HBL

More than once I have had a battery test as being "good" but it wouldn't take a charge. The owner of the indie repair shop that does the more complicated maintenance on our Toyota and Lexus cars has a theory that the connections between battery cells separate and reconnect at random when a battery starts to fail allowing the battery to sometimes show being bad and sometimes good. I've had batteries test as being good when I've tested them with a hydrometer but they won't take a charge. I usually let my 30+ year old cheap Western Auto battery charger be the final judge -- it clearly indicates when a battery is shot.

I think you are doing great if your original battery has lasted about 6 years. Neither of the original batteries in my two LS400's lasted that long and the aftermarket brand batteries I've bought - even the expensive ones - have had shorter lives than the original Toyota/Lexus batteries.

I've generally gotten 3 to 4 years out of aftermarket batteries in one of my LS400's but I've had one fail after only a year. The wife's 98 Camry has lots less electronic equipment and its batteries last longer -- its original battery lasted about seven years so she insisted on another Toyota brand battery.

There is a lot of info on the Internet about car batteries but here is one that seems particularly good and explains why batteries have a shorter life in newer cars: http://www.batterystuff.com/tutorial_battery.html

Thanks for the feedback. And you are correct, six years is good to get out of a battery.

I have a 2004 GX470 with the original battery. Lately I could tell the battery was going bad when starting the car. I took the battery to Advance Auto Parts and they tested it and the test said it was still good but it needed a charge. I brought it home, cleaned up the indicator window that is on top of the battery. The indicator also showed that the battery just needed to be recharged (red dot with a white ring around it). I have been slow charging the battery (2 amps) for the last 24 hours and the indicator has not changed. I am thinking this basically means the battery is not recoverable. Has this happened to anyone else?

Is there an eject button for the cd sleave in the 6 disc player that is in the glove box. Do you just push on the cd sleave to make it release? I think my cd sleave is stuck in the player and will not release to add or remove cd's. I hear a clicking noise ever time i close/open the cd door. A loud click like something is stuck in the player. I just had this serviced under the warrenty, but believe it may still be broken. The entire cd mechanism in the glove box seems to move if i push on anything belonging to the system. It feels like its not all screwed in. Does anyone elses seem to give a little if it is pushed?

I have the same issue. The dealership just called and said the only solution was to purchase a replacement unit and quoted my $660. How did your issue get resolved. Did you have to replace the entire CD changer? If so, what did it cost you? Thx