New 12 volt, no lights, no jump start, need help

Also, go to the back of the car and look at the small fuse block attached to the 12 volt battery + terminal.

There are two fuses there, a large 100-ish amp one, and a small 5 amp one.

The last backwards-jumped Gen 2 I worked on had that 5 amp fuse also blown, which will cause a DC/DC converter trouble code. That had actually caused a dealer tech (who should have known better) to say "bad news, it's not just fuses, you'll need a new $$$$ inverter too."

 

First if any fuse, wire or connection has the green oxidation, it has to be cleaned or replaced. The oxidation will eventually prevent proper current flow. Using an ohmmeter on x1 scale on each fuse will test them. It is necessary to remove them one by one, test and then immediately replace each fuse. Otherwise you can and probably will mix them up and or place one in a currently empty slot. Some fuses are called fusible links and are often screwed down. More expertise is needed for them although most fusible links can be visibly inspected. Small mini fuses can be open without the obvious "blown" look.

Voltage testing of some fuses only works if that system is energized. So voltage is not a definitive test without knowledge of a particular circuit.

There are fuses in the engine compartment, interior and at the 12v battery. There is a fuse in the orange handle of the hybrid battery but I would leave that one alone.

If you have excessive parasitic draw, a blown fuse is not the problem. Generally it would be smart to let an experienced person track down the source as it could be any of the hundreds of electronic parts or motors. However the most common parasitic load is a light left on, starting with the rear hatch light.

 

The video does show the difficulty of pulling it out to access the bolt on cables. Some people have major difficulty with this part. It does not really show removing the attached fuse panel from the fusible link assembly but that should be obvious. There are also two plug in connectors on the bottom he does not show. Remember the green oxidation has to go or it may not work 100%.

 

If one of the door switches fails closed it will pull 300mA out of the 12V. There should be a door open light on the dash though, and the dome light would be on (unless it has been set to the "always off" position).

 

There are several plastic clippy places that have to be released around the edges of the fusible link block so it can be lifted up. There is another clippy place just like those on the attached fuse panel (way down at the forward end of the fuse box). Release at that clippy place, and the fuse panel comes right up out of the box along with the fusible link block. Then you have easy access to unbolt it.

When I recently needed to replace one, I obtained a used one as part of a whole salvage fuse box, so I had a chance to practice removing it.

That one was very difficult to lift out of the box. The heavy-gauge wires attached to it and folded underneath do not bend easily. I had to improvise some tools to lever it up, bit by bit. (I have some large external snap ring pliers that are great for that kind of work. I use them more often that way than for snap rings.)

I found it was helpful to take my time. I could haul it upward by a few mm and then go do something else for a bit, while the heavy wires relaxed into their new shape. Then I could haul it upward some more.

When I got around to removing the blown one from the actual car, it was a piece of cake. Pulled right up. Not sure what explains the difference, but the salvage fuse box had been sitting, I think, in the sun a long time. It might have been not just heavy copper wires but heavy copper in extra-stiff UV-baked insulation.

 

That fuse box looks like it was flooded, not just wet.

 

Flood damage can take years but usually not four years. Flood corrosion and the dirt coating everywhere would likely be in the interior as well. At this point you need to ensure the fuse box is as clean as possible, perhaps with the help of some dexoit spray.

 

I have never seen a fuse box in that poor of condition. Not even in a salvage yard. It needs to have a cover installed to protect it, but the odds of it being too late to prevent future problems is pretty high. I can't even imagine what the fuse holder terminals look like. Spray it, get a cover for it, and hope for the best.

 

Don't forget to replace the small black cover that slides into the side of the fuse box to cover the fat 12 V cable where it attaches to the fusible link stud.

 

Try powering down and attempting a restart to Ready several times. It usually does not work the first time as the computers initially power up. Most likely you have more fuses blown. Be sure to check and return each fuse one at a time. Plenty of people mix them up.

When all that fails, clean up everything with the suggested spray.

 

I would but it depends on your ability to verify 12v battery voltage and your ability to jump it safely if necessary. A battery tender would be ideal.

 

I made it transparent green here. It's a little black plastic cover that you slide down into place from the top; its 'wings' go into the slots you see.



You can peel the blue off the fusible link window when you're ready.