Long term 4 months parking and battery

Changing out a 12V battery is pretty simple. I would never pay someone else to do that unless I has some kind of physical limitation that would require help with lots of daily functions if you get my drift. I haven't looked that closely at my 12V connections, but they usually just need a 10mm wrench. Taking off the negative first and put on the negative first is standard procedure.

 

Others above have already given you sound advice. I am by no means a DIY mechanic. I only do very simple and easy repair/maintenance on my own car to save some bucks. Changing a 12v battery is one such task even a novice like me can tackle. If you have another car to drive around, then all you need is to find a correct group size battery and go pick it up and change the battery DIY.

Here are a few search results on the 140R LN1 H4 battery. You can also check and see if any of the dealers around you have the battery on hand or order one for you.

https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/c/premium/more-powersport/battery---automotive/battery---best-fit/7272aa5cfedd/super-start-premium-battery-group-size-140r-h4/ssbi/140rprm
140R Platinum Series (81023)

 

Editorial: see mark up.

 

Thanks, Mendel. That's what I meant to say. It doesn't seem to matter how many times I reread what I write, I still miss a goof up.

 

Battery connection typos drive me nuts too, both swapping batteries and jump starts. Here's a thought, which might keep you out of trouble with jump starts using another vehicle with good battery, at least. And I appreciate you're very electrically experienced; I'm just writing this for review and the general audience, lol:

First off, the danger is invariably doing something that will "short out" the battery. In plain English:

The expression "shorting", and "short circuiting" are used. What they mean: you do NOT want to provide the battery with a direct, low-resistance and unimpeded path from the positive to negative terminal. This will result in a STAMPEDE of electrons making this very short/easy journey, a loud pop, fused/smoking wires, and so on.

A VERY easy way to screw up, is to clamp one end of BOTH positive (red) and negative (black) cables to one battery, say the donor battery. Then:

Do you even KNOW where the other two clamps are? They might be lying on the ground, touching, and that's game over right there: you've "shorted" it.

Even if you pass that hurdle, manage to pick up the other ends clamps up unscathed: you're now walking around with a clamp in each hand, INCHES away from shorting the donor battery. Tap those two clamps in your hands together, and yup...

I've thought more than once, that rather than give this convoluted step-by-step instruction for connection, maybe something like this:

Deal with both ends of ONE cable at a time, and start with positive (red). To facilitate that: completely separate your (pair) of connected jumper cables.

Leave the black cable well out-of-reach.

Connect the red cable clamps: one end to positive post of the dead battery, then the other to the positive post of donor battery.

THEN go get the black cable.

Connect one end to the donor battery neg post, then the other end to bare metal on car with dead battery.

When disconnecting, do the reverse.

 

That's great advice, @Mendel Leisk.

 

For a new battery Rock Auto has the ACDelco LN1 AGM battery for about the same price as the flooded lead acid from O'Reilly. Expect the AGM to give longer service. For the flooded lead acid Group 140R, I think the only U.S. maker is DEKA, and NAPA has them for about the same price as O'Reilly. Do check the electrolyte level in the stock battery occasionally and add distilled water, when needed, to the bottom of the fill tube--you'll see the curvature of the meniscus of the liquid when it reaches that point. I use a quarter held in vice-grips to unscrew the battery caps.
More Information for ACDELCO LN1AGM

 

I'm not sure about that. Sounds plausible, but in practice they seem to last about the same. I think the main reason Toyota went Absorbent Glass Matt is due to it being in the cabin.

 

AGM, and gel, batteries have a slightly different charging parameter from flooded lead-acids. Putting them into a car with a system designed for flooded, and the potential longer life could be lost from that difference.

 

Yeah my charger recommends (and offers) a bit higher voltage, for “spiral wound” Absorbent Glass Mat batteries.

(I don’t type out AGM in full btw, just set my phone to do that. Have to override to stop it lol.)

 

That is the sonar system that alerts you before bumping something. It needs to be reset after the battery is disconnected.
ICS Reset | PriusChat

It doesn't explain why the car isn't starting up.
Is the car actually going into Ready mode, or is it just the Accessory mode?

 

No READY light? If it's in Accessory mode, the display will say it's in accessory mode.


At the risk of insulting your intelligence, I have to ask if you put your foot on the brake before pressing the start button. I ask because pressing the start button without your foot on the brake is exactly how you put the car in ACC mode.

As for the engine starting, if there was EV range in the traction battery, you'll need to put the car in HV mode to get the car to start.

 

I believe he means that the gas engine will not automatically start unless in HV mode. This is true unless the traction battery is depleted below 0%. That is, even at 0% traction battery, the gas engine does not necessarily start right away because 0% displayed to the driver doesn't mean the traction battery is completely deleted. For me, when the car shows 0% traction battery at READY, the engine doesn't normally start until I back out of my driveway and drive a little bit.

 

That's not what I said.

 

Um, Jerry, you might have meant to say "get the engine to start", but you said car in your own quoted post..

 

You're right, now that I read more carefully. I said both, actually. Engine at the front and car at the end. Rather sloppy and misleading. I apologize. I meant to say, "As for the engine starting, if there was EV range in the traction battery, you'll need to put the car in HV mode to get the engine to start."