Planned replacement of 12v battery

[Britprius]

There is a menu there that gives fault codes for the audio/cd system and the ability to clear codes for this. Also a menu to calibrate the touch screen button positions. It' a great pity Lexus did not give the ability to read the engine, and hybrid codes on these screens instead of having to go to the dealers.

John.

[Rabbers]

On 9/11/2018 at 1:31 PM, darrude said:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-24V-Digital-LED-Display-Volt-Meter-Auto-Car-Cigarette-Lighter-Voltage-Gauge-/252445238581?var=

I've just ordered this.

So did I, and it came in the mail yesterday more quickly than expected.  Cheap but not nasty, it seems to work OK (my reading was a satisfactory 14.5V) and is a convenient thing to have.  Not that I was too worried since I’ll be taking only occasional readings but I was glad to see that It fits in the cigar socket of the armrest cubby of the RC with plenty of room to spare.

[darrude]

On 10/5/2018 at 1:12 PM, Rabbers said:

So did I, and it came in the mail yesterday more quickly than expected.  Cheap but not nasty, it seems to work OK (my reading was a satisfactory 14.5V) and is a convenient thing to have.  Not that I was too worried since I’ll be taking only occasional readings but I was glad to see that It fits in the cigar socket of the armrest cubby of the RC with plenty of room to spare.

I'm glad I'm not in a rush for mine:

Your order was placed.

Estimated delivery: 23 Oct – 21 Nov

Your order number is 120000233692220. We'll send you a confirmation email soon.

 

Good to hear it works, want to check out the wives RX, that is approaching 5 years old and of course if it goes wrong it will be my fault.  Might have to go old school and get the multi meter out.  In fact she was complaining of a few weird things going on with her car recently.... 

[Britprius]

On 10/5/2018 at 1:12 PM, Rabbers said:

So did I, and it came in the mail yesterday more quickly than expected.  Cheap but not nasty, it seems to work OK (my reading was a satisfactory 14.5V) and is a convenient thing to have.  Not that I was too worried since I’ll be taking only occasional readings but I was glad to see that It fits in the cigar socket of the armrest cubby of the RC with plenty of room to spare.

Remember it is the voltage reading in accessory mode not ready mode you are interested in. A reading of 14.5 suggests your in ready mode with the Battery on charge.

John.

[Rabbers]

6 hours ago, Britprius said:

Remember it is the voltage reading in accessory mode not ready mode you are interested in. A reading of 14.5 suggests your in ready mode with the battery on charge.

John.

That’s right.  The reading steadies at 14.5 during driving, and is around 12.2-12.5 in Accessory mode.  The “instructions” accompanying the gadget state voltages of 13.2 to 14.8 with engine running and 11.9 to 12.8 with engine off as good.

 

7 hours ago, darrude said:

I'm glad I'm not in a rush for mine: ..........

Estimated delivery: 23 Oct – 21 Nov

Your order number is 120000233692220. We'll send you a confirmation email soon.

 

I was given the same estimated delivery dates as you, and on past experience they seemed to be normal for small jiffy-bag type mailings from the PRC, so I was pleasantly surprised by delivery on 4 Oct. I might even give the seller a high star rating when amazon asks.

 

[reid]

Having read the wealth of helpful advice on 12 volt batteries I now now rather embarrassed to have to ask where the electrical 'cannon plug' is sited in a 2010 GS450h that allows me to connect a memory saver device to enable me to replace the 12 volt Battery without losing any codes.  I have the 'Owners Manual'  to hand so perhaps someone could just indicate the page no. or at least tell me the  'Lexus Jargon'  that will allow me to check the index.  What is the plug -in fitting called?

I have to hand a memory saver that I used on previous cars with a simple plug that fits into the cigarette lighter socket,  the other end connected to a 12 volt power pack thus providing a constant and steady 12 volt power source whilst I replace the Battery. Will this be a suitable solution for my car please ?  I am only looking at a very short term 12 volt supply to change the Battery and not a constant supply whilst I carry out major reconstruction work.

 I have just discovered that my  'new to me'  450h has the original fit Battery and reading of the perils of hanging on to a Battery until it is 'really dead' .....      I feel a new Battery fitted before the winter begins would be money well spent and a suitable Battery can be sourced and fitted without the need to spend £400 plus to have a main dealer do what is a simple job.

