ALL POSTS - 12-volt battery replacement

[miimura]

Costco also has Interstate 24F with 700 CCA and Rc=130 for $90. I found it by putting a 2012 RAV4 V6 in the battery finder.

On the Interstate battery site, this appears to be M-24FHC since it has the same CCA and Rc ratings. The standard M-24F has 27% less capacity at a Rc=95 minute rating.
The M-27 and M-27F only have Rc=135, so the capacity difference should be minor and the 24F is a drop-in fit as we know.

Either of these seem like a good choice for the RAV4 EV. I personally don't think the Group 27 is a good choice for a typical owner that values an easy installation.

 

[davewill]

Costco also has Interstate 24F with 700 CCA and Rc=130 for $90. I found it by putting a 2012 RAV4 V6 in the battery finder.

On the Interstate battery site, this appears to be M-24FHC since it has the same CCA and Rc ratings. The standard M-24F has 27% less capacity at a Rc=95 minute rating.
The M-27 and M-27F only have Rc=135, so the capacity difference should be minor and the 24F is a drop-in fit as we know.

Either of these seem like a good choice for the RAV4 EV. I personally don't think the Group 27 is a good choice for a typical owner that values an easy installation.

You don't think that with mounting the 27DC battery turned 180 degrees (with the posts towards the front of the vehicle) that the cables would reach?

I stuck a 2008 Tacoma in the Costco search, and got the following 24F battery @ $93.99, but it's still not deep cycle: https://costco.interstatebatteries.com/home/results?key=auto&ZipCode=92127&l=92127&Program=100500&choice1=1561422&choice2=1563203&choice3=1563262&choice4=1563265&choice5=1563267&Country=US

YOUR BATTERY INFORMATION

Item Number: 1131901
Group Size: 27F
Cold Cranking Amps: 710
Cranking Amps: 890
Voltage: 12
(RC) Min @ 25 Amp: 165

 

[miimura]

You don't think that with mounting the 27DC battery turned 180 degrees (with the posts towards the front of the vehicle) that the cables would reach?

I stuck a 2008 Tacoma in the Costco search, and got the following 24F battery @ $93.99, but it's still not deep cycle: https://costco.interstatebatteries.com/home/results?key=auto&ZipCode=92127&l=92127&Program=100500&choice1=1561422&choice2=1563203&choice3=1563262&choice4=1563265&choice5=1563267&Country=US

YOUR BATTERY INFORMATION

Item Number: 1131901
Group Size: 27F
Cold Cranking Amps: 710
Cranking Amps: 890
Voltage: 12
(RC) Min @ 25 Amp: 165

It's entirely possible that the cables will reach the front of the battery if you flip it around so that the terminals are on the correct side of the vehicle. I was actually more concerned that the Group 27 battery is 1 1/8 inches longer than the Group 24. I did not look at the battery tray on the RAV4 EV to see how it could be accommodated, but assumed that something would have to be modified. To me, any modification is a big ask for a normal owner. If no modification is necessary, then sure, go for the bigger one. Rc=165 is a significant increase in capacity.

 

[TonyWilliams]

I think I’m going to buy the larger Group 27 battery and see what needs to be modified.

Yes, the Group 24F Interstate battery will just drop in; no modifications required.

 

[ferenc]

I have a new “favorite” 12 volt battery for RAV4 EV:

COSTCO # 850952
$87.99

Built by Interstate
Model 27-DC

...

hmm - I checked for it and could it be the costco #850982?
I plan to try a new 'pure' sine wave converter tomorrow: giandel 1200W, and like the idea of removing the fuse. I bought the HF battery anti-theft contraption, but had difficulty in mounting it.

Presumably the steps would be:
open hood
hook up powered-off inverter (ground and + side on the charger side)
start ev
turn on inverter
pull fuse

suggestions welcome,
ferenc

 

[davewill]

Well, my Costco Group 35 Interstate battery pooped out yesterday. It may not have been the battery's fault, as my wife didn't drive it for several days and also left it unplugged "since it was full". Anyway it was down to 7.4V. Pulled it on the spot, and took it over to Costco. It was on the last month of its 42 month free replacement warranty. I figured they would test it and that it would test OK (in which case I was going to replace it anyway), but apparently Costco doesn't bother testing batteries you bring back, they just replace them on your say so. So I got a brand new battery for free.

