Toyota batteries suck

This is very, very true at all factories. It doesn't matter if it's a new location or the engineers are just trying something to make the product better. Lot's of adjustments in the manufacturing process. Ask the factory workers in automobile plants, there are still calibration specialists working during the shutdown.

 

We sell new test equipment too. Example>>>Fluke makes THE best hand held digital multimeter. Still made here in US. I've seen them fail calibration right out of the box. Doesn't happen often but it does happen.

 

Two things:

1. Would you buy one if you don't have one already?

2. Is there a date/year when the batteries went back to being good batteries again? Like I said, the one in my old truck lasted 10 years and never let me down. I hope they are back to being that reliable again.

 

Hmmm. Mine is over two years and still works. Must be about time I guess for a decent battery if that’s the case

 

Two Things

1. I bought a Yellow Top three years ago because I have absolutely no qualms at all with Optima along with millions of other happy Optima owners.

2. Aurora plant was closed at the end of 2009. From what I was told was that it took Johnson Control several months to get the kinks out of the Mexican production line. 2010 was not a good year for JC. There were some quality issues that had to be addressed. Since then, Optima sales speak for them self and the internet complaints early on after the relocation were highly exaggerated, anecdotal, and based mostly on hearsay which still continues. I'm sure Optima has batteries that fail. I am also 100% certain I can find negative reviews /experiences with Northstar, Odyssey, and quite frankly with any make of battery for that matter. I've seen Consumer Report battery tests for brands who do quite well overall but for some reason a individual group size will do poorly.

What's crazy is I found numerous anti Optima battery posts in 2009 and 2010 and the "posters" were claiming that their Mexican made Optima's were dying after only 2 years. PROBLEMO>>>>>Mexican plant hadn't even been open a year. Rumor has it that Optima quality started going downhill after the relocation was announced to the Colorado employees. Didn't sit well with them at all. Can't blame them. Just sayin.

 

Was this recently or not long after the move down south in 2009? Did you take advantage of the 3 year warranty? Should have been able to get yours replaced for free. The tire store down the street that I got my Yellow Top can't keep them in stock. I was getting my tires rotated Wed and they were installing a duel Yellow Top setup in a new RV.

 

Hard to find knowledgeable help nowadays at auto parts stores.

 

Too soon for any battery issues in my Tundra but the battery in my new Forester went dead in a year. It was made by Panasonic. They don’t even make a good flashlight battery. Wonder how many of them Subaru has had to replace?

 

Get a Northstar and grow old with your battery.

 

This thread jinxed me! Haha I was reading this thinking that I had been lucky then go out yesterday and the battery in the wife’s Sienna was dead as a door nail. LOL
At least it was 4 years old.....

 

To the OP: If you are measuring 12.8 volts, generally that means you have a healthy, fully charged battery. You said you had "no amps." Where did you measure amperage? If you used a clamp multi-meter over the battery cable, you may simply have a bad connection from the cable to the battery terminal(s).

Did you check voltage at the battery terminals while cranking the engine over? If you do not have a drop in voltage while cranking, there is something else wrong other than the battery. There are several possibilities.

If the voltage at the battery terminals drops to 11.5 or less while cranking the engine over, then you are correct that the battery is gazooched, but it is unlikely it would measure 12.8 volts in a resting state if there are bad cells.

Good luck.

 

Checked by Auto Zone. Voltage was perfect but not enough juice to crank truck or power anything. New battery and all is well. Same thing happened a month ago on lawn tractor. Same thing happened years ago on both Tacomas. I have owned boats with multiple batteries most of my life so I have some experience with them.

 

6 years on my wifes Rav 4 and i replaced it because I remembered.
Nothing wrong with it but was taking a chance and I don't take those with the wifes car.

Mine lasted 5 years on an 2012 Tacoma.
I live in NY where the winter is brutal.

 

The last Fluke I bought was made in China and failed after the second use, which was too bad since the headquarters is/was right down the road from me. I had to ask myself, replace with another one for $150 or buy a $25 chinesium one. I think like most other good quality companies that get bought by massive multinational conglomerates, the products start getting built to a cost rather than longevity/quality. I just ended up replacing my fluke with another used (pre-conglomerate) fluke unit.

/end rant

 

Yep, Made overseas now and "assembled in USA" We literally sell thousands of Fluke DMM's each year among other brands. Fluke still the best over all. There's some real crap dmm's out there. We still get in the old Series I 70's made in Everett that usually pass calibration after all these years. We still stock parts to fix them which is usually a damaged case or display. Tough buggers!

