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Old 01-26-2017, 10:36 AM   #1
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Should Brake Controller Ruin Battery Life?

I have a Rockwood Aframe which I tow with my 2015 Toyota Highlander XLE with tow package.
The brake controller was installed by my local RV dealer.
The other day my battery died while in a bank drive through!

Toyota dealer is saying it is the aftermarket brake controller drawing a small amount of draw and causing my battery to be bad. It is directly hooked to the battery.

Google searches bring up articles that say this shouldn't be a problem.

I have a call in to the RV dealer.

So what is my best option? Is it the installers fault?
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Old 01-26-2017, 10:44 AM   #2
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I have a Rockwood Aframe which I tow with my 2015 Toyota Highlander XLE with tow package.
The brake controller was installed by my local RV dealer.
The other day my battery died while in a bank drive through!

Toyota dealer is saying it is the aftermarket brake controller drawing a small amount of draw and causing my battery to be bad. It is directly hooked to the battery.

Google searches bring up articles that say this shouldn't be a problem.

I have a call in to the RV dealer.

So what is my best option? Is it the installers fault?
Well... we don't know everything that is going on with your vehicle so we are just guessing but I call BS on your Toyota dealer.

There are several things that draw a small amount of current directly from the battery anyway. (radio, dash displays, body computer, etc.)
Unless there is a HUGE drain from the brake controller, there shouldn't be that much of an additional draw to kill the battery... ESPECIALLY... when the vehicle is running. (at the drive-through)
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Old 01-26-2017, 10:50 AM   #3
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They said is it just the battery. I did have it shut off at the bank drive up as it takes a lot of time when I go there. Then it wouldn't restart.

They said it is drawing 5 milliamps--i believe it what they said.

I wonder if they are just trying to blame it on the aftermarket part so they do not have to cover it under warranty (it is still under warranty but only until April)
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Old 01-26-2017, 10:58 AM   #4
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I would disconnect the brake controller and see if the issue goes away. this way you can rule it out as the issue when/if the problem continues...

good luck...
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Old 01-26-2017, 11:16 AM   #5
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Should Brake Controller Ruin Battery Life?

Check the battery, age may be the problem.. They don't always put in the top of the line battery at the factory.
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Old 01-26-2017, 11:36 AM   #6
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The memory function of your radio, your engines ECM, and the body controller will draw all of that and more. You're dealer is wrong. FWIW I'm an ASE certified master mechanic, with an L2 advanced diagnostic certification.

Batteries die for a multitude of reasons. age, abuse, under/overcharging, but not a .005 amp draw on a regularly driven vehicle. You would have to leave this vehicle parked for several weeks at a time without being driven for this to start to shorten the life of the battery, and at that point the damage is done regardless of whether it had a brake controller or not.

Doesnt mean you will win. I recall of cases in the 90s where GM would deny warranty claims on anything, including a failed CD player if the truck was lifted because the altered suspension rode stiffer and transmitted more than the allowed vibration into the rest of the vehicle.
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Old 01-26-2017, 11:45 AM   #7
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To add to this, the average car battery is approx 45 amp hours. This literally means that if you use 1 amp per hour, the battery should last about 45 hours.

At a 5 milliamp draw rate, or .005 amps, it would take 9000 hours, or 375 days for that battery to be drawn down.

There is obviously more to it than this, but in general this illustrates the absurdity of the dealers claim.

I would attempt to go in armed with this information and see where that gets you. I would also tell them to produce documentation from Toyota stating that an additional .005 amps is excessive.
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Old 01-26-2017, 11:50 AM   #8
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As others have said, your dealer is BS-ing you to get out of a warranty claim. I have a Prodigy P2 that is on constant power and, now that I am retired, can sit in my driveway for MONTHS at a time without being started and hasn't affected the batteries.

However, on a previous truck, I left a GPS on for about 5 days and ran the battery flat and it was never the same again.
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Old 01-26-2017, 02:52 PM   #9
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battery

Ok update--per toyota the acceptable amount is 5 milliamps or under, with the brake controller attached it is pulling 7.5. When he disconnects it--it is pulling under 5 again. So no they will not cover it.
I believe my RV place will install a switch so I can turn it on and off--due to the issue.

