[thousandwords]

I had this happen to me on my previous car, a Volvo S80 that I had until it reached 250k miles.
When it was rainy for more than a few days in a row battery would drain. The dealer told me there is a small short somewhere and when its rainy the moisture closes it and when it humid for more than a few days the draw is enough to drain battery.
Not saying it applies to your situation but something to think of. Especially that i see so many people in this forum adding all those aftermarket electronic gizmos that power off dedicated cables directly off the battery. Grill light bars, etc etc. Not being keen on having to deal with something similar in nature with what you are experiencing is one of the main reasons I will never getto electrical mods on my Rav.

If I were you I would put a voltmeter on the battery next time I would not drive for say a few days (away weekend etc). If voltage already a bit lower than whats supposed to be you know you have parasitic draw somewhere.

 

[mww33458]

One month is a long time for a modern vehicle. With all the tech in new cars, they are constantly drawing some power. Nothing wrong with your car, I would expect from any newer Rav4.

 

[Droid13]

I have one of those small emergency boosters with Lion battery inside that fits in the glove box for when I'm leaving my car at the airport for a long time. Fortunately never needed it, but I've only left it for 2 weeks at most. I've also seen YouTube videos for a different kind of emergency booster that does not have a battery itself but instead a capacitor. This looks kind of cool. Leave it connected to your low battery for 5 to 10 minutes and it salvages what little power is left from the battery into the capacitor, and then sends it all back in a couple of seconds with enough juice to start. Never have to worry about it being charged. Of course, doesn't work if your battery is 100% shot.

 

[chanlesa]

One month is a long time for a modern vehicle. With all the tech in new cars, they are constantly drawing some power. Nothing wrong with your car, I would expect from any newer Rav4.

I agree with this. All modern cars with their electronics are drawing some power even when everything is off. If left alone long enough it seems that the battery will drain. I worked on my grand daughter's 2010 Cadillac recently and they even have a spec which specifies a maximum amount of parasitic current when everything is off.

 

[tin_tin]

Is disconnecting the battery terminal going to help ? My 2012 ford fusion was a modern car as well. It fired up in the exact same scenario, not sure what the problem is. For people stating that 1 month is too long to sit in storage, what exactly is the reason behind the ford starting up that too on the first try?

 

[tin_tin]

What is the cheapest recommended solution ? I rather not buy a booster pack as it is something i have to carry and make sure it is always charged up and ready for the scenario.

Besides, it may be discharged when return from vacation just like my battery.

 

[RetiredGamer]

I left my car in the airport long term parking at the end of November for one month. When I returned from my overseas trip the battery was completely shot, it needed a very long boost to get going. It was parked out door and was -40C when I tried to star the vehicle. i live in Alberta, the vacation was my getaway.

I am thinking about disconnecting the battery terminals on my next trip to prevent the drain or is it something else i should be concerned about?

It happens Bro. I used to live in Ukraine in 2007 and our car battery would freeze solid. Can't really blame the car. Ehh no offense but minus 40 degrees Celsius is like everything is frozen.. we are talking walk outside with a hot coffee and it's cold in like 30 seconds. Or get too drunk and fall asleep in the snow and never wake up. Those were things I had to worry about. The coldest I have ever been in was -27. Fahrenheit minus 40 ain't nothing.

 

[mww33458]

Is disconnecting the battery terminal going to help ? My 2012 ford fusion was a modern car as well. It fired up in the exact same scenario, not sure what the problem is. For people stating that 1 month is too long to sit in storage, what exactly is the reason behind the ford starting up that too on the first try?

A lot has happened between 2012 and 2021, that’s almost 10 years. For example, the Rav4 is constantly connected to the web now.

 

[tin_tin]

A lot has happened between 2012 and 2021, that’s almost 10 years. For example, the Rav4 is constantly connected to the web now.

I have the base model not the top of the line. I am looking for a solution to the problem? how do i make things work when i leave my car at the airport parking next time..

 

[tin_tin]

It happens Bro. I used to live in Ukraine in 2007 and our car battery would freeze solid. Can't really blame the car. Ehh no offense but minus 40 degrees Celsius is like everything is frozen.. we are talking walk outside with a hot coffee and it's cold in like 30 seconds. Or get too drunk and fall asleep in the snow and never wake up. Those were things I had to worry about. The coldest I have ever been in was -27. Fahrenheit minus 40 ain't nothing.

My ford fusion worked but rav4 didn't. That one also had the same battery.

 

[DL175]

I have one of those small emergency boosters with Lion battery inside that fits in the glove box for when I'm leaving my car at the airport for a long time. Fortunately never needed it, but I've only left it for 2 weeks at most. I've also seen YouTube videos for a different kind of emergency booster that does not have a battery itself but instead a capacitor. This looks kind of cool. Leave it connected to your low battery for 5 to 10 minutes and it salvages what little power is left from the battery into the capacitor, and then sends it all back in a couple of seconds with enough juice to start. Never have to worry about it being charged. Of course, doesn't work if your battery is 100% shot.

At -40C the booster will not work. You would need to take this inside a building to warm it up.

 

[Big Daddy]

Currently my rav4 is sitting in a airport parking lot plugged in when I return home it will 12 days in total. So fingers crossed it will fire start. If not one unhappy camper.

 

[tin_tin]

Currently my rav4 is sitting in a airport parking lot plugged in when I return home it will 12 days in total. So fingers crossed it will fire start. If not one unhappy camper.

Is that a gas only trim or a hybrid ? What is the temperature over there ?

 

[Big Daddy]

Is that a gas only trim or a hybrid ? What is the temperature over there ?

Gas, it's been on the plus side starts to dip on the weekend,

 

[tin_tin]

i appreciate everyone's response on here. But what exactly is the solution to the problem?

 

[Droid13]

I carried a booster in my glovebox for years and it still had 90% charge when I checked it. If you don't want to carry one, and short of disconnecting