Having an issue at startup

Battery test on my agenda this Wednesday along with an oil change at a local independent shop that I trust.
Here in Arizona 3 years on any battery is pushing it. I got about 2.5 years on my battery already so I'm on the downhill
slide to a new one.

 

I recently had my original 2017 battery die and it was the same day as the "warning sign" of the trip odos resetting to 0 mi, and that's after I had asked the dealer to load check the thing because it's old.....I knew better but didn't follow common sense.

I headed out at 6am to go riding, notice the trips are both at 0 and starting was ever so slightly off.....three hour drive, and it wouldn't start at all when I got back at the end of the day. Got a jump, didn't shut it off when getting gas or battery shopping (locked with the key & only opened with the key) and went to an advance auto on the way home and got a new battery and all good.
No settings were lost except the trips. I would rather have gotten a better brand but didn't have the luxury of time. Already wasted money on a optima yellow that died just like any regular battery.

Odd, all they had were 3yr batteries, I remember the old sears diehards had 5yr.

 

Deadly sounds like you found the problem, forewarning... those foam washers I found are just trouble, maybe just put a bit of grease on the terminals once they're clean and clean them as required

 

Also you have to change the ecu settings to charge AGM batteries properly or they wouldn't last like they should. A local KDMax tunner can do the tune and change to AGM at the same time. For future reference

 

A spritz of WD-40 on the terminals every oil change keeps the corrosion away without the mess of grease, give it a try.

 

I've used various "substances" but never wd-40. Thanks for the idea, i'll try that next time

 

I don't think WD-40 is really useful for many things, I keep a can exclusively for this application.

 

It's good for removing pine sap. And gummy grease inside fishing reels that you are refreshing.

But it's not a lubricant. While it would help clean a battery terminal, it won't really 'coat it' with anything.

 

I'm going to present this under "it just works"

Neither of these have ever been cleaned, just a spritz of WD-40 every oil change.
I have been doing this for at least 25 years.

2017 Tacoma, original battery:



My old van, the battery came with it 6 years ago:

 

The optima yellow top was in a 1993 pathfinder maybe 10 years ago.
Old sears die hards used to come in 60-month and used to make that and then some, I've found Interstate to be really good. I'll make better plans for the next one, 6 years from the oem is pretty crazy....and dumb on my part.