Truck won't crank this morning!

Adding distilled water is a common maintenance for automotive batteries. Your dealer will do it also. You should also use a hydrometer to test the specific gravity of all of the cells. Make sure your terminals are cleaned. Checking and adding water isn't tampering with the battery. Thats like saying adding checking and adding oil will void your warranty.

 

The Costco batteries are the same everywhere. They say interstate but are made by Johnson Controls.

 

Not necessarily. And technically they can void your warranty if you add oil. If it's proven too much or little was added, sure they can. There is a stipulation for everything. My buddy was a diesel tech at out dodge store. His crankshaft snapped on his dart. Still in powertrain. He did his own oil changes being a tech. Fiat wanted his oil receipts which he didn't have. The service manager had to pull some strings and pull some receipts out of his ass for him to get the motor covered.

I'm sure Toyota has no guidelines for any battery maintance. When you put the electronic tester on it and the battery fails it's a simple replace. Ford, Honda, Chevy I can all tell you operate this way. We don't go into the parts department and grab a 20oz bottle of distilled water, add and retest. I do remember the old Toyota Panasonic batteries having the eye for telling you to add water.

 

Tacoma Batteries used to have that little glass window and it changed colors, still simple enough to pop the caps off the current battery to check the level though.

 

Yep, the old Panasonic batteries. They had the eye on top

 

If the alternator works, that's good but a bad regulator will make the alternator overcharge and eventually kill the battery. Should get that checked before putting in a new battery- most service people will do that if you have them install a new battery with a warranty.

 

well there was caps on the battery that i was able to pop off! visually it looks like they got water in them ! i think ima do Costco 82$ +60 membership still better then most i just dont like Walmart touching my vehicle and Sam's club dude sounded like an idiot on the phone!

 

crazy thing is that the battery thats in my truck now is only 582 amps isn't that little low!

 

Did the Dealer not cover the old battery? Be careful swapping the battery as the Oil Filler Tube is only glued on and if you bump it with the battery it will probably come off.

 

Definitely not too soon. I had to replace the battery in my 16' last month. It had a bad cell. Dealer covered the replacement though.

 

Doesn't Interstate make Optima?

 

Don't know, but there is a world of difference between the two in durability and reliability.

I've never had an Optima last more than 18 months. Every Interstate has lasted well over 5 years. My last replacement was 7 or 8 years old.

Red tops, yellow tops.. all have been shit.

 

so i asked my co-worker to give me a jump start with his little corolla and his had a 380 amp battery wasn't enough juice to start my truck had to get a real car to do so! whats up with Toyota are they that cheap to put in an adequate size batteries in those vehicles!!!!

 

Bummer. I have a red top in my '85 that is about 13 y/o. Maybe quality has gone down since then.

I agree though that generally Interstate makes the best battery.

 

They downsized from a 27F to a 24F from 2nd to 3rd Gen but i think you can use a battery tray from a 2nd Gen if you want a bigger battery.

 

IIRC Johnson Controls makes both Interstate and Optima, think they bought Optima a few years back and lowered the quality.