[Britprius]

Unfortunately the cigarette lighter sockets in the GS450H are not connected until the car is in accessory mode or ready mode. So the only way to use these with your memory saver is to press the start button once without your foot on the brake, and then connect the memory saver.

This will work as long as the memory saver can supply enough current to keep the cars systems alive.

There is however very little to do in the way of resetting if you just disconnect the Battery, and fit a new one.

John.

[reid]

Thank you John for your prompt reply. It did cross my mind that the cig. lighter power was dependent on accessory / ready mode and you have kindly answered the question. My earlier point now becomes more pressing in that the data link / cannon plug or whatever Lexus call it, is surely powered the whole time and would therefore suit the memory saver device provided I can locate same and identify what cannon plug I require to be connected to the memory saver.

I note your comments about the relative ease in reinstatement in the event power is interrupted for Battery change but as the truly 'monster'  owners'  handbook covers so little of owner/user tips and guidance, I will have to reinstate services based on what I can find on the internet and 'U tube'.

 

 

[Britprius]

28 minutes ago, reid said:

Thank you John for your prompt reply. It did cross my mind that the cig. lighter power was dependent on accessory / ready mode and you have kindly answered the question. My earlier point now becomes more pressing in that the data link / cannon plug or whatever Lexus call it, is surely powered the whole time and would therefore suit the memory saver device provided I can locate same and identify what cannon plug I require to be connected to the memory saver.

I note your comments about the relative ease in reinstatement in the event power is interrupted for battery change but as the truly 'monster'  owners'  handbook covers so little of owner/user tips and guidance, I will have to reinstate services based on what I can find on the internet and 'U tube'.

 

 

The settings you loose are auto window, and sun roof closure:- reset by opening half way then closing and holding the close button for 5 seconds.
The seat, external mirror, and steering wheel auto position for each key fob:- reset by adjusting wheel, and seat positions, and operating the set button, and setting number (1,2,3,) .

The engine ECU will be reset, and will learn your driving style without any intervention from you.

There is an OBD (on board diagnostics) socket that could be used for keeping the systems alive above the brake pedal, and next to this is the reset button for the TPMS system. If you can stand on your head you can get a good view of these.

John.

[matt8]

On 9/8/2018 at 4:24 PM, Britprius said:

If you want a battery with a higher amp hour capacity of the same physical size to the OEM the batteries used in disability scooters not only have much higher capacity, but are much more ruggedly built, and designed to be deep discharged on a regular basis with little or no damage. The only downside is that they do not have standard battery terminals. The Toyota 45 amp hour battery can be replaced with a battery of between 55, and 60 amp hours. for the same dimensions. 

Hi John

Great information. Can you recommend a specific make and model of Battery for the Is300h?

What adapters would one need to attach these disability scooters to the car?

It would appear having extra capacity would be worthwhile. Especially as so many see their 12v Battery flat, unable to start the car.

[Britprius]

1 hour ago, matt8 said:

Hi John

Great information. Can you recommend a specific make and model of battery for the Is300h?

What adapters would one need to attach these disability scooters to the car?

It would appear having extra capacity would be worthwhile. Especially as so many see their 12v battery flat, unable to start the car.

If you can give me the dimensions of the Battery, and it's AH capacity I can sort some candidates for you.

John.

[darrude]

My tester came Friday. My car (3.5 year old is) read 12.2v, then 14.4. wife's (Rx 6 year old) 11.9v, dropped to 11.4v when button pressed again, then 14.4.  think I'll look at changing hers. Thanks for all the feedback and help. 

[BrunoLeal]

I don't think anyone should spend money in a Battery if not strictly necessary. What I did was I bought a portable car jump starter (27GBP with travel box) and have it charged in the Battery compartment of the car. If one day Battery voltage is not enough to start the car I'll use this and only then spend money in a new Battery. 

[Herbie]

56 minutes ago, darrude said:

My tester came Friday. My car (3.5 year old is) read 12.2v, then 14.4. wife's (Rx 6 year old) 11.9v, dropped to 11.4v when button pressed again, then 14.4.  think I'll look at changing hers. Thanks for all the feedback and help. 

