old. My questions are.....

1. Is it usual/expected for a battery to discharge over 3 weeks? Or it a sign that the battery is getting knackered or I have a "leak" somewhere?
2. Once recharged, will the battery be good as new or now that it has been discharged, will it never be quite right (IYKWIM)?

With the Summer hols approaching and a family holiday to France/Spain in the truck on the cards, I like to get this sorted. Thanks in advance.

 

[froggy Steve]

Out of season ours just sits there for a couple of weeks at a time, now, its being used a couple of times a week. Touch wood, not had a problem yet with either battery. If your passing, I have a charger you can use!
Steve

 

[chadr]

Thanks for the kind offer Steve, I usually pack my charger anyway, though a detour to the Dordogne sounds good! ;-)

I wasn't actually planning to have the truck laid up for 2-3 weeks, it just happened like that. Otherwise I might have disconnected the battery or something...

Just done some quick research and it seems that if you have an "intelligent" charger you might be able to get the battery back into tip-top condition (?). Also it seems that 5 or so years is about average for batteries these days? I'm sure my previous one, also Toyota branded, was the original (@ ~10 years old).

Any recommendations for brands if I have to buy a new one?

 

[uHu]

Better get a new one before the holidays. The bigger the better. Battery problem is the last thing you need.

 

[chadr]

Yes, an upgraded battery would be good, nice if it still fitted in the standard battery tray too though. Not an awful lot of space to play with in the 3.4 V6's engine bay.

 

[yogi]

Doesn't sound great for your battery, shouldn't discharge that quickly! Could be time for a new one. This time of year I leave machinery sitting for a month or more and would always expect the battery to have enough life to start it!

 

[chadr]

Bit the bullet and ordered a new battery from Simon (our forum friendly Toyota parts dealer) this morning. £57 with discount applied, so pretty much the same price I paid for the same item 5 years ago.

I'll keep the old as spare, though it will probably rot in the back of the garage with all the other "spare" stuff I have kept over the years......

 

[Trevor]

For chargers I go for CTEK every time, I have this one which would deffo do what you need.

http://www.ctekchargers.co.uk/ctek-mxs-10.php

 

[billhenry]

If your battery is discharging quickly so then you should change the battery and charge it. Usually batteries not working if we do not use since long time and on recharging batteries will work great.Might be you battery fine.

 

[clivehorridge]

I wouldn't scrimp on a battery especially if you plan to keep the car. Buy the biggest rating you can afford (and that fits of course!) 95 AH or bigger if you can.

I've got a pair of Varta (Exide) 109AH in my 80. No problems.

 

[chadr]

Well I bought the Toyota OEM battery - I don't have any auxiliary stuff and mine's a petrol so doesn't need massive batteries like the diesels etc. If this one lasts 5 years, I'll be happy with that.

However, I have ordered a cheap solar trickle charger from Amazon, as the car does end up parked up for a week or more at a time nowadays.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/SOLAR-POWER...674844&sr=8-1&keywords=solar+trickle+chargers