 

My factory 2016 battery was getting to the point that I couldn’t leave my rock lights on for 15-20 min w/o it dying. Fixed it with a yellow top.

 

Heat is harder on them from what I have read

 

Extreme cold just as bad.

 

Just now ordered one of these, thanks for the photo! 2018 Tundra, year and a half old, 33,000 miles. I'll replace mine when it arrives (6-17 delivery date). Made in the United States of America.

I ran AGM batteries on my motorcycles (Kawasaki and Yamaha) and they are bullet-proof.

Dan

 

Funny my battery in my 2017 just took a dump this past weekend and of all places on the boat ramp! No signs it was going bad. Tried to jump with a cheap set of cables and no go. Go ride home and got my cables and started right up. I think maybe the Texas heat might have gotten to it. Anyway the dealer said a replacement battery is covered since the vehicle is less than 24 months and 24K miles. All my other Toyota vehicles 2004 and 2012 4Runner never had this issue. Maybe 2017 was a bad year for batteries?

 

2016 was too

 

Most battery’s that i see have gone bad due to zero maintenance. Most battery’s go completely neglected until the vehicle won’t start. Check the water level in your battery every 6 months. Add distilled water if needed. You’ll be surprised how long a wet cell battery will last.

 

I had my Tacoma for 13 years and went through 4 batteries in that time. Got an average of about 3.5 - 4 years on each one. Our Lexus uses a Panasonic battery and I have never had to change one on any of the 3 Lexus cars that I have owned over the past 9 years or so ( my first Lexus was used and the battery was still going strong after 7 years). I tried to find a Panasonic battery for my Taco once but it appears that they only sell direct to manufacturers. The dealer did not have any and no one sells them on the Internet.

I do maintain my batteries so that probably helps. Also most of those batteries made in the US come one manufacturer and are just re-branded and sold by the battery companies so you really don't get any different technology by buying a Delco or a WalMart battery. I have not heard of Northstar before but it appears that a lot of posters like them. I may try one of them once my Tundra battery is EOL.

 

Batteries these days don't really give any warning that they are going to go. One day went out to parking lot, moved my truck to the front door of the office, and turned off the truck. Loaded some equipment which took 5 minutes. Went to start the truck and leave and it was dead. No clicking, dash lights nothing. Would not even jump. Luckily the company had a fleet of truck and extra batteries in the warehouse. I put one in to get home and got a new battery that evening. Since then it seems every battery I've had goes in the 4th year. If I get to 5 years I just replace it before I am stranded. Use the old one around the farm in a tractor or something until it dies.

 

Maybe Panasonic makes luxury batteries for Lexus and low end for Subaru. Or maybe I just got a bad one.

 

I can't say but the ones in Lexus cars seem to be pretty good. With all the accessories in my GS it puts a pretty good load on the battery but it does have a pretty good alternator so maybe that is part of the equation. On the GS forum there are many users who report the same performance from their batteries.

 

Agreed! My 2007 Lexus IS350 lasted 7, yes, 7 years! After it went dead, I replaced with a factory Toyota battery in 2014. I sold the car in maybe 2015-2016, buyer was having all sorts of electrical problems - VSC lights flashing and whatnot. He called me out of the blue knowing I was a car buff. Told him to swap the battery, he said he had it tested. Swapped the battery - hasn’t had one issue with the car in over a year. (Toyota battery sucked) He still sends me pictures after he details is because the fucking thing has been Uber reliable, quick, and comfy. He loves it. I miss it.

My Tundra battery is factory 2015, so I’m going to be swapping it out tomorrow LMFAO.

My Lexus GS is 2014, factory battery. I’ll plan on swapping out in 2021

I went through 3 Optimas red tops in the 4runner. 1st one in 2010, lasted 8 years. Next one which was MFG in 2015ish, lasted 1 year. Replacement, another 1 year. After that I said fuck it and moved to a Napa Gold and it lasted a year then sold the rig.
Not an optima fan anymore.

 

Odyssey is where it's at. Tons of cranking amps. I have a decent number of lights, compressor, and winch drawing from it and never had a lick of trouble.

 

The wifes '17 4Runner came with that battery from the factory.

Edit - I have a 4 year old Interstate in mine but the pos terminal is leaking and corroding like crazy. I cleaned it and sprayed it with the Castle neutralizer and protectant. That lasted for about 2 weeks until the battery said "Hold my beer and watch this" so now I am needing a replacement due to the corrosion.

 

The OEM on my 2017 lasted a year and a half. I didn’t want the hassle of going through it again so I replaced it with a X2 (Northstar) from Batteries Plus. Great warranty and there was a sale on it too.