Help Please! Is This A Battery Problem?

[Jackdaniels]

Hi all, hope you had a brilliant Christmas.

I have had a bit of a nightmare day today, I haven't used my car for a few weeks since all the ice and snow and i needed to pop to the shops today. I opened the car and when i got in i noticed the interior lights were not as bright as usual, i then plugged my key in and the steering wheel did not come down to greet me. The car didnt start and it only clicked a few times. I have a Battery jumper/charger kit but when i connected it didnt make any difference it still didnt start. The dashboard lights did come on but very dim. The central locking also didnt work, it only locks the front doors and the rear doors are left unlocked even when using the key to lock and unlock the car.

Is this just a Battery problem or is it something worse? Can i just pop to a Toyota dealer and buy a new Battery and plug it in? Will i have to reprogram anything?

Thanks for any help!

[royzels]

Hi all, hope you had a brilliant Christmas.

I have had a bit of a nightmare day today, I haven't used my car for a few weeks since all the ice and snow and i needed to pop to the shops today. I opened the car and when i got in i noticed the interior lights were not as bright as usual, i then plugged my key in and the steering wheel did not come down to greet me. The car didnt start and it only clicked a few times. I have a battery jumper/charger kit but when i connected it didnt make any difference it still didnt start. The dashboard lights did come on but very dim. The central locking also didnt work, it only locks the front doors and the rear doors are left unlocked even when using the key to lock and unlock the car.

Is this just a battery problem or is it something worse? Can i just pop to a Toyota dealer and buy a new battery and plug it in? Will i have to reprogram anything?

Thanks for any help!

Hi, Merry xmas....The Battery charger is probably not powerful enough. Try charging the Battery , and I think you will find its OK. I have had the same prob, and when I charged the Battery it started OK....Cheers Roy.

[royzels]

Hi all, hope you had a brilliant Christmas.

I have had a bit of a nightmare day today, I haven't used my car for a few weeks since all the ice and snow and i needed to pop to the shops today. I opened the car and when i got in i noticed the interior lights were not as bright as usual, i then plugged my key in and the steering wheel did not come down to greet me. The car didnt start and it only clicked a few times. I have a battery jumper/charger kit but when i connected it didnt make any difference it still didnt start. The dashboard lights did come on but very dim. The central locking also didnt work, it only locks the front doors and the rear doors are left unlocked even when using the key to lock and unlock the car.

Is this just a battery problem or is it something worse? Can i just pop to a Toyota dealer and buy a new battery and plug it in? Will i have to reprogram anything?

Thanks for any help!

Hi, Merry xmas....The Battery charger is probably not powerful enough. Try charging the Battery , and I think you will find its OK. I have had the same prob, and when I charged the Battery it started OK....Cheers Roy.

Should'nt need anything else. everthing should be OK.

[Jackdaniels]

Cool fingers crossed then, ill keep you informed! Hope Toyota are open tomorrow.

[MAT_8N]

why go to toyota? all you need to do is charge the Battery? it'll be free(or a few pence for the electrical power)

i work away and if i'm away for 3 months or more my Battery is always flat, i just jump start it off my wifes car, take it for a quick drive and its fine. i now have a solar trickle charger so i dont have the problem.

[steve-bedford]

I got a "Solar-Powered 12V 1.5W Battery Trickle Charger" from Maplin for Xmas (Item code L58BF).

Ideal for me as I haven't used the LS400 for the past 2 weeks or so.

What a great piece of kit for £9.99 - You don't get better value than that!

[royzels]

Cool fingers crossed then, ill keep you informed! Hope Toyota are open tomorrow.

Since we last spoke, I have just been out to the car and guess what ???? Click...Click....Click...Battery flat....Nevermind I have took Steves advice, and ordered a Solar charger from Maplins..The price by the way is £19.95...but im sure well worth it if it saves me this grief and mauling around....Cheers Steve, and good luck....Roy.

