[TigerDunes]

I am new to this forum. My second post. I have just taken on a 2017 Highlander Ltd that happened to come available unexpectedly. Lots of power and bells and whistles which I am not use to. Other than mileage that was mostly short daily interstate trips, it is in excellent condition in and out. Saturday at 65 K miles, I had an ATF service at local Toyota dealership. I mentioned an indicator light that comes on intermittently. We looked at the manual together page 303 on »battery charging »...My service advisor was clueless on this and in fact the manual was not helpful either. I will say the Highlander has the original battery which has been checked several times and deemed OK...Any idea from the experts here about what this indicator light means?

thanks for reading...

 

[jerrybear]

My first action would be to have a good multimeter in the car and when the light comes on-pull off the road and -with the light on-read the voltage on the battery. Then do whatever Indian Rain Dance to get the light to go off and read the voltage again. IF the reading with the light on is the same as light off there is a sensor problem (Computer-whatever) If it is different and climbing when the light is off my first suspicion is the charging system, regardless of what the dealer's machinery says. However, the age and mileage on your battery could throw a wrench into that statement. A battery swap would be the easiest first step involving parts, plus you would probably have to 'Convey a threat' at the dealer to do anything beyond saying there isn't a problem.

 

[Buszman]

The dealership you went to could not help you with your battery indicator light issue?

 

[Buszman]

I wonder if you went to the dealership to fix the battery light issue ?And they could not fix it but sold you a transmission oil change instead?
Did they try to sell you a brake fluid change?

 

[Bobbyg9]

The message indicates that the start stop feature is disabled to allow the battery to charge. If the message appears frequently you probably need a new battery. The start stop requires an EFB battery that is hundreds of dollars. Some reported that an AGM will do the trick.

 

[TigerDunes]

The dealership you went to could not help you with your battery indicator light issue?

pitiful help...service advisor and I looked at owner’s manual together which was of no help either...

 

[scipper77]

pitiful help...service advisor and I looked at owner’s manual together which was of no help either...

Was the person you were working with the service writer? In other words the guy who writes up the customer complaints for the service technicians. You may have simply been expecting the wrong guy to be able to diagnose your issue. My dealer would end up charging me up to $110 to diagnose any issue. Basically, it's almost always going to cost you money to have an official diagnoses given.

 

[TigerDunes]

I wonder if you went to the dealership to fix the battery light issue ?And they could not fix it but sold you a transmission oil change instead?
Did they try to sell you a brake fluid change?

yes brake fluid service recommended for $110...not performed yet...

 

[MikeInNH]

My service advisor was clueless on this and in fact the manual was not helpful either.

Why do people think a service writer has any technical knowledge. They don't. Most have never even changed oil before.

 

[2GR-FKS]

I think your car is trying to tell the battery going bad. Have you checked the electrolyte level in the battery? There are ways to evaluate the battery if you are handy. Load testing, and evaluating the charging system are the first two.

 

[TigerDunes]

I think your car is trying to tell the battery going bad. Have you checked the electrolyte level in the battery? There are ways to evaluate the battery if you are handy. Load testing, and evaluating the charging system are the first two.

i think you are probably correct. I have not checked electrolyte level because it is beyond my capability. However I have had two battery checks at local Toyota dealer on 11/27 and again last weekend on 12/19. as well as one at Advance Auto mid November. I am beginning to wonder though if the Toyota dealer really checked the battery. Thx

 

[2GR-FKS]

Beside looking at electrolyte level they can check the specific gravity of the electrolyte. That will tell if you have a cell that’s week or going bad. There is a range in which they should fall, more importantly is that they are roughly the same if one is way out then you have identified a bad cell.

This is a link to a bit more information of how to determine state of charge.

 

[zup28w]

I'm in a similar boat... 2017 HL that just hit 3 years old. As mentioned above, the Start/Stop is disabled if the battery doesn't have enough juice. This happened to me when I first bought the car and it had 2 miles on it. However, one I started driving the car the regularly, it went away. Only on random occasions was the Start/Stop disabled but usually it'd activate without much effort. In the fall, I started to notice the Start/Stop was disabled more frequently, even after putting miles on the car. It'd charge up and work, but a few days later, it was off. I bought a cheap battery tester on Amazon that plugs right into the cigarette lighter (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07422ZPT4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). When testing it, my alternator showed up as great... battery was yellow. I did add distilled water to see if that would help, but I think that's more of a pro-active activity. I actually confirmed the battery condition the other day with my mechanic who said my battery registered as fair.

If you're driving it regularly, the alternator should charge the battery and if the battery should hold a charge. If you are frequently seeing the message that the Start/Stop is disabled due to the battery needing to charge, there's a good chance your battery is on the decline.

 

[TigerDunes]

Has anyone used Advance Auto’s Diehard Batteries that have the stop start feature?....any issues?....

 

[cd85233]

Man I am struggling to find a battery with warranty greater than three years. In Arizona that's right on the verge of the lifetime of a battery. I saw an everstart platinum AGM for $169 with 4-year warranty on Walmart but I can't seem to find them in stock. That would be a great deal.

 

[alexbenz]

The message indicates that the start stop feature is disabled to allow the battery to charge. If the message appears frequently you probably need a new battery. The start stop requires an EFB battery that is hundreds of dollars. Some reported that an AGM will do the trick.

What's AGM, i've seen it pop up on mine but so far when the car's been cold

 

[2GR-FKS]

What's AGM, i've seen it pop up on mine but so far when the car's been cold

AGM stands for Absorbed Glass Mat. It’s a lead acid battery that has advantages over a traditional flooded cell. The EFB was to have similar advantages but at a lower cost. Both have the ability to take a deeper discharge without battery damage. SS has brought with it deeper discharge of batteries and incomplete charging so as to enhance fuel mileage.

The charging profile of an AGM battery is different than an EFB, there is some concern that the car won’t charge an AGM properly because it is designed for an EFB. The way we drive, the car will spend far more time at home on an AGM profile charger than it does charging while running so an AGM battery will do better in the high heat environment of Florida.

 

[TigerDunes]

Is a Diehard Platinum Advance Auto Battery an acceptable replacement for my 2017 Highlander Limited? It‘s about 1/2 the cost of a Toyota Dealer battery...thx

 

[2GR-FKS]

Is a Diehard Platinum Advance Auto Battery an acceptable replacement for my 2017 Highlander Limited? It‘s about 1/2 the cost of a Toyota Dealer battery...thx

Looks like a good battery.

 

[MasterofNone]

I think your car is trying to tell the battery going bad. Have you checked the electrolyte level in the battery? There are ways to evaluate the battery if you are handy. Load testing, and evaluating the charging system are the first two.

Ummm.... they're sealed batteries....