Replaced battery with an Oddessy AGM. Do I need really need OV Tune to fix this? (1 Viewer)

[kcjaz]

So I just jumped in and bought what I thought would be the best battery I could buy for my 2017 Tacoma without really understanding that an AGM battery will be happier with a higher alternator charging voltage. My understanding is that for gen 1 and gen 1, you can use the magic diode fuse to fix this but for 2016+ gen 3, the ECU controls the alternator voltage and the diode fuse thing won't work. I've read a few posts on this in Tacoworld and one solution is to use OV Tune to fix this. I'm just wondering if that is really the only option for a 2017? Would an OEM TSB update allow some kind of ECU fix for using an AGM battery? Anyone messed with this here?

 

[Pin_Head]

I had an AGM battery in my 1976 FJ40 that lasted 10 years, so they don’t seem to be fussy about charging technology. My understanding is that they don’t like over charging, so a higher charging voltage may be counter productive. You need to be skeptical about some of the things you see on TW. Ask the battery manufacturer their opinion.

 

[kcjaz]

Agree on being skeptical of TW. Some good info there but also a lot of garbage. The Oddessy battery I have wants 14 to 14.7 v from the alternator to make it happy which I believe is more than the OEM alt puts out. In the 200 LC this is a real issue and the diode fix is what is done. I had initially thought a Taco would be the same way but gen 3 ECU supposedly messes with that. That is the thing on TW I am skeptical about.

I need to take some voltage measurements to see what’s actually happening but that seems a bit tricky at alt voltage will vary based on a lot of factors.

 

[little_joe]

I had a Northstar AGM in my GX470 before I learned about them needing a higher charging rate. It didn't last 4 years. When I drop an AGM in my Taco, I intend to call the guy who flashed OVTune on mine and have it reflashed for the AGM. A tender - AC-based or solar - might not be a bad idea too.

 

[kcjaz]

I had a Northstar AGM in my GX470 before I learned about them needing a higher charging rate. It didn't last 4 years. When I drop an AGM in my Taco, I intend to call the guy who flashed OVTune on mine and have it reflashed for the AGM. A tender - AC-based or solar - might not be a bad idea too.

Yes. I’m sure my AGM will degrade idly I don’t do something. I’ve installed a NOCO trickle charged/ maintainer and am keeping it plugged in when in the garage. Probably needed to do this any way as I now work from home so it just sits until the weekend.

I’ve tested the alt at the highest voltage I’ve seen is 13.8v. Not going to cut it. Should have researched this more before going AGM. What I don’t get is that almost all cars are not going to provide high enough voltage for an AGM so what is the market for them besides dual battery and marine?

 

[smritte]

I've run Oddessy batteries in my vehicles for years as well as a few diffrent brands AGM. I have not modded the alternator output on any of them. I have 2 in my FJ80 now and will be installing one in my 2019 Tacoma.
I understand the difference in batteries and what everyone tells you is what the voltage the battery should run at, not the percentage of life lost if its not kept there. I don't remember the exact number but I e-mailed Oddessy a long time ago and was told the capacity and the lifespan will be lower by a few percent. They also told me the expected life span was 5-7 years with the correct voltage.
I use to maintain a black diamond trail. I've spent many weekend's winching boulders and I can say, yes I did notice a difference after about 5 years of hard use. Not enough for me to replace it but there was a difference.
From the 90's until now I have run single or dual AGM's in 2 CJ's, 1 TJ, 1 Cherokee, 1 Cruiser. Most were under hard use without raising the battery voltage.

 

[kcjaz]

I've run Oddessy batteries in my vehicles for years as well as a few diffrent brands AGM. I have not modded the alternator output on any of them. I have 2 in my FJ80 now and will be installing one in my 2019 Tacoma.
I understand the difference in batteries and what everyone tells you is what the voltage the battery should run at, not the percentage of life lost if its not kept there. I don't remember the exact number but I e-mailed Oddessy a long time ago and was told the capacity and the lifespan will be lower by a few percent. They also told me the expected life span was 5-7 years with the correct voltage.
I use to maintain a black diamond trail. I've spent many weekend's winching boulders and I can say, yes I did notice a difference after about 5 years of hard use. Not enough for me to replace it but there was a difference.
From the 90's until now I have run single or dual AGM's in 2 CJ's, 1 TJ, 1 Cherokee, 1 Cruiser. Most were under hard use without raising the battery voltage.

Good info. I think it does just boil down to battery life. I’ll just watch it and see. I have a cheap Tipdon tester and it does some kind of SOH measurement or calc. The battery was new March so about 6 months of use and the SOH is 89% now. I didn’t think to run that test when I got it. It also measures CCA and it reads 660 vs. a rating of 725.