No one is replacing my battery so I guess I am out of luck.
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Old 01-26-2017, 02:59 PM   #10
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Ok update--per toyota the acceptable amount is 5 milliamps or under, with the brake controller attached it is pulling 7.5. When he disconnects it--it is pulling under 5 again. So no they will not cover it.
I believe my RV place will install a switch so I can turn it on and off--due to the issue.

No one is replacing my battery so I guess I am out of luck.
7.5mA is an extremely tiny amount of current. That equates to 0.0075 amps. Even if you battery is shot, it would take months for your battery to deplete at that rate.
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Old 01-26-2017, 03:21 PM   #11
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Ok update--per toyota the acceptable amount is 5 milliamps or under, with the brake controller attached it is pulling 7.5. When he disconnects it--it is pulling under 5 again. So no they will not cover it.
I believe my RV place will install a switch so I can turn it on and off--due to the issue.

No one is replacing my battery so I guess I am out of luck.
I would not install a switch!

My opinion is just replace the battery and consider it good. Sometimes you just get a battery that is not so good. I have had some last 8 years some only 2 years. My Tundra's 1st battery lasted 8 years and really surprised me because it was a 48 month battery.

Also, if you think about what little draw the brake controller creates, consider what the draw is when you plug in a cell phone charger, iPad or laptop charger, and like me a gps. I think that you might consider an the warranty denial a bad move by your Toyota dealer. Because if they stand by that logic there would be no warranty more just about any of us.
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Old 01-26-2017, 03:30 PM   #12
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the internal loss in the battery .... assuming flooded lead acid... is about that.... that's not the is problem ... no way ... no how. If it was me, I would get a battery and upgrade it, while I was at it.
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Old 01-26-2017, 03:31 PM   #13
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not in my town--I actually purchased it about an hour away
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Old 01-26-2017, 03:37 PM   #14
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sorry I edited withva change of mind... I would like to talk to the Toyota dealer if possible, if I were you
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Old 01-26-2017, 03:48 PM   #15
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Sounds like the dealer is adamant about not covering it. That's a shame, they should.

I agree, purchase the best battery you can and call it a day.
I would also suggest not to install a switch.
Again, unless there is something more going on with the brake controller than you have indicated, I doubt you will EVER have another problem with it being connected.
People have purchased and installed thousands of brake controllers without creating battery troubles.
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Old 01-26-2017, 03:56 PM   #16
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It has been my experience that add-on brake controllers have been powered from a fused source under the dash. I haven't seen one wired directly to the battery. (I haven't seen such... doesn't mean that doesn't exist anywhere.)
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Old 01-26-2017, 04:08 PM   #17
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I agree with the idea to not add a switch. Toyota voided your warranty over a BS reason. The battery simply failed. Since we can be 99.999% sure the brake controller didnt cause it, I would not add to the complexity of the brake circuit.

Adding a mechanical connection where its not needed may last a lifetime. As a mechanic I replace toggle switches all the time. They wear out. Maybe it fails during your pretrip inspection. Maybe the crimp connection to the wire terminal fails coming down Donner pass. Every additional interuption between battery and load is a potential for failure. Maybe you forget to turn it on. Maybe it gets bumped during travel. I can think of a dozen reason to NOT add a switch. I can't think of any to add it.
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Old 01-26-2017, 04:09 PM   #18
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It has been my experience that add-on brake controllers have been powered from a fused source under the dash. I haven't seen one wired directly to the battery. (I haven't seen such... doesn't mean that doesn't exist anywhere.)
Mine is powered from the battery, through an aftermarket circuit breaker.
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Old 01-26-2017, 04:12 PM   #19
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If you are hooked up to your tow vehicle your charge line from tv to camper should more than keep your battery charged.. check to see if you have 12 v power at you tv connector when engine is running. If the dealer did not install the charge line fuse or breaker ( not installed at factory ) you will not keep your trailer battery charged .
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Old 01-26-2017, 04:23 PM   #20
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If you are hooked up to your tow vehicle your charge line from tv to camper should more than keep your battery charged.. check to see if you have 12 v power at you tv connector when engine is running. If the dealer did not install the charge line fuse or breaker ( not installed at factory ) you will not keep your trailer battery charged .
This is not about the trailer battery; it's the TV battery - in a drive-through lane.
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