scrapmetal

Hey guys, New to forum here and could def use some help.
I have a 1999 ES300 w/ less than 50,000 miles on it and for the last year it has a reoccurring problem that NO ONE seems to know how to fix.
If it sits for more than 3 days w/out being started it needs to be jumped, and its not an easy jump. replaced batt and alt and it still does it... if it is started everyday there is no problem...its been to lexus 3 or more times and 3 different service stations. still no fix....ANY HELP WILL BE GREATLY APPRECIATED ...THNX IN ADVANCE

PFB

Start with the easiest thing first.

a) Make sure that the Trunk light, and Glove Compartment Light are OFF when they are closed. (Its a given that all other lights should be OFF as well).

b) Any aftermarket accessories installed? Any at all?????

c) Did you re-wire anything?

c) Assuming that, as you say, your Alternator and Battery are good, did anyone check the Battery drain with the key off, and confirm that there is no abnormal drain on the Battery.

Phil

scrapmetal

yes all lights were checked.
car is completely stock. nothing aftermkt added
yes batt drain was checked by lexus 3 times....im honestly stumped
been a year long prob

PFB

If you are sure that the battery drain is OK, than you need to check the battery voltage, after parking the car and also for the next 1, 2, and 3 days of not having started the car. Should be at least 12.5V.

Can you also explain what you mean that the car won't start. What exactly happens?

scrapmetal

i will thnx
nothing happens
batt completely dead
locks dont work
lights dont work
sometimes just clicks when key is turned

scrapmetal

plus dont u think lexus would of checked all this themselves?? i would hope so

PFB

Sounds more like a loose or corroded battery terminal or loose battery cable.

Just for the fun of it, Try jiggeling the battery terminal or tapping on it lightly with a hammer.

Anyways try the voltage tests I suggested.

scrapmetal

i will try it tmrrw
thnx for your input
but i did new batt and cleaned cable ends with brush... no corrosion...thnx again

xsh0tya

Wow sorry about your luck... I did add aftermarket accessories so I know why my car goes dead after leaving my HIDs on or the hazards... I think this is a time when you have to be "THAT CUSTOMER" with the dealership... obviousily something is wrong and if you did their recommendations and paid for an answer time to demand that answer.

KLF

This reminds me of an old "Click and Clack" episode years ago, a fellow had the same problem. He would park the car in his driveway and go away on business trips, battery would be stone dead when he got home. Mechanic couldn't find anything wrong, even after repeated changes of the battery and alternator. Car wouldn't do it if he left it at the mechanic, only when parked in his driveway. Then they figured it out: his driveway had just enough slope to turn on the under-hood light (mercury switch) even when the hood was down. I think he started parking the car the other direction in the driveway, problem went away.

What is the current drain on the battery with the ignition off? Should be only a few milliamps.

Coulter

It's ridiculous that 3 dealer visits couldn't find the problem (you shouldn't have paid for any of them if that's the case). This is something a technician with basic knowledge should be able to at least narrow down.

On old school cars, you could track these down with a test light, but with modern cars you have to use an ammeter (meter that measures amps) and pull the ground wire off your battery. You connect the meter cable between the neg post on your battery and the ground cable the battery was connected to. If you have a draw it will register on your amp meter. You then proceed to pull fuses on your fuse box one at a time and check the meter with each one. When you pull the fuse for the circuit with the drain, your amp meter will drop and you can then find out what circuit the draw is coming from.

At the very least, it should point you in the right direction.

scrapmetal

bringing it back to lexus one last time

TheCarGuy2

+1

Can be done on modern cars just as easy. There is a circuit somewhere that is causing a parasitic drain. All circuitry passes through the fuseboxes. Hook up an ammeter inline on the ground lead (have the ammeter hooked up already when you disconnect the lead so that there is no intermittent open/close in the ground circuit causing the computers to reset resulting in an increase in current draw for the first few minutes) and start pulling fuses. Not sure how the multiple dealerships missed this.

-ASE master certified/Automotive Engineering degree

funcrusher

How do u have a 99 ES with less than 50k miles??

OceanView

Are you the original owner?
If not maybe the previous owner had similar problems.
Maybe you can get a report of all service visits to Lexus and see if it was a pre-existing condition.
If so, maybe you could get Lexus to fix it or replace it for free?

Or if you are the original owner, then maybe you started to do something different that's causing the problem to occur.