Here's a handy chart for reference:

 

[darrude]

Thanks Herbie 😀😀

[Hammerheads]

On 9/8/2018 at 2:10 PM, darrude said:

That's for the replies.  I think ill change mine on its fifth birthday. On a conventional car you kind of get a feeling the battery is about to fail at the beginning of winter, guessing it won't be a apparent on this car. I'd rather play it safe, as have missed a flight in the past because of a flat battery....

Well, mine has just started to fail after five years and three months, so it might be wise. I've definitely got to change mine now, as it's doing some strange things, which isn't unusual in my experience. Alarm going off, saying it's not in gear when it is etc. If anybody knows of a decently price site, please do let me know. Thanks. 

[Andrew888]

Lexus parts direct mate for a genuine Battery

[Thackeray]

On 10/21/2018 at 12:02 PM, BrunoLeal said:

I don't think anyone should spend money in a battery if not strictly necessary. What I did was I bought a portable car jump starter (27GBP with travel box) and have it charged in the battery compartment of the car. If one day battery voltage is not enough to start the car I'll use this and only then spend money in a new battery. 

That's been my philosophy too. But what I want to know is how low a voltage is sufficient to get the car into Ready state. Even a good Battery can go down to a low voltage if it's left long enough with a constant drain for alarm, door locks and so on.

My car has never failed to start so I haven't been able to check the Battery level at which it won't start. But I know I've started it with a Battery reading of 11.6v.

 

On 10/21/2018 at 11:55 AM, darrude said:

wife's (Rx 6 year old) 11.9v, dropped to 11.4v when button pressed again, then 14.4.

Darrude seems to have started his wife's car from 11.4v.

Any advances on 11.4?

[Britprius]

On 10/21/2018 at 12:53 PM, Herbie said:

Here's a handy chart for reference:

Be aware this chart is for flooded lead acid batteries. AGM batteries will have slightly higher figures with a fully charged good condition Battery having a voltage of 14.2 to 14.4 depending on the manufacturer. This is why not all Battery chargers are suitable to "fully" charge AGM batteries.

John.

[Brechin Slate]

On 9/13/2018 at 5:57 PM, Thackeray said:

hold down the Menu button while turning the lights on and off three times.

Just tried this and can confirm it works 👍

[Jayw13702]

4 hours ago, Brechin Slate said:

Just tried this and can confirm it works 👍

I did mine a few days ago, its interesting the info you can get out of the system, Many thanks @Britprius

[Superduner]

A good test (on an RX400H, at least) is to put a voltmeter across the Battery when the key is in the off position and then turn the key to acc and read the power socket voltmeter.

The difference on mine is 12.6 to 12.2.  I'm assuming that it's because in acc mode there is a lot of stuff going on to prepare the engine/system for starting.  Remember that on a hybrid, a lot of the bits that are belt driven on a normal car are electrical on a hybrid.  I think that includes power brakes. a/c and power steering.

Of far greater importance is the power drain when the key is off.  50mA appears to be acceptable, although mine is way less than that, at least on a spot check.

[Brechin Slate]

On 9/10/2018 at 1:18 PM, Britprius said:

On 9/10/2018 at 8:38 AM, reeac said:

I own a 1958 MGA sports car which has two 6 volt batteries in series to power the 12 v system. After restoration between 1981 and 1983 the first pair of batteries lasted 11 years and the second pair 10 years. After that I started having trouble with batteries which was eventually cured by converting to using a single 12 v battery. I believe that the problem was that the more recent 6 v batteries were intended for use in golf buggies and so were deep cycle and couldn't supply enough current for cold starts. I expect that true car type 6 v batteries are still obtainable but it's a possible pitfall if choosing deep cycle batteries. So called leisure batteries provide enough CCA (cold cranking  amps) and have reasonable deep cycling ability and I always used them on my boat, finding that they lasted about 10 years.

Expand  

I have owned two MGA's a 1600 and a 1600 twin cam.

Not Lexus related but I too owned an MGA, 1956 1500 in cardinal red, beautiful car.  I won the grass track race at Beaulieu, gave it a wipe down then won the pride of ownership.  It's the only car I've ever bought where I was interviewed to see if I was a suitable potential owner! I offered the asking price in cash in used notes and the money was pushed back to me over the table and I was told by the toff who was selling it not to be so vulgar.  Two weeks later I was 'selected' to be the next owner subject to a list of conditions.  I still miss that car!