Dead 2002 4Runner

I have a 2002 4Runner that is dead. New battery and new battery cables. Started intermittently and ran fine, but if not started or driven every few day, it would be dead, thus having to carry a portable charger in the car to not get stranded. Until now, it would charge quickly, but now will not charge. No clicking...just DEAD. What can be the issue?

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

Bad alternator maybe. I would get the charging system checked. Most auto parts stores will do it for free. Also could be a bad ground.

 

check alternator...and welcome to the forum

 

It's usually NOT the alternator if the car keeps her charge by driving every few days.

BUT it's still worth testing the alternator.

The first thing to do is to check the voltage across the battery terminals while the car is off. It should be roughly 12v. If it is less...and it's a new battery, suspect a parasitic drain.

Start the car, check the voltage, it should be 13v or more. This indicates the alternator is charging fine.

Next is to figure out a parasitic drain or if your battery cables are shot.

Bad cables will be crinkly inside, and have lots of corrosion that comes back fast after cleaning them. On my car, I had to cut 12" off the negative battery cable...I used a torch to solder on a new length of cable and terminal. My symptoms were a gradual worsening of being able to start the car when cold. This is because when you get the car started, the circuit is charging and reversing the corrosion just a bit, enough to make it start right up for the day. But the corrosion comes right back, a little worse and the next day, she needed a jump and soon...no nothing worked and couldn't get it started from a jump.

These TOYOTA terminals are also prone to cracking. The old-school LEAD ones are far far superior. It could be that the terminal on yours is shot. Maybe you are trying to use your battery charger on the terminal and not directly to the battery post. If you disconnect/remove the battery from the car, is it now easy to charge like before? If so...bad battery terminal...probably extends into the cable too.

To figure out a parasitic drain you can check voltage drops across the fuses. You record them, add them up and using a table found on-line, you can determine how much drain you have. The clock should be the only thing running which should take no more than a few milliamps. Anything more than like 20ma and you have something still pulling power. On our cars, nothing much runs after shutoff so this works. On newer cars, disconnecting the battery can cause a bunch of circuits to wake up and do a bunch of stuff for up to an hour which is normal...and can make tracking down a parasitic drain easier with the "fuse" method. The other method is to put the ammeter in-line with a disconnected battery cable and see what the current draw is. You have to make sure you don't start the car like that or turn on anything or you'll blow your meter.

 

Sounds like something could be drawing from your battery, check the charge when you park it and then when you come back from it. Are there any codes?

 

any luck in chasing those gremlins down ??

 

Have you connected an OBD scanner to see whether it is showing any codes?