PLEASE HELP. 2008 4 runner v6 NO POWER/Lights - battery has 12v

OK here is the information... Not sure if all of this is relevant or not.... About a week ago, I noticed that the clock was off and each day I had to reset the time....

Tonight driving home from church the lights flickered on 3 different occasions on a 5 min ride home.... I stopped in my driveway to have my kids get our garbage cans (on a gravel hill) and then I tried to take off and the wheels slipped a little.... A light came on indicating traction control i think........ I drove 100 more feet and put it in park and it died...... I tried to restart it and noththing... No dash lights, started not turning over, nothing.... I waited a few seconds and 1 or 2 dash lights came on but no interior lights or anything.... I checked the battery volts.. It has 11.9 Volts. I know this is low but i should still have lights and it should try to crank right???? ANY help would be greatly appricated... I have owned this for only 3 months.. I love it and need it fixed.... Any suggestions???? Where should I start?

Thanks in advance
TJ

 

On a truck of that age, I would start looking very carefully at both the positive and negative cables to and from your battery. Abad ground connection from the negative side of the battery to the main body ground can cause all kinds of weird problems. A bad ground would allow low draw things to complete the circuit such as interior lights and such, but a high draw such as cranking would not allow enough power through the connection. Check all of the grounds - meaning disconnect each one physically and look at the condition of the terminal as well as the metal that it attaches to. Any corrosion found no matter how minor is cause for getting out the sandpaper and cleaning to promote a good mechanical and electrical connection.
For positive cables look carefully at the conductor coming out of the insulator. If you see evidence of swelling of the insulator, or green stuff at the conductor or in between individual wires in the cable - that is a problem as it will resist the electricity from flowing through the conductor. The positive cable needs inspection where it connects to the starter also.
The most common corrosion inside the positive cable is found at the battery end, as the gasses coming out of the battery are extremely corrosive and attack the individual strands of the cable and causing swelling of the cable.
These are obvious things to start with but make a big difference to your truck electrical system.

 

Thank you so much for your quick response. I'm getting ready to dive into this morning and I will start with your suggestions. Really appreciate the help

 

I'm hoping and praying that this was a culprit. I got it all cleaned up back together. It is starting up on its own but the battery seems weak. Going to let it run for a while and then get the battery and alternator tested

 

If you have access to another vehicle you could take the battery to any auto parts store and they will test it for you, free of charge right in front of you so that you can see the results for yourself.
That battery looks like it has been in there for a while.

 

I clean this battery terminal up put it all back together jump started it and drove it for about 2 hours. Since then I have turned it on and off probably 15 times and it's running well. I'm taking it to AutoZone tomorrow to test the battery and alternator. Thanks again for all of your input and help on this. I love this community

 

Thank you for reporting back with your findings, and hopefully success. Sounds like you are most of the way there. Other members might experience the same issue one day, and you may help them figure it out.

There are some really good electricians that frequent this forum, and they can be most helpful.

 

That post looks eaten up probably from being little loose and moving.

If it were me I'd get a new battery.

 

If the battery is over 2 years old replace it. 2.5 to 3 years is the average life span. For the corrosion on the battery terminal, keep an eye on it. Once the terminals corrode, it etches the metal and it will never fully be gone even after cleaning it. A replacement terminal from Toyita runs about $30. We just had the same issue this week on our kids 2006 that had intermittent starting issues. It ended up being the starter but had corrosion and the battery was replaced a month ago. The battery was swapped too because it was most likely leaking since both terminals had corrosion.

 

Thats good advice. I will gettting a new battery soon. Thanks a lot everyone!

 

Some additional information for you

11.9V is essentially dead. That may be the voltage but your car will require high amps to crank the engine. Any ignition battery brought down that far has been "deep cycled" and it's life has either been severely shorted or ended.

The battery is used to start the engine. Once the engine is started the alternator supplies all the power your engine requires. If the alternator is bad the engine will run off the battery until it's nearly drained.

Keep the terminals clean. Always remove the negative terminal first and replace it last. Clean all the corrosion from the battery terminals and posts. Replace the terminals and coat them with grease to prevent air getting to them.

Buy good batteries. I buy Toyota Trustart 84 month and I typically get 15 years out of my car batteries.

 

To neutralize the corrosion so it can't do anymore harm, mix water with baking soda 3 to 1, pour it on the corrosion/battery acid, the baking soda will settle so agitate the mixture as you're using it, it will fizz until the corrosion/acid is neutralized so keep doing it until no more fizz with a fresh mixture, very important is to use a wire brush to help breakup the corrosion until it's all gone, I would do this with the battery removed so you can also do the battery tray, you can flush everything with fresh plain water, clean the battery if it's not new before installing it, and of course do as advised and coat the clamp liberally with a anti corrosion substance, I used Dielectric grease on my battery connections about 4 years ago and there's is still no corrosion on any of the connections.

 

That aftermarket brand battery might be a causal factor.
Best just go Toyota OEM

 

I agree with using Toyota brand batteries, but the corrosion will happen with any battery. It's a chemical reaction. Here's what Google says:

"Car battery terminal corrosion is primarily caused by the chemical reaction between escaping battery acid vapors and the metal terminals, often exacerbated by moisture and loose connections. This reaction forms a white, blue, or greenish powdery substance (often copper sulfate) that disrupts the flow of electricity"

Like Auseeker said, clean 'em up and cover 'em up. Make sure there's a tight connection before covering with grease.

 

I

I never had corrosion problems on my OEM. But i normally use preventive measures like battery grease and red sprays etc

 

I totally agree, neither do I, but the reaction is a chemical one so just buying a Toyota battery and not performing maintenance is not going to prevent corrosion. The battery shown by the OP is definitely lacking any kind of maintenance. A loose terminal connection will cause that, among other things.