 

[Pin_Head]

The voltage of a fully charged battery is temperature dependent, so you should check the temperature that the voltage spec for your battery is measured at and compare that to the temperature of your battery under conditions that it is normally charging.

 

[Benjaman]

I've run an AGM in my 2020 since Dec of 2019. No issues at all during summer. In sub zero temps, it stugles to keep the battery charged.

 

[Benjaman]

Update! I was working on the truck a few weeks back, and I notice the battery was sitting at 12.5 volts. It's been below freezing for the last couple of months.

In the Summer my battery reads good, but I'm finding in winter temps, not so much. I'm waiting on a CTEK jack that I will mount on the outside of the truck, for easy charging.

All I can ask is WTF Toyota?

 

[chap79]

Update! I was working on the truck a few weeks back, and I notice the battery was sitting at 12.5 volts. It's been below freezing for the last couple of months.

In the Summer my battery reads good, but I'm finding in winter temps, not so much. I'm waiting on a CTEK jack that I will mount on the outside of the truck, for easy charging.

All I can ask is WTF Toyota?

I’m running the KDMax-pro tune in mine with voltage correction for AGM batteries. Works just fine even at idle.

 

[Benjaman]

I dont wish to make any change to my ECU. I hope Toyota will have a TSB on this soon.

For now I installed the jack I spoke of.

 

[Benjaman]

Also, with the price of gasoline, I've cut back on driving to once or twice a week. So it's nice to keep the battery topped off.

 

[chap79]

I don’t think there is a way to modify the alternator voltage output without changing the ECU parameters. There isn’t a user option within techstream to modify the voltage or change the battery “type.”

My truck sits it the sun while at work so I tossed a solar panel on it and have it go through a MPPT where I can set the battery type. At least this way it’s on a trickle charger while parked and keeps the house battery topped off. I use a couple battery maintainers at home when it sits in doors during my telework week. I don't worry about it as much when I don’t have the fridge in it.

 

[Blue77FJ40]

Yes, Battery Tenders are the norm for me for each of my vehicles. Battery manufacturers are paramount. The OG Red Top in my '40 that I bought in 2002 (before Mexican mfgr) just crapped out in 2021. It's limping along, but will be replaced with an ODYSSEY Extreme Battery ODX-AGM34 78, (34/78-PC1500DT) this spring.

The Sears Die Hard Platinum (Odyssey) that I bought in 2007 for my 2004 Taco also died in 2021. I replaced it with an ODYSSEY Extreme Battery ODX-AGM34R (34R-PC1500T). I made a base for the shorter battery out of a piece of shaped wood, painted it and stuck it under the battery to lift it close to stock height.

 

[Benjaman]

Yes, Battery Tenders are the norm for me for each of my vehicles. Battery manufacturers are paramount. The OG Red Top in my '40 that I bought in 2002 (before Mexican mfgr) just crapped out in 2021. It's limping along, but will be replaced with an ODYSSEY Extreme Battery ODX-AGM34 78, (34/78-PC1500DT) this spring.

The Sears Die Hard Platinum (Odyssey) that I bought in 2007 for my 2004 Taco also died in 2021. I replaced it with an ODYSSEY Extreme Battery ODX-AGM34R (34R-PC1500T). I made a base for the shorter battery out of a piece of shaped wood, painted it and stuck it under the battery to lift it close to stock height.

Sucks that sears is near gone. And sucks they stop selling Odyssey batteries.

 

[Benjaman]

My Ctek died. opened it up and it was full of moisture. I ended up with a 100% waterproof Noco.

 

[NMBruce]

I have a battery plus X2 31M and I asked the dealer to adjust the computer to deal with the higher charging output needed, I was told by the service manager that Toyota will not let them adjust it.
I got it done and I read around 14.3 volts all the time.

For a reference, I had a 06 GX470 with the same battery and when I hooked it up to a CTEK charger, it would take overnight and a little more to fully charge a X2 31M battery. After having the truck sit for a couple of day, I did the same on my Tacoma, it was ready to go at 7:30 in the morning, so I think the higher output on the new Tacoma makes a difference in keeping the battery full.

But I have heard many people say that their AGM batteries are fine with reg charging.

 

[Benjaman]

But I have heard many people say that their AGM batteries are fine with reg charging.

I thought that myself, until in less than two years my battery would read 12.4 volts. The 13.8 volts is low enough to kill any battery, flooded or AGM.

I've seen countless post on 3rd gen Tacoma having batteries go bad in 1~2 years. Most of the post were flooded batteries.

 

[URJ150L]

Nearly three years with regular charging and no problems here… probably hook up to shore power once every three months to get a full charge on them.