Hi all,

During the pandemic, I am barely driving my car. THe battery keeps dying after jumping (I drive it for a while after the jump to charge more). Happened 3 times in the last 2 weeks.

Originally, I had AAA jump, and they said the battery seemed fine.

I purchased the car used in 2018, so I believe the battery is original.
How long should a healthy charged battery last without running the engine?
How can I tell if it is related to the alternator?

Trying to decide if I just go pick up a new battery and see if that works or take it to the dealership.

If trying a new battery is the way to go, I live in Nassau County in NY. Any suggestions on superstores for a decent price on battery and install?

How is Pepboys? any specific brand and type of battery preferences?

TIA

 

Before you buy a new battery, have yours tested. Most stores do it for free, Advance, Auto Zone, etc. Then get yourself a battery charger or trickle charger. There are many threads on the subject here. If in fact you need a new battery, which I doubt, Costco has great prices.

 

I doubt it's the battery. Get it tested before getting a new one.

Since I am not driving much these days, I was running the engine for 30 mins to charge the battery every other week but one of the members here mentioned it hurts the engine if I am idling.

Came across battery maintenance guide (attached) on Lexus driver resource portal. It has couple of other options beside driving/running engine.
1: charge battery from wall outlet using special connector available at Lexus dealer for a nominal price (I wonder what is nominal in their book)
2: Disconnect -ve connector (black) to prevent battery from discharging.

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Link to the Battery Maintenance post: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-4th-gen-2007-2017/945508-battery-maintenance-guide-on-driver-resource-portal.html#post10815178

 

If the battery is in fact the original, that would make it 6 years old. If this is the case and it were my car, I would definitely be installing a new battery. If you want to be certain the battery is still good and cannot test it with a multimeter while someone cranks it over, then I'd take it somewhere that will check it for you. Typically, you can count on a battery lasting 3-5 years (obviously there are exceptions).

 

One other item to check is the negative cable, particularly where it connects for grounding. I've had the experience where the battery kept dying, sometimes as soon as 2-3 weeks after purchase. It turned out that the negative cable was cooked/frayed and barely connecting as a ground (or perhaps was so gone it wasn't connected, I can't recall as this was a few years ago). After I replaced the negative cable, all good.

Also, thumbs up for battery purchases at Costco.

 

HI

Just FYI, since I am not driving much these days, I bought a battery tender from Amazon, but they have them at auto parts stores also.

East to install and haven’t had any problems with battery issues.

Just a suggestion.

Best

 

Battery maintainer/tender is what you need. Connect it to car and leave it over night once a week. That’s all you need. You can pick and choose whatever brand you like. Amazon has many selections, just buy the one with good reviews.

I have a Battery Tender for the LS and CTek for the BMW.

 

No dout you need a new battery, My Panasonic original battery lasted almost 7 years.

 

Did you get the problem resolved?

 

Let me think about this - six year old battery doesn't hold a charge.
What could it be?
WHAT could it BE?

 

Most flooded cell batteries fail as a function of age. The vast majority fail - will not meet the definition of a good battery - before age 40 months. If your battery has been in service 40 or more months you should replace it without even testing it. Batteries are inexpensive commodities and there is very little money to be saved by trying to use them beyond their life expectancy. And be reminded that avoiding emergency road service and inconvenience has value too.

 

Climate, heat actually, is what has the biggest effect on battery life. I've lived and have owned cars in S. Florida for over 50 years and have never had a battery get past 3 years of life regardless of the car's mileage. I bought my CPO '11 LS460 in '13 and the original battery lasted only about 5 more months.

On the other hand, I have friends who live in northern climates who talk of their batteries lasting twice that long. I sold batteries at Advance Auto here in FL for about 10 years and we replaced many, many batteries under their prorated warranty up to 7 years. They've since changed their warranty to 3 years, no prorate.

 

I concur. However, given your knowledge and experience with batteries, I'm perplexed as to the reason in your first reply where you doubted it was the battery??

 

Good point. Frankly I misread the post thinking his car was an '18.

 

Agree with all. I would replace the battery. I replace batteries every 3 years (or I did when I kept cars longer than 3 years) just to make sure I never got stranded anywhere. Batteries are cheap.