Gary and Stanley - I'm wondering if the OEM battery would be something along the lines of a Deep Cycle battery?

 

Very possible, the point I was trying to make is I don't think the 12volt battery in the TCH is any different than the one used in the regular Camry, and when they say $850.00 for this battery someone is blowing smoke>

 

Randy, very well could be.

 

The Toyota 12-volt battery is made by Panasonic. You'll note (if you remove the trunk cover hiding it) that the high-voltage NiMH battery is also made by (as I recall) the Toyota-Panasonic Battery Company — Toyota bought a Panasonic battery company recently to develop specialized batteries for its hybrids. If you look at the 12-V battery, you'll also notice that at its front right corner is a built-in temperature sensor that connects to the wiring harness. The battery monitoring ECU uses the battery's temperature to regulate its rate of charge. If you put in a different model of battery, without the temperature sensor, you'll probably get a trouble code and the MIL light "on" in the display. The TCH will think that the battery's temperature sensor has failed. Big-Foot yes, it's a type of battery that can withstand deep discharge much better than a regular wet-cell lead-acid battery can, but charging this kind of battery at too high a rate can destroy it. I wouldn't replace it with anything other than the Toyota part.

Stan

 

This might be a stupid question, but ...
are there any concerns about using this battery to give a conventional vehicle a boost?

 

I carry one of those portable jumpstarter/air pump/AC inverter/florescent light boxes for just such an occasion.
I've used it to give jumps to several people at gas stations and myself a couple of times just before the alternator failed on my old car.
I've seen them in various auto parts stores for about $100.

 

Dr_Drew — Yes, you should not boost another car with the TCH 12-volt battery. As I understand things, these AGM batteries are not designed for providing high cranking amps. Their maximum charge and discharge rates must be restricted, otherwise they can be destroyed, or their life severely reduced. They are, however, designed to take deep discharges much better than a normal wet-cell lead-acid battery.

Stan

 

OK...take a deep breath here....I may have killed my 12v battery! We were gone for 10 days and the car was left in cold weather (colder than I expected to be) and we got several inches of snow. Unfortunately, it appears that somehow one of the map lights was left on while we were gone as when I went to start the car today I couldn't even open the doors.. Finally, after some struggle we got the mechanical key to work (it takes 2 hands to turn it far enough to the right to get it to click) but the car didn't want to start at all. We did finally get it started by jumping from the other car, but since it was so frozen over with snow I coudn't take it anywhere then so we left it for about an hour. It was the second time of trying to get it to go that I discovered that the map light was on. I took it for a run of about 3 miles to the store and when I came out about 20 minutes later I could get the trunk and door open with the smart key but it still wouldn't start. My hubby came down to jump the car again (I had not read any of the battery posts here as I have been gone!) and it took a bit longer to get the car going this time...I took it for a 20 mile run and now we have it on a battery charger and now I have read this set of posts...

According to the toyotaiguide it is ok to jump the vehicle from another one but I couldn't find anything about using a charger to help bring it back up to speed. I sure hope that if it is dead it doesn't cost the $800+ that was quoted here earlier...I was planning on going to Sears for a replacement if it was dead...I'll let you know tomorrow if we got it charged up ok.

I did talk to my Toyota dealer service manager and he didn't say anything about if it was dead that I had to get a special battery or anything. I have googled to see if I could find any info but no luck yet.

Barb

 

Not sure this applies to the TCH. It's listed as 2007 Camry. It could be an easy fix to your problem though. See attached.