2010 4 cyl Camry with factory 24F battery, 23,000 miles. Purchased new 61 months ago. No problems starting, no apparent battery problems. Noticed yesterday corrosion and white stuff (forgot what it’s called) on + terminal. Will be inspected nest week and battery will be checked. Is this symptomatic of a battery on its last legs. I can clean up the corrosion and deposots.
Use baking soda and water to clean the battery terminals. Then get the battery load-tested. If this is the first time in 61 months that you needed to clean the terminals, it may not be bad, yet.
61 months=5 years, about a normal lifetime for a factory battery. Especially considering the hard use yours must have had, driving only 4500 miles a year.
If it doesn’t test bad now it will shortly. I would just replace it and be done with it. Peace of mind vs. trying to squeak another year out of an aged battery.
I cleaned mine and put the .99 cent green and red felt rings on my battery terminals. This fixes the corrosion build up. So far the original battery in my 09 Camry is still going. I know it on borrowed time!
No offense intended . . . but I happen to think those felt rings AND the red stuff you spray on the terminals are 100% guaranteed snake oil
I’ve NEVER seen any of those products work
In fact, there is a guy at work that always sprays that red stuff on the terminals and cables
Okay, fine . . . but when I work on the same vehicle 6 months after he serviced it, the terminals and cables are corroded RIGHT UNDER THAT STUFF. Every single time. No exception
And yes, I’ve also seen corrosion form right under those felt rings, no matter how well you clean everything
As far as I’m concerned, those products are pure profit generators
Again . . . no offense intended
“I’ve also seen corrosion form right under those felt rings…”
But have you seen corrosion form on the clamp above the ring? I’ve had good luck with the felt rings.
I use anticorrosion grease (comes in a tube, the tube lasts about 100 years for home use). I think it works great. I seem to remember many eons ago using regular axle grease successfully. Memory is a bit shady back that far.
@insightful
Yes, I’ve “seen corrosion form on the clamp above the ring”
Those products are 100% guaranteed snake oil , as far as I’m concerned
mountainbike
I also consider that grease you mentioned to be worthless. In my experience, none of the stuff that’s been mentioned in this thread prevents the corrosion
The grease works beautifully for me. Always has.
glad to hear it
It doesn’t change my opinion
If somebody has repeated bad experiences with something, it’s understandable if they won’t use that thing again. No matter how many other people have good experiences with it
no offense intended
You can also clean the white stuff off the terminals with Coke. Not Diet Coke, the real stuff. Wash it off with clean water afterwards or you might attract ants. My retired Coast Guard Master Chief brother-in-law told me this was in a CG repair procedure. Had to be Coke, not Pepsi. It works and you have half a can left over to drink. Which may have been the reason for the CG procedure?
No load voltage after being turned off for 1.5 hours is 12.71 At inspedtion this week, they will load test the battery. Oem is 24r and replacements are 24f, with same terminal setp.
I was always taught to use a brush with a little white grease to inhibit the corrosion on the terminals. My dad did this and said that it helps to keep the oxygen away from the terminal so the corrosion couldn’t form. I think that’s the point of the anti-corrosion grease…to keep the oxygen away.
I knew a mechanic that used hair spray. I think it was “aqua-net” and I’m sure it had the same effect.
I recently tried the felt rings, but have not had them on long enough to comment.
Yosemite
I work a little baking soda into the rings, to provide a reservoir of alkalinity to neutralize the acid creeping up the post.
This works very well for at least a year. Then I rinse and dry when I clean the connections and battery.
When I install a new battery, I use those felt washers, plus a coating of dielectric grease on the posts. This combination seems to work very nicely for me.
Tested by dealer. New spec 580 cca, test showed 629 cca. Dealer and myself surprised at this 5 year old battery!
I have had batteries last much longer than the normal expected life. I replaced the battery in my '02 van, that was purchased new, last year for the fisrt time. You may find yours lasts a long time also.
It is interesting to read the comments about the corrosion issues some folks have dealt with. I am pretty fanatical about having clean battery connections since dirty connections can cause bad things to happen and it is such an easy thing to take care of. After I have cleaned the connections with a battery post cleaning brush and neutralized any acid on them I like to use a sealer over the just cleaned connections. I either brush or spray the sealer on over the outside of the connections, but not between the contact surfaces. This method has always kept the connections in great shape for me.
I always use the spray-on battery terminal protector on my vehicles and on customers vehicles.
I never see corrosion on the terminals I apply it on.
Tester
I had, the same.problem with my 2011 Toyota Sienna which I purchased new about April of 2010. I tried the felt rings, but after a year I broke down and bought a new battery. I talked to the service manager at Toyota and he told me that Toyota, had problems with some batteries out gassing and causing the problem you describe. My battery was made by Johnson Controls. Since I often transport people to night events I bought a new battery.