Cleaning Battery Corrosion - Computer Reset?

Hi all, I'm relatively new to car maintenance but am trying to take more on to save some cash. Something I need to do is clean a bit of corrosion off my 2021 Tacoma SR battery. I've been checking some of the threads on here and am running into stories ranging from major computer resets to blown fuses. I didn't think cleaning corrosion would be so risky, but I want to make sure I do it right the first time so I don't find myself with a major repair bill. Anyway, any advice y'all may have is appreciated.

Thanks!

 

Cleaned my old one just before replacing it.
Remove Neg. then Pos. terminal.
(Pos. then Neg. to reconnect).

Dissolved a little baking soda in some water and cleaned the post and terminal with an old toothbrush.

 

I clean my terminals and cables with one of these.

 

Awesome, thanks for the tips. Have you had any issues with all of the electronics/computer on the vehicle being reset? I've read about people having issues with the truck needing to "re-learn", but I just have an SR so I didn't think my tacoma had any overly fancy features like that.

 

How bad is the corrosion?
It’s not that old unless it’s filthy or over charging or has an issue.

You can just mix up some backing soda in water and pour it on the terminals, it’ll fizz and the acid-base reacts then rinse it off thoroughly......without disconnecting the cables.

What I found on my 17 is removing a cable for a short time will reset both trip odometers, the rest is unaffected......(short duration).
I’ve never removed the cable for a long time (10 minutes+).

 

The corrosion isn't too bad at all, just something that the dealer noted last time I had my truck checked out and is on my to-do list now. I also live in Wyoming and am frequently off-the-grid, so I want to keep my battery in top shape.

I can try to keep the process to under 10 minutes, but can't be sure. A reset of trip odometers is fine (same with radio presents, etc.). I just don't want to turn the truck on to find there's some major electrical reset that requires a dealer visit.

Thanks for the continued advice everyone.

 

I hear you and good to be proactive.

The trips will zero on any break, but when I changed my battery at advanced autos parking lot everything remained.
I use trip 2 for oil change, but also set the reminder in the maintenance app, which all stayed.


I know they make those cigarette lighter/9v battery adapters to prevent loss.....I never tried one.

Get those red and green felt washers and they concern with dielectric grease, that should prevent any buildup.

 

A periodic reset is healthy. You aren't going to hurt anything.

Make sure the terminals are snug.
Loose connections can cause an arc, also creating corrosion.

 

Ok this all sounds good then. Appreciate the feedback everyone.

I have some battery cleaner spray I plan to use, and then I'll coat the terminals in a bit of Vaseline.

I did read about those 9V battery adapters, but if trip meters/radio presets is all that's at risk, I'm not super worried about those.

 

something with a higher melting point would be better given your stated plan liquefies at body temp

 

I wouldn't dig too deep into the rabbit hole on this issue. If you happen to notice some corrosion, pour some coke on it until it disappears or is greatly reduced. Your truck is likely too new to have any issues requiring you to actually remove the connectors to address it and your battery will likely need replacing well before then.

When it is time to replace the battery, just touch up the connectors with a battery terminal brush if you have one and reconnect.

As for disconnecting, I didn't really notice anything get reset other than my trip meter and the truck knowing my driving habits (both very minor). Most head units will not reset in modern cars simply from disconnecting your battery briefly. Back in the 90's and 2000's, sure. But not these days.

 

Coke is good for cleaning rusty tools but the phosphoric acid that eats that rust will not neutralize the battery acid. Might spread it around more.

 

I've actually used the coke method in the past on a few different vehicles without issues spreading the battery acid around.

It doesn't neutralize the acid per se, but does a pretty good job at dissolving it. But yes, you want something that's more of a base if you're concerned about neutralization of the battery acid.

 

I could be wrong, but I don’t think the corrosion on a battery terminal contains much acid. Rather it is the outputs of the chemical reaction of the acid and the terminal.

In any case, it’s not something I’ve ever worried about on a newish vehicle.

 

Get a rag and a can of Coca Cola. Soak a corner of the rag in the Coke. Wipe on the corrosion literally heavy. Wipe off excess. It's amazing.

 

No. It works great. Just did it last month on my wife's vehicle. Did it many times the past 40 years.

 

I'm sure Coke cleans it up nicely. Sunkist would get you the same results.
Was pointing out it doesn't neutralize.

 

Only the positive terminal is showing some corrosion, so I may opt to take your approach and just leave the cables connected. If I do that, I have some battery cleaner spray I plan to use. How dry does everything need to be before restarting the vehicle? I imagine that some of the fluid could seep between the terminal and the cable hookup, which could be hard to dry with a cloth without disconnecting. Or am I overthinking things?

 

It isn't risky. I have done it a couple of times (disconnect the battery)to clean up the terminals and the only thing that happens it the idle speed resets to a base-line value because the ECU resets to same with the power loss. You get irregular idle speeds for a little while until it re-adjusts.

FWIW: Anytime I'm working on anything electrical in the truck, the key is off and out, and the negative cable is disconnected before I start.

 

Once you get it cleaned up, and your connections are all solid, spray a little bit of Fluid Film on the terminals so they don't corrode again.