Occasional use

[austin99]

Hi there,

I'm looking at a 2013 CT 200h to buy - one concern is that this car will go through frequent periods where it will not be used for several weeks at a time.  Does anyone know if this is going to adversely affect the Battery - i.e. should I just stick to a regular petrol motor rather than a hybrid?  

Thanks!

[colin79666]

You can got 3 or 4 weeks fine but beyond that the Battery could be in trouble. The big hybrid Battery is fine but the 12v Battery is smaller capacity in hybrids and therefore can have a tendency to go flat if the car isn't used sooner than in a conventional motor. I haven't seen much of that being an issue with the CT but it has been a problem on some other Toyota hybrids like the Yaris.

If the car isn't used for several weeks at a time you might also not be covering much mileage to justify the extra expense of a hybrid if you are looking to buy based on the fuel economy.

[Britprius]

13 minutes ago, austin99 said:

Hi there,

I'm looking at a 2013 CT 200h to buy - one concern is that this car will go through frequent periods where it will not be used for several weeks at a time.  Does anyone know if this is going to adversely affect the battery - i.e. should I just stick to a regular petrol motor rather than a hybrid?  

Thanks!

The only problem would be with the 12 volt Battery as this is only a small Battery rated at 45 AH (amper hour). If being left for a period of weeks this still has to run the security systems, and the keyless entry system. The 12 volt Battery is not used to start the engine. It boots the computers and runs some pumps at start up.

If the Battery can be left on trickle charge while not in use there should be no problem. An alternative if the car is parked outside is a solar charging panel. 

John.

[austin99]

Ok, thanks for the advice 

[austin99]

I found this link which has a few tips, e.g. turning off the remote key system to save the 12v Battery

[Britprius]

That does help, but the security system is still running.

The problem arises as the Battery ages it's ability to hold the rated capacity diminishes, and you cannot be sure it is at the fully charged level when you park the car up. Some find they can leave the car parked for 6 weeks without problem while others report 2 weeks as being problematic.

The batteries even in new cars do not have a good start in life. The cars are shipped from Japan.They stand in the docks at both ends of the journey, and are started multiple times for short runs being loaded onto the transport to, and from the docks as well as onto the ship. They then stand in the dealers at a low level of charge "this is not good for lead acid batteries" until a buyer comes along and gives it a reasonable run to charge the Battery.

I had a Prius on witch the CT is based, and managed to find a Battery that fitted rated at 65 AH capacity against the OEM 45 AH. Leaving the car for 8 weeks was not a problem.

John.  

[mandon75]

I’m surprised I’m the only one with the answer to this query. I guess if you don’t have to leave your car in a car park for weeks and sometimes months on end you don’t need to ask the question.

I however do leave my ct200h in a car park for months and get back with it starting first time.

OK I’ll stop the anticipation, you need to remove a fuse from the fuse panel under the bonnet. That’s it!!

I contacted my local dealership who advised me to remove the fuse that is removed for shipping of the car to the UK

[ColinBarber]

What is that labelled as on the underside of the cover? It doesn't look like a fuse, more like a jump connector.

Does the alarm still function with this removed? Not sure your insurance company will pay out if you have disabled that and it gets broken into/stolen.

[mandon75]

The fuse does disable the alarm but it also prevents the car from starting, the car is locked/ unlocked by your key, so as long as it’s a relatively secure car park it’s highly unlikely to get broken into/ stolen.

[Engine49guy]

I have semi long periods of my CT sitting so attach a Sears trickle charger to the engine block and red jump start connection point in the fuse box shown above.

[Wass]

On 3/17/2018 at 11:02 PM, ColinBarber said:

What is that labelled as on the underside of the cover? It doesn't look like a fuse, more like a jump connector.

Does the alarm still function with this removed? Not sure your insurance company will pay out if you have disabled that and it gets broken into/stolen.

You're right Colin,however in light of the car being broken into/stolen, who would have any inkling as to who did what?