Battery problem or phantom drain? Need help diagnosing... (1 Viewer)

[KY Tundra]

I have to confess, this is for my Tundra, but I like this forum more than any other, and I assume the tech is the same. I have a 2012 Tundra with about 60K miles. I'm on the second Toyota Battery. If the truck sits with the engine off, doors open so interior lights are on, for more than 10 mins or so, the battery dies (like when you are cleaning the interior of the truck). Has also happened sitting in the truck with the key on, radio on, but again for only several minutes. Its the same thing I have done in cars all of my life and never had a problem.

I had the first battery replaced under warranty because I was having similar issues and it has continued.

• With a multimeter, how do I insure there is nothing draining on the battery when everything is off?
• Does the Bluetooth on the radio "scan" and cause extra drain on the battery?
• Anyone else had a similar issue? I want to blame it on the Toyota battery, but we have the same in our 100 and don't have any problems with it.

Thanks!

 

[outdoorsman]

First I would have a load test done on the battery. Any local auto parts store will do it for free. This will tell you if the battery is good or not.

The way you check the amp drain. Disconnect the battery terminal and use a meter between the battery and the terminal you just removed with the meter set on the amp setting.

When the key is turn on power is applied to lots of circuits. If you find a high power drain when the key is on you can pull fuses one at a time until you see a big drop on the meter.

That will tell you which circuit you might have an issue with.

 

[KY Tundra]

Thanks! I'll give it a shot.

 

[Spike555]

It do not know if this is useful to you or not. But it just might be worth looking into. This is from another facebook page that I'm on, this guy works for Jaguar/Land Rover.

When did this problem start compared to when you replaced the battery? Right away? A year later?

I'm just throwing things at the wall here and sharing as much info as I can.

 

[KY Tundra]

I feel like this has happened intermittently since the truck was new. Before and after the new battery.

View attachment 1654240

It do not know if this is useful to you or not. But it just might be worth looking into. This is from another facebook page that I'm on, this guy works for Jaguar/Land Rover.

When did this problem start compared to when you replaced the battery? Right away? A year later?

I'm just throwing things at the wall here and sharing as much info as I can.

ee

 

[Spike555]

Maybe pay attention to the run time when this happens?
Like you drove it a mile to get cleaning supplies, then a mile home and started detailing your truck but it only ran for 10min but then the battery dies.
Or you drove it for half hour, sit watching your kids t-ball game listening to the radio and the battery dies.

I have no real help to give, like I said, I'm just throwing ideas at the wall to see if anything sticks.

 

[Rolocado]

Running into this problem now. If the truck sits for more than 3 days, it is tough for the battery to get it going.

 

[SALTY METHODS]

Im having a similar issue with mine also.

 

[dogdaysindurham]

Another thing to check would be your alternator diodes. Is the alternator the original one? If a diode pack goes bad you could get battery discharge through the alternator. Normally the alternator prevents this backflow of current. One trick to test this is to connect the multimeter and to the battery set to measure AC voltage while the truck is running. Anything above 0.5 AC volts would suggest a bad diode in the alternator.

As the current draw would have to be pretty high to drain the battery like that in only 10-15 minutes.

 

[Rolocado]

Mine is over multiple nights issue. My alternator was replaced with an OEM less than 20k ago

 

[Pyrenees]

Another thing to check would be your alternator diodes. Is the alternator the original one? If a diode pack goes bad you could get battery discharge through the alternator. Normally the alternator prevents this backflow of current. One trick to test this is to connect the multimeter and to the battery set to measure AC voltage while the truck is running. Anything above 0.5 AC volts would suggest a bad diode in the alternator.

As the current draw would have to be pretty high to drain the battery like that in only 10-15 minutes.

This. One sign of a bad diode is a hum/whine from the alternator, I don't know if the people posting have that symptom but it's a thing. Measure battery voltage at the terminals fully charged and measure battery voltage at the terminals while the engine is running. Post here if you're not sure.

And hey, another member from Durm.

 

[dogdaysindurham]

The OEM replacement alternator are rebuilds and not brand new. It is unclear if the diode packs are replaced in these based on prior threads. Generally, the bearings and brushes are what is replaced. It still be worth checking.

 

[dogdaysindurham]

@Rolocado do you have an aftermarket alarm? Chasing down parasitic draws is no fun for sure.

 

[Pyrenees]

@Rolocado do you have an aftermarket alarm? Chasing down parasitic draws is no fun for sure.

Good call. I had an old-school Clifford that worked great in my E36 BMW but but it caused problems too. This is a good suggestion.

 

[Rolocado]

@Rolocado do you have an aftermarket alarm? Chasing down parasitic draws is no fun for sure.

Nope, everything stock.

 

[dogdaysindurham]

Here is an old thread with a lot of investigation. Anthony.L chased his issue to his DVD/CD changer. He disconnected it and his parasitic draw of 500 ma went to 0.023 ma.

Dead Battery (3x in 2mths) - 30A BAT Fuse has 500mA draw - what next?

 

[dogdaysindurham]

@Sandroad posted this handy tutorial in that thread for doing the parasitic testing How to Find a Parasitic Battery Drain

 

[Rolocado]

This white stuff seems like a new addition to the top of the battery.

I suck with electricity- I followed that write up and I am not able to get any numbers popping up on the multimeter. Does that mean nothing is drawing from the battery?