It has been my experience in the past that the stock battery does not last too long.
The battery in all my past Toyotas (3 total) worked just fine until just one morning.. CLICK.. nothing. Just dead!!
So before that happens I just might change it out now.
I was wondering, has anyone swapped theirs out yet?
If so what did you install in it's place?
when mine is ready for replacement i'm going to upgrade to an Optima battery. a lot of the Tundra folks have swapped theirs for Optimas and they dig them. for more info, use the search function under Optima and you should find a buttload of info on them.
Chris
__________________ 2001 Sequoia 2WD SR5 Mods: Rollers - 18x9 JAOS Super Ziga wrapped w/ 285/65 BFG A/Ts, Suspension: SAW 2.0 Adj. Coilovers, UCAs, Rear Coilspacers I.C.E. - Clarion H/U w/ built in monitor, DVD Player, Drop Down, Headrest Monitors, Exterior: - Stock OEM Foglights, Wings West Spoiler, Engine:TRD Drop-In Filter
I agree with Chris. When the time comes, I'll replace the stock battery with an Optima "Red Top" battery. If you're not running extra equipment (amps, etc.), that one will be fine.
I have an Optima in my truck. Got a group 34 "orange top", which is the same as the red top with terminals reversed. The orange top matches the terminals of the OEM Toyota battery. You'll just need a Group 24 to 34 spacer and possibly a 1/4" sheet of plexy or plastic to make up for the height difference.
I love my Optima. No dielectric maintenance. Tons of starting amperage...I've had mine for 2 years now (swaped my OEM battery out after 1 year).
ive got a blue top (extra terminals for lights etc.) in my truck, works great; heres what i did.
you will need (depending on terminal config):
a length of heavy gauge black stranded wire to extend the ground line to reach the optima terminal
soldering iron (for the above) & shrink wrap/electrical tape (also for the above)
a small sheet of rubber (an old inner tube or some of that plumbing supply stuff from home depot will do)
a longer bolt to replace the bolt on the front of the stock battery clamp and some appropriate nuts
a spacer for the back of the stock battery clamp, i used a stainless pipe about 3/4" diameter and roughly 1" long which i found in the plumbing section of the hardware store
it's actually really easy. remove the stock battery, clamp, bolt, and battery tray. clean the area under and around the old tray, etc., and lay the rubber sheet in place of the old tray. now place the optima, and set the clamp on top, note the clamp is now below the stock location by about 1" or so. put the new bolt through the stock front bolt hole to the battery clamp, use appropriate nuts as spacers and whatnot, i put the bolt UP from the bottom of the clamp, it was easier that way. put the spacer on the threaded j-hook and the stock nut on top, and tighten everything. hopefully your stock ground wire reaches. if not, just extend it with the piece of appropriate wire i mentioned above, be sure to shrink wrap or tape the connections, and soldering is a must--you dont want to lose that ground connection.
now go play ! you can get all the roll angle you want and your battery wont spill, nor will you have to deal with dead batteries ever again (unless you leave your lights on for-bloody-ever).
a red/orange (i dont think theres a difference) will suffice for a daily driver, yellow top (deep cycle) is what you will need for lights, stereos and winches, and a blue top if you find a good deal and need the extra posts (its basically a yellow top with extra posts).
I gotta get my grubby little mitts on a digital camera first...I got a good deal on it, half was a gift, but I found you can get one online if you search around for about the same price as you'd find a yellow top local. Incidentally, Optima also makes a dual kit for marine use, I haven't explored the possibility of using it for automotive use but I figure I can make my own housing (I figure I should be able to fit two Optimas side by side and turned 90 degrees in the stock battery location) and use their isolator circuits (NEVER EVER put two batteries directly in parallel with each other). They claim to double the CCA and Ah with the system, which will be nice since the entire reason I got the battery was for the extra terminals and the deep cyclability...
I'm planning on getting a winch, lights, and a burly stereo, and I can see running two of those at once on a semi-regular basis--winch + lights or lights + stereo, depending on the situation. Also being an engineer, there's that whole redundant hardware issue. The install that I have was a pain to rig up initially, since silly me thought the optima was the same size as my stock battery (I was young and naive, now I'm just less naive), I made about four trips to Lowe's and one trip to Radio Shack for a solderpen because I didnt want to heave the old battery back in. Desperation is truly the mother of invention. At least the final config is elegant, it's certainly much easier to rig than a few of the recommended installs I've read about, which involved buying new battery clamps and drilling things...
Somebody I know must have a digital camera, I'll post back to this thread when I get my hands on one!
turns out my roommate has a digital cam...but hes at a fight tonight, and im gonna go watch and hope a hockey game breaks out ...i'll ask him after the game, maybe i can post a pic tomorrow. like i said, the install i came up with is a lot smoother than the other installs i saw recommended, and with the right parts the first time takes about 5 minutes!
i did see lon's pictures! thats a lotta juice...i'm still wondering tho if theyre a parallel connection with isolators, or a 1st-3rd backup circuit.
Consider yourself lucky. You don't state the age of your vehicle but with that many miles that is about average for a battery. I think I got 40k out of the original in my Avalon and the service manager basically gave me the "You da man" high five for getting that much out of it.
Factory batteries are probably only designed to last the length of the warranty. Houston heat is hard on a battery as well, especially considering thta both fans in the Seq run all the time in the heat with the AC on.
Really? That's all you get out of today’s original equipment batteries in Texas? My girlfriends '96 4Runner with close to 100,000 miles just got through it's 7th New England winter with the original battery still going strong. Her father got 8 years out of his '94 Camerys original equipment battery.
Back in the 70's and 80's it wasn't uncommon for an original equipment battery to only last 24 to 36 months but I think the technology and quality has improved significantly in the last 10 years.
ATO....do you have any accessories? mine lasted about that long, but i have 4 LCDs, dvd player, dreamcast/PS2 that i use a lot (75% of the time i'm in my ride.)
just an FYI, it's a B!+CH trying to find a 27F (reversed) battery for the sequoia. i only found one at an Autozone.
next time my replacement will be an optima.
__________________ 2001 Sequoia 2WD SR5 Mods: Rollers - 18x9 JAOS Super Ziga wrapped w/ 285/65 BFG A/Ts, Suspension: SAW 2.0 Adj. Coilovers, UCAs, Rear Coilspacers I.C.E. - Clarion H/U w/ built in monitor, DVD Player, Drop Down, Headrest Monitors, Exterior: - Stock OEM Foglights, Wings West Spoiler, Engine:TRD Drop-In Filter
Replacing the Stock Battery?
! you can get all the roll angle you want and your battery wont spill, nor will you have to deal with dead batteries ever again (unless you leave your lights on for-bloody-ever).
...i'll ask him after the game, maybe i can post a pic tomorrow. like i said, the install i came up with is a lot smoother than the other installs i saw recommended, and with the right parts the first time takes about 5 minutes!
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