Probably why their batteries no longer have free replacement warranties, but more normal "limited" warranties.

I did get to do a Tony Test since the car was without a battery for a few hours. I got 128 miles for 87.7%. Not too bad for a nearly 6 YO car. It took it only 5 minutes to charge from a normal charge to an extended charge and the GOM didn't go up even one mile.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Well, my Costco Group 35 Interstate battery pooped out yesterday. It may not have been the battery's fault, as my wife didn't drive it for several days and also left it unplugged "since it was full". Anyway it was down to 7.4V. Pulled it on the spot, and took it over to Costco. It was on the last month of its 42 month free replacement warranty.

42 months on ANY battery in the RAV4 EV is truly "whistling in the cemetery". If you're on Facebook, check out our group at:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/ToyotaRAV4evTeslaPowered

 

[davewill]

42 months on ANY battery in the RAV4 EV is truly "whistling in the cemetery". If you're on Facebook, check out our group at:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/ToyotaRAV4evTeslaPowered

Sorry, I don't do Facebook. The company is simply disgusting, I won't participate any more than I can help. So for SoCal how long is your upper limit? 36 months?

 

[smkettner]

Anyone run a lithium drop in replacement?

 

[asavage]

Sorry, I don't do Facebook. The company is simply disgusting, I won't participate any more than I can help. So for SoCal how long is your upper limit? 36 months?

+1
Not a member, don't think I ever will be. Don't miss it.

 

[miimura]

I think I’m going to buy the larger Group 27 battery and see what needs to be modified.

Yes, the Group 24F Interstate battery will just drop in; no modifications required.

Tony, did you get around to trying the Group 27 battery?
Anything useful to report?

 

[chrisspy]

I think I’m going to buy the larger Group 27 battery and see what needs to be modified.

Yes, the Group 24F Interstate battery will just drop in; no modifications required.

Tony, did you get around to trying the Group 27 battery?
Anything useful to report?

Jan 21 I drove our 2013 RAV4EV with Optima yellow top battery to dealer for warranty work on peeling paint. IRA Toyota Danvers, MA got approval to do work including a rental Corolla. Told them to charge it. They found more paint to repair & haven't gotten approval for extra areas yet. Again, told them to charge it. 2/20 found out they didn't charge it even though there's a Level 2 plug outside & delivered 120V EVSE at 5PM. Of course, it wouldn't turn on, won't accept a charge. Today they're supposed to check the Optima, see if it accepts a charge & try 120V EVSE again.
I expect they ruined the Optima & should replace it. What's the best 12V including use with a 1200W pure sine inverter? Waiting to hear modifications for Interstate M-27DC...

 

[chrisspy]

We may have dodged a bullet. They say car now turns on & 77% SOC. In addition to charging, I told them to turn on for 15 min every week.
Still following topic for 12V battery replacement recommendations. Is the 12V battery test they do at dealer or auto parts store good or is there a 'Tony test' 12V version?

 

[miimura]

We may have dodged a bullet. They say car now turns on & 77% SOC. In addition to charging, I told them to turn on for 15 min every week.
Still following topic for 12V battery replacement recommendations. Is the 12V battery test they do at dealer or auto parts store good or is there a 'Tony test' 12V version?

Normal 12V lead acid battery tests are perfectly valid.

 

[chrisspy]

We may have dodged a bullet. They say car now turns on & 77% SOC. In addition to charging, I told them to turn on for 15 min every week.
Still following topic for 12V battery replacement recommendations. Is the 12V battery test they do at dealer or auto parts store good or is there a 'Tony test' 12V version?

Normal 12V lead acid battery tests are perfectly valid.

Thanks.
Wouldn't a solar trickle charger solve many of the shortcomings of the 12V battery occurring when leaving the car off for a week or more? $30 7W at https://www.harborfreight.com/7-watt-solar-panel-kit-64801.html
I like the idea of having a solar trickle charger I can use elsewhere instead of spending the $30 on the 12V to upgrade just it, assuming all else is equal.
During the week or more the car is left off AND plugged in to Level 1 or 2; does the system maintain the 12V battery (with a constant or periodic charge)? I assume not but am looking for confirmation.