[steve-bedford]

Yes - I see it's gone back up to £19.95. It was £9.95 in their sale a few days ago - It may be worth calling them and asking them to honour the price - Whilst it's only a tenner, I'm tight like that......It's worth a try!

[steve-bedford]

Also, worth noting that this trickle charger is only going to keep a good Battery in a useable condition. It is not powerful enough to charge from scratch. It's more about keeping the Battery topped up in the cold weather and helps put back the small amount of drain brought about by the combination of clock, alarm, immobiliser, tracking device etc.

If your Battery is this low, it sounds as though it may need replacing - Not at all uncommon at this time of year. I replaced mine about 18 months ago. I used a local Battery specialist and it wasn't too expensive.

The other thing to have checked (Halfords will do this for free, the AA and RAC also have the necessary tools) is how much charge the alternator is putting into the Battery. It's all very well having a good Battery but it needs to be recharged properly.

The cold weather we are currently experiencing (especially for you in Scotland where it is even colder) puts an enormous strain on the electrical system of any car.

Good luck with it.

[steveskeggy]

When you park up your LS, there are still electronic systems that are running, even though you have turned the ignition off.

The security system is the main one, with all the sensors still looking out for intruders its on the go all the time.

So, after a while the Battery is going to drain.

The LS430 is even worse for this because it also has sensors outside, and the batteries are not really big enough for the car.

Also, unless you park your car in a heated garage, overnight the oil will thicken, making the drag on the starter even worse and flattening an already drained Battery even further.

If you Battery was ok before, then I would imagine a charge would do the trick. You can always do a Battery swap if it plays up again.

Just remember, if it gets that cold again and you want to leave the car, just start it and run it up to operating temp every few days.

[Jackdaniels]

why go to toyota? all you need to do is charge the battery? it'll be free(or a few pence for the electrical power)

i work away and if i'm away for 3 months or more my battery is always flat, i just jump start it off my wifes car, take it for a quick drive and its fine. i now have a solar trickle charger so i dont have the problem.

I have a jump starter kit similar to this one: Jump Starter - Maplin and whenever my car had trouble starting i would be able to jump start it with the kit. Tried it last night and it didnt make a difference. I really think that the Battery is dead as i have had a few problems starting my car every so often.

I got a "Solar-Powered 12V 1.5W Battery Trickle Charger" from Maplin for Xmas (Item code L58BF).

Ideal for me as I haven't used the LS400 for the past 2 weeks or so.

What a great piece of kit for £9.99 - You don't get better value than that!

How does this work? Do you just plug it into one of the cigarette lighters in the rear or does it have to be the main cigarette lighter under the main touch screen.

[steve-bedford]

The LS400 lighters (neither front or back) do not work unless the ignition is on so you need to attach the crocodile clips straight onto the Battery.

[lexusdriver]

Hi all, hope you had a brilliant Christmas.

I have had a bit of a nightmare day today, I haven't used my car for a few weeks since all the ice and snow and i needed to pop to the shops today. I opened the car and when i got in i noticed the interior lights were not as bright as usual, i then plugged my key in and the steering wheel did not come down to greet me. The car didnt start and it only clicked a few times. I have a battery jumper/charger kit but when i connected it didnt make any difference it still didnt start. The dashboard lights did come on but very dim. The central locking also didnt work, it only locks the front doors and the rear doors are left unlocked even when using the key to lock and unlock the car.

Is this just a battery problem or is it something worse? Can i just pop to a Toyota dealer and buy a new battery and plug it in? Will i have to reprogram anything?

Thanks for any help!

Hi, Merry xmas....The Battery charger is probably not powerful enough. Try charging the Battery , and I think you will find its OK. I have had the same prob, and when I charged the Battery it started OK....Cheers Roy.

Should'nt need anything else. everthing should be OK.

Hope you've had a good Christmas - probably too late to help you but I had identical problem before Christmas. It was the Battery - one cell was dead. It could just be entirely flat, of course, just needing a long charge period. Once yuo get it going get the calls checked out just in case it's that.

All the best to you and all Lexus owners/drivers for the new year.