Cant open my door with dead battery

The AM radio could get fried...ha!

 

In this situation, I would concentrate on the alternator.

I know you can at least SEE the alternator with the front passenger-side splash shields off. In fact, you can see the harness that connects to the alternator. Inside that harness, there are two wires that go directly to the battery; one is the ALT wire, the other is the ALT-S wire. If you can remove the alternator connector, and identify the two terminals, maybe you can attach your +12V wire, then ground to the chassis. If you can't remove the connector, you'll have to open up the harness and repair later.

Maybe others can help you with the wire colors...short on time today.






Edit: Those are small gage wires. If you use a charger, pay attention to your charging rate vs. fuse ratings. If you pop those fuses, you're done with this plan.

 

When EMP weapons are used AM radios will be useless, but an old school vehicle will still start. Priorities.

 

The griginal and probably still the easiest.
https://www.myteeproducts.com/steck...cMx0vDaxl6VqkbdzPgMT5xnXY1y8THARoCbl0QAvD_BwE

 

Don't know if you're not paying attention, but I've posted 6 different methods to either pop the hood, or open the passenger door.... just because you started reading at this post it doesn't mean I haven't been paying attention...

 

So is this a problem for every modern vehicle or are the Tundra designers just a special kind of stupid?

 

you can slide a blood pressure cuff into any door seam and pump it up. Use a rod to unlock the door. It's actually very simple to do and doesn't risk permanent damage to the truck.

 

Call a locksmith. Too much time will be wasted or too much damage done. You've already saved enough in gas money to cover the cost.

 

Don’t use those wires, bad idea. This is the alternator connection to the battery, can hook positive there and ground frame to open door.

 

This is the kind of post that has me up at 3AM worrying. Especially since I’ve got a ‘21 with no knobs, or even a key, which is a new thing for me... I’ve always been about triple redundancy, since I’m sometimes out dozens of miles in the bush. It seems like this solution could work, no? Anyone think it’s a bad idea? Wire’s only 18 ga., but I always travel with a Yeti or smaller 12v power source capable of jump-starting my truck.

Sure hope this gets solved in an elegant manner...

 

I like the earlier posted solutions with a way to extend the electrical leads to your battery so you camp jump the battery without opening the hood. Of course if your jump start battery pack is in the cab that might be a problem...

 

The problem for the OP is that the cord has to be installed BEFORE the battery is dead.

If you set up your truck to plug in a smart trickle charger when idle, you have already installed this "elegant" solution.

$155 CTEK Multi US 7002, 12V Battery Charger for Cars, SUVs and Trucks, All Weather Smart Charger, Battery Tender Charger, Battery Desulfator, Battery Maintainer, Power Supply Mode and Reconditioning Mode

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FRLO9Y/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

$15 CTEK Indicator Eyelet M8, LED Indicator Showing Battery Charge Status, 8 mm Eyelet, Permanent Connection for Hard-to-Reach Batteries, for All 12V Lead-Acid Batteries & CTEK Chargers up to 10A

https://www.amazon.com/CTEK-56-382-...ld=1&keywords=ctek+cord&qid=1612022972&sr=8-3

 

@stangless40, The alternator harness is accessible right next to the frame. The most damage you can cause is removing the harness covering over a short area.

If you want to try tapping the alternator charging wire to the battery as I posted above, the 2015 wire colors at the alternator connector are Black (ALT), Black w/Yellow (ALT-S), Green w/Yellow (IGnition), and Red (ECModule). The Black wire (ALT) is the one you should tap since the wiring diagram shows that fuse to be 180 amps, where ALT-S (Black w/Yellow) is only 5 amps. You can probably confirm which are the charging wires by simply probing through the insulation with a voltmeter lead (tape the probe sites). The charging wires will show whatever voltage the battery has remaining, maybe around 10+ volts.

How quickly you can open the door lock will depend on how far discharged the battery. I would connect a charger to the charging wire tap, ground the other charger lead to the engine, and let it charge for an hour or so.

 

This is only a problem for crazy people who refuse to call a locksmith.

 

I still don't understand why you can't put the key in the door and turn it. Works on my 2012 Kia.

Knowing that the Toyota batteries are shit and that my truck has sat for most of the last year (outside so no, I'm not putting my trickle charger on it), if you can't open the door with the key when the battery eventually dies, I'm definitely replacing this truck with something else. No way am I paying a locksmith for Toyota's poor design.

 

On Toyota's typical door lock design, there's a rod that connects to the lock mechanism from a small arm on the key cylinder. That rod is secured at the key cylinder with a plastic lock that snaps back onto the rod. If that plastic lock becomes unsecured (say, if someone previously tried to unlock the truck) or breaks, and that rod falls out of the key cylinder arm, you are screwed if you can't unlock it electrically.

OP can put the key in the lock cylinder and turn it...it's just that nothing is happening at the lock mechanism.

 

His key won’t work. But locksmiths can get into a car without using the tumbler. Any AAA guy would’ve been inside that truck in 10 mins using a coat hanger. Maybe they don’t have AAA in Canada but I’m sure there’s something similar. CCC??

 

people are saying get a lock smith, what can they do that i can't, battery is dead, key does not open the door, what can they do.

 

What I'm wondering. Toyota designed this door lock to not be openable with tools. Everything inside the door is shielded with metal guards.

 

And i can't even pry my window with that rubber seal that the window goes up into.

 

In his situation yes, but this thread has been great for all of us that drive into the middle of the desert/woods with no cell service and the nearest locksmith is hours away. In my area neither AAA or the local locksmith will travel offroad. I have had to drag my friends rigs out to a gravel road to meet AAA. I could easily see my wife leaving the cab light on all night and me waking up to this same issue.

 

So his truck is broken and this shouldn't be an issue for anyone else. Thank you for clarifying.

 

They will wedge the door. Shove a long wire through and pull the manual lock. Get your door open. You pull the hood release. Jump the battery. And you’re done.

 

Yeah, like it's Two F'ups = One Aw S***.

 

As everyone keeps saying, call a locksmith. Now if you were stuck way out in the woods, I would be cutting through the grille to get to the hood latch. Grilles are cheapish and no collateral damage.

 

Wiley bastiches put a guard on the hood latch too specifically to block access to the latch mechanism and cable. Not been mentioned yet, but better check it out in advance. Been there.

 

CAA in Canada.

OP...make sure to disconnect the battery before working on anything.

 

Yeah it has a guard on it, but you can bend it easily. For future reference here is a couple pics

 

Yeah, but you have the hood up. Check out access to that cable end, and see how easy that guard is to bend, with the hood down.

 

In a emergency, I would cut through the grille with a multi tool and use needle nose plyers to bend it down. Then grab the cable sheath as far away from the latch as l could reach with the plyers and jerk on it to try and get the latch to pop.

But I am going to do like the earlier user posted and run a pigtail out my grille so I can try and run some juice into the battery.