 

[miimura]

We may have dodged a bullet. They say car now turns on & 77% SOC. In addition to charging, I told them to turn on for 15 min every week.
Still following topic for 12V battery replacement recommendations. Is the 12V battery test they do at dealer or auto parts store good or is there a 'Tony test' 12V version?

Normal 12V lead acid battery tests are perfectly valid.

Thanks.
Wouldn't a solar trickle charger solve many of the shortcomings of the 12V battery occurring when leaving the car off for a week or more? $30 7W at https://www.harborfreight.com/7-watt-solar-panel-kit-64801.html
I like the idea of having a solar trickle charger I can use elsewhere instead of spending the $30 on the 12V to upgrade just it, assuming all else is equal.
During the week or more the car is left off AND plugged in to Level 1 or 2; does the system maintain the 12V battery (with a constant or periodic charge)? I assume not but am looking for confirmation.

If you are going to do something like putting a solar panel on the dashboard when the car is parked outdoors, that will help. However, you need to find a way to inject the 12V power while the car is OFF. Just plugging into the 12V power port in front of the gear selector won't work.

The 12V will only be charged when the car is actively charging. All the rest of the time that it is plugged in and NOT charging, it will slowly drain the 12V. One thing you could do is to set up a recurring schedule to do Pre-Climate and charge every day or a couple times per week. That will charge the 12V.

 

[asavage]

Perhaps I've missed something. Is there a common issue with a vampire drain on the 12v battery?

 

[chrisspy]

...
If you are going to do something like putting a solar panel on the dashboard when the car is parked outdoors, that will help. However, you need to find a way to inject the 12V power while the car is OFF. Just plugging into the 12V power port in front of the gear selector won't work.

The 12V will only be charged when the car is actively charging. All the rest of the time that it is plugged in and NOT charging, it will slowly drain the 12V. One thing you could do is to set up a recurring schedule to do Pre-Climate and charge every day or a couple times per week. That will charge the 12V....

The 7W solar panel on the dash typically is wired directly to the 12V battery. I like this better than a low voltage disconnect, unless there's no light. Then I'd just remove the negative wire. Panel can be used elsewhere too.

Thanks for clarifying. Once I get the RAV4EV back I can take some measurements.

asavage, yup. You might want to read the thread.

 

[miimura]

Perhaps I've missed something. Is there a common issue with a vampire drain on the 12v battery?

Yes. The car has a larger than usual drain on the 12V when parked. This was evident from the start when cars would be dead sitting on dealer lots. This situation also caused many people to have a factory 12V battery that had a short life due to it being drained dead before even being sold.

 

[asavage]

asavage, yup. You might want to read the thread.

Sigh. I was trying to not re-read this thread. I've got five posts in this thread already; you might want to take your own advice .

On the topic of 12v vampire drains, there's ONE mention by Tony of the BMS and telematics being a drain, and several about a failed Gateway computer causing a consistent 2A drain [1] [2]. That's it on the topic. Almost all the posts are about opinions on which is the best replacement battery, who's got them on sale, and ditto comments about another dead battery.

I just dragged out my low-amp clamp-on ammeter and put it on the RAV4 EV: 1.2A at about one minute after waking up the car to open the hood, and around .175ma after 20 minutes, when it went back to sleep. These readings were taken separately on both positive battery leads and the figures added together.

The generally accepted limit for idle current consumption is 50ma, so 175ma is high . . . but not really all that high, considering how many people seem to have had problems with dead batteries in this model.

Clamp-on low amp ammeters are notoriously inaccurate, but those reading will be within 20%, so close enough for theorizing. I suppose it's possible or even likely that the telematics and BMS fire up every so often to do their thing. I could borrow a datalogger and map the current consumption over time, but I thought I'd first ask: is 12v vampire drain a known issue with this model?

[later]

Yes. The car has a larger than usual drain on the 12V when parked. This was evident from the start when cars would be dead sitting on dealer lots. This situation also caused many people to have a factory 12V battery that had a short life due to it being drained dead before even being sold.

Thanks for that. I'd only read about the many premature 12v battery failures, hadn't seen this before.

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I run the Odyssey 34R-PC1500T + the Group 34 height spacer to correct the fit. The combo is a bit over $300. I own three of them for some of our vehicles (RAV4 EV, Sienna, another Sienna), they seem OK so far. The oldest one is in the RAV4 EV, and will be three years old in August.