[mroptimist]

I am starting this thread because I think a separate thread would give more emphasis and alarm fellow Etios owner's who might otherwise lose their Etios' batteries.

Even though no recall has been issued as yet by Toyota Kirloskar Motors (TKM) during my recent visit to Amana Toyota Malappuram I interacted with the senior technician who told me that several Etios cars (both Petrol & Diesel) have reported a battery drain issue, the root cause has been identified and being rectified. No recall yet but they are replacing certain parts under warranty of customers who complain of poor battery issue.

Symptoms: After keeping the car idle for few days (at least 2 days is required) the battery completely drains, you won't be able to even use the remote.

Diagnosis: Boot lamp switch assembly malfunction. Even after closing the boot the lamp doesn't automatically close, which means it keeps glowing and drains the battery (for the battery to completely drain you will have to keep the car idle for 2 days atleast).

How to see if your Etios is affected?

There are several methods to help diagnose the issue.

1. Accidental method: If you happen to keep the car in the garage parked idle for more than two days and the batter drains it means the car is suffering from boot lamp switch malfunction.

2. Proactive method: After you have parked the car idle overnight open the boot in the morning and feel the metal part adjacent to the boot lamp, if it is hot it means the lamp was on.

3. Funny method: Ask somebody to enter the boot, close the boot lid. After a few minutes open the boot and ask the person if the light got switched off after the boot was closed.

4. Manual method: After opening the boot with your thumb or any other finger press the striker (the spring which gets pressed, adjacent to the lock) to see if the lamp switches off, if not you need to go to the nearest Toyota dealership and complain.

Remedy: The concerned Toyota dealer is replacing three parts as part of this unofficial (silent) recall, all under warranty ofcourse.

1. Switch Assembly Lamp.

2. Striker ASY LUG COMP

3. Washer plate.

All Etios owners please do these above things to ensure that you don't have to lose your car's battery. I lost the stock battery and the replacement Amaron battery is in ICU.

Thanks.

[S5157]

It doesn't seem to be a widespread issue. As per the report above if the car is kept idle for two days the battery would drain completely. It should have been reported by many as there would have so many instances where the car is kept idle for two days or more.

I personally know few Etios's which is driven only once in a week and doesn't seems to be affected. However there are many owners on this forum, l'll wait for their comments to see the actual situation.

[Samba]

Well i own an Etios petrol for more than two years and have not faced this issue yet.

Let me add an easier method to confirm if the boot light is on or not after you close your boot. Its simple keep your mobile phone video camera on place it inside the boot and close the boot lid. Then open it up and check out the video whether the light is getting off or not.

[mroptimist]

Originally Posted by S5157

It doesn't seem to be a widespread issue. As per the report above if the car is kept idle for two days the battery would drain completely. It should have been reported by many as there would have so many instances where the car is kept idle for two days or more.

I personally know few Etios's which is driven only once in a week and doesn't seems to be affected. However there are many owners on this forum, l'll wait for their comments to see the actual situation.

Ofcourse not every Etios is affected but at the same time we don't know how many cars are affected (can be explained by tip of the iceberg phenomenon).
The service advisor was telling me that some 10 cases have been reported at Amana Malappuram alone. If we assume that every dealership is reporting an average of 10 cars which mean around 2000 cars are affected which definitely warrants a recall.

If your battery dies after 1 year (when the battery warranty ends) you may just blame Tata's Green battery and move on. But if your battery dies 2nd time as it happened with me then you start thinking that something apart from the battery is perhaps causing it to fail.

[JayPrashanth]

Originally Posted by mroptimist

There are several methods to help diagnose the issue.

1. Accidental method: If you happen to keep the car in the garage parked idle for more than two days and the batter drains it means the car is suffering from boot lamp switch malfunction.

2. Proactive method: After you have parked the car idle overnight open the boot in the morning and feel the metal part adjacent to the boot lamp, if it is hot it means the lamp was on.

3. Funny method: Ask somebody to enter the boot, close the boot lid. After a few minutes open the boot and ask the person if the light got switched off after the boot was closed.

4. Manual method: After opening the boot with your thumb or any other finger press the striker (the spring which gets pressed, adjacent to the lock) to see if the lamp switches off, if not you need to go to the nearest Toyota dealership and complain.

, your methods had me in complete splits.

Cheers,

Jay

[karpusv]

Why wait overnight?
If someone does need to check but is not sure whether pressing the switch with the finger will simulate the same condition as a closed boot or not, just keep a camera or mobile with video record ON and close the boot.
After say 2 minutes, open the boot & check!

If you cabin does not have the delay effect on the lamp, then even a 10 second timer will do the job.

I used this method to see whether the boot lamp in my Logan goes off instantly or with a delay.

[saket77]

I don't own a Toyota, but a friend of mine does drive and Etios. I am sure that this problem is either an isolated case, or a case of defective lot. Since, the bulb can drain the battery in a day or two, I am sure a lot of Etios(es) are being parked for more than that time for no such issue to occur.

[heman_369]

My Etios (p) has run for 35k kms in 2.5 years. The OEM TATA green battery is still going strong. Whenever i go for servicing(DSK Toyota Pune) i keep on asking the technicians about any problems reported by cars having similar mileage as mine. I have never heard about the battery drain problem from any of the technicians so far.

[RaSing]

Easy Method # 5
Keep a Mobile Phone Camera inside the trunk with a video recording ON

[amalji]

Thanks for reporting.
On my Etios VD 2011 model ( one of the first batches of Diesel ), I do not have this problem. I have parked the car idle for more than a week without an issue.

[sagarpadaki]

As a preventive approach against battery drain due to any cabin lights or boot light being on, replace the bulbs with LED ones . They consume less than half of the power consumed by normal bulbs and are brighter too. So even if they remain on it Will take more than twice the time to drain the battery completely

The cabin bulbs are usually festoon type . Measure the length of the bulb . Buy a Led of same size and replace. Loads of them can be found in all sizes and colors at very cheap prices on deal extreme .

[gururaj r]

Mod note: Post deleted for multiple reasons.
We advise you to read the Forum Rules before proceeding any further.

[joybhowmik]

Originally Posted by mroptimist

I am starting this thread because I think a separate thread would give more emphasis and alarm fellow Etios owner's who might otherwise lose their Etios' batteries.

Might help if you could also let us know the Month/Year of manufacture. This can be decoded based on the VIN number. Others can check to see if their car rolled out sometime around that time.

Originally Posted by wildon

Manufacturer: Toyota

VIN Characters: 22 (beginning with MBJ...)

Decode:

19th & 20th character represents the MONTH of Manufacture
21st & 22nd character represents the YEAR of Manufacture

An Example:

If your 19th & 20th VIN characters are 0 & 5, then it represents the Month - May
If your 21st & 22nd VIN characters are 0 & 8, then it represents the Year - 2008

[mroptimist]

Originally Posted by joybhowmik

Might help if you could also let us know the Month/Year of manufacture. This can be decoded based on the VIN number. Others can check to see if their car rolled out sometime around that time.

Here you go.

VIN: MBJB29BT7000224380611

It's a June 2011 Manufactured car.

Thanks.