IS300h left for one week, now completely lifeless. Any ideas ?

[Asder]

Hi Everyone 

I have the above problem. Fully serviced at main dealers regularly, new 12v Battery 9 months ago. 
Today the car is totally lifeless after initially giving the on screen hybrid beep message when trying to start it. Not a single light etc comes on now, not the IS logo when opening door etc. 

any ideas on what might be this issue? 
 

many thanks 

[Herbie]

Have you been using it for short runs and leaving it parked up for days between them or have you used it regularly and/or for decent runs?

The Battery takes much more of a hammering during the winter months when it goes dark early and the heater, the headlights and heated rear screen are used more, so unless it gets a good blast on a regular basis the Battery will go flat sooner than is otherwise normal. If this is your scenario it may be best to leave the Battery on a trickle charger when not in use.

It would be a good idea to fully charge the Battery and then go to a car accessory shop and ask them to check the Battery for you. They should have a Battery tester that simulates a load, rather than just checking the Battery 'standing' voltage with a multimeter.

If you've been using the car regularly and/or the Battery is load tested and found to be good, then it's possible that you may have a fault that's causing a parasitic drain on the Battery. This video may help find the problem if this is the case:

 

 

[Asder]

Many thanks for the reply Herbie

Yes, only short journeys nowadays, just as you describe. I did not think a new Battery would succumb so soon. Kicking myself all day about not running it this week. I have put my charger on it but it gives me a buzz only and no read out at all. Not sure if my Battery charger is kaput too. 
I will check out the video, though my car skills are zero nowadays. I have a mobile mechanic coming this week and hopefully he can fix it then I am going to sell the car asap.
This is fourth or fifth time this has happened and my confidence in the car is shattered. I will get a cheap Auris or Yaris given we also have an Auris that is the proverbial tank as regards reliability and much cheaper running costs too.

 

regards

Tom 

[wharfhouse]

3 minutes ago, Asder said:

Many thanks for the reply Herbie

Yes, only short journeys nowadays, just as you describe. I did not think a new battery would succumb so soon. Kicking myself all day about not running it this week. I have put my charger on it but it gives me a buzz only and no read out at all. Not sure if my battery charger is kaput too. 
I will check out the video, though my car skills are zero nowadays. I have a mobile mechanic coming this week and hopefully he can fix it then I am going to sell the car asap.
This is fourth or fifth time this has happened and my confidence in the car is shattered. I will get a cheap Auris or Yaris given we also have an Auris that is the proverbial tank as regards reliability and much cheaper running costs too.

 

regards

Tom 

If it's a flat Battery due to lack of use you will have exactly the same problem with a hybrid Auris or Yaris for the reasons Herbie listed above. In fact you will probably get Battery problems with non-hybrid ones to. My IS 300h is a 2014 reg and has now done 110k miles and still on its original 12V Battery but it does do a decent mileage each week so it's not an inherent issue in the IS 300h. For a flat Battery you should be able to start the car with one of the Li Ion glove box charge packs (as starting a hybrid takes only a small amount of power). If that doesn't work there are probably some other issues though.

[Asder]

Many thanks for the reply Herbie

Yes, only short journeys nowadays, just as you describe. I did not think a new Battery would succumb so soon. Kicking myself all day about not running it this week. I have put my charger on it but it gives me a buzz only and no read out at all. Not sure if my Battery charger is kaput too. 
I will check out the video, though my car skills are zero nowadays. I have a mobile mechanic coming this week and hopefully he can fix it then I am going to sell the car asap.
This is fourth or fifth time this has happened and my confidence in the car is shattered. I will get a cheap Auris or Yaris given we also have an Auris that is the proverbial tank as regards reliability and much cheaper running costs too.

 

regards

Tom 

[Asder]

Many thanks Wharfhouse.

are there suitable li on chargers that you can point me to? 
 

many thanks 

[NemesisUK]

33 minutes ago, Herbie said:

The battery takes much more of a hammering during the winter months when it goes dark early and the heater, the headlights and heated rear screen are used more, so unless it gets a good blast on a regular basis the battery will go flat sooner than is otherwise normal. If this is your scenario it may be best to leave the battery on a trickle charger when not in use.

Surely, with a hybrid this shouldn't be an issue as all these consumers are powered via the traction Battery, not the 12v Battery (which would be the case in a non-hybrid)

[royoftherovers]

Has the car been run in "Ready" Mode as per the HB ?

[Asder]

Many thanks for the reply Herbie

Yes, only short journeys nowadays, just as you describe. I did not think a new Battery would succumb so soon. Kicking myself all day about not running it this week. I have put my charger on it but it gives me a buzz only and no read out at all. Not sure if my Battery charger is kaput too. 
I will check out the video, though my car skills are zero nowadays. I have a mobile mechanic coming this week and hopefully he can fix it then I am going to sell the car asap.
This is fourth or fifth time this has happened and my confidence in the car is shattered. I will get a cheap Auris or Yaris given we also have an Auris that is the proverbial tank as regards reliability and much cheaper running costs too.

 

regards

Tom 

[Asder]

Hi Roy, 

 

what is ready mode? 
 

thanks 

[paulrnx]

Another windup in my opinion

[wharfhouse]

18 minutes ago, Asder said:

Many thanks Wharfhouse.

are there suitable li on chargers that you can point me to? 
 

many thanks 

Mine is a DB Power one that I bought quite a few years ago. Not had to use it on my car but did use it to start someone else's diesel van so I know it works. If you do a search on the likes of amazon for something like jump start pack there are quite a number. Get one with decent customer reviews and for around £50 and should work especially as hybrids draw so little power to get into Ready mode. 

[Herbie]

40 minutes ago, NemesisUK said:

Surely, with a hybrid this shouldn't be an issue as all these consumers are powered via the traction battery, not the 12v battery (which would be the case in a non-hybrid)

That's true but it can also be said for any car, hybrid or not. In a conventional car the alternator meets the 12V demands, in a hybrid the traction Battery meets the demands - but it still happens.

Any Battery, of any capacity, in any car, will eventually go flat if not used regularly or trickle charged; it's just a matter of time.

[NemesisUK]

1 minute ago, Herbie said:

Any battery, of any capacity, in any car, will eventually go flat if not used regularly or trickle charged; it's just a matter of time.

Agreed but the point I was trying to make is that using the seat heaters, rear window demister etc.. will not accelerate the 12v Battery drain as they are feed by the traction Battery.

If the hybrid is put into the ready state for approx 30min at least once a week the traction Battery will recharge the 12v Battery, even if the car isn't driven. Not something one can do in a 'normal' car as at idle there is insufficient surplus charge from the alternator to recharge the 12v Battery that has just taken a big hit turning the ICE over!

[malcolmw]

These cars need to be run in "ready" mode for about one hour per week to maintain the system Battery which is charged via a DC/DC converter. This can be by driving the car or by leaving it in park in ready mode (for example on your drive). If this is impractical then a trickle charger is your best bet.

[Herbie]

3 minutes ago, NemesisUK said:

Agreed but the point I was trying to make is that using the seat heaters, rear window demister etc.. will not accelerate the 12v battery drain as they are feed by the traction battery.

If the hybrid is put into the ready state for approx 30min at least once a week the traction battery will recharge the 12v battery, even if the car isn't driven. Not something one can do in a 'normal' car as at idle there is insufficient surplus charge from the alternator to recharge the 12v battery that has just taken a big hit turning the ICE over!

But the DC/DC converter in the hybrid will have an upper limit to the current it can supply, so if all those things are on then there's obviously less available to recharge the 12V Battery, just as in the case of the alternator at idle. This is the reason why a hybrid car must never be used to jump start a conventional car, because the DC/DC converter can't supply as much current as an alternator can.

[NemesisUK]

7 minutes ago, Herbie said:

But the DC/DC converter in the hybrid will have an upper limit to the current it can supply, so if all those things are on then there's obviously less available to recharge the 12V battery, just as in the case of the alternator at idle. This is the reason why a hybrid car must never be used to jump start a conventional car, because the DC/DC converter can't supply as much current as an alternator can.

The attached doc would suggest the converter should be able to support all the high drain consumers without the 12v Battery.?

CHARGING SYSTEM ON-VEHICLE INSPECTION.pdf

[royoftherovers]

1 hour ago, Asder said:

Hi Roy, 

 

what is ready mode? 
 

thanks 

Your Handbook reveals all Tom.

It is a procedure whereby the car engine switches itself off and on for approx 30 minutes periodically and providing a feed to the 12v Battery.

Do look it up Tom.

[NemesisUK]

Perhaps a timely reminder?

 

Maintainace of hybrid battery.pdf

[paulrnx]

And still you all discuss amongst yourselves about a subject that has been done to death on this forum many times. It’s another windup by someone with zero posts trying to get you all talking about the tiddly 12V Battery and need to run the car in Ready mode at least once a week.

[Asder]

Hi Roy, 

 

what is ready mode? 
 

thanks 

[Asder]

It isn’t a windup. Why would I seek to wind people up? 

thanks for all the genuine replies.

 

regards 

[paulrnx]

1 hour ago, Asder said:

It isn’t a windup. Why would I seek to wind people up? 

thanks for all the genuine replies.

 

regards 

You drive a Lexus hybrid and you have no idea what Ready mode is? And you expect me to believe that?

Let’s see some photos of your pride and joy and a photo of the invoice for your Battery replacement at a Lexus dealership. If you do, I’ll take it all back and apologise for daring to suggest it was a windup. Until then however…..

[Herbie]

48 minutes ago, paulrnx said:

You drive a Lexus hybrid and you have no idea what Ready mode is? And you expect me to believe that?

I thought the same thing to be honest, but over the time I've been a member on these forums I've often been left shaking my head in bewilderment about the lack of knowledge of their cars that some people display. They buy a hybrid with absolutely no knowledge whatsoever of what that even means. They go out to buy 'a car' and come back with 'a car' without knowing what they have.

Some people have had their cars for six months or more and don't even know that it doesn't have a starter motor or alternator, and they haven't got a clue how to drive a hybrid or how to get the best out of it.

Having said that though, not knowing what READY mode is does seem to take the biscuit.

[route66]

5 hours ago, royoftherovers said:

Your Handbook reveals all Tom.

It is a procedure whereby the car engine switches itself off and on for approx 30 minutes periodically and providing a feed to the 12v battery.

Do look it up Tom.

This is not Ready Mode.

Page 209 in the manual reveals all - do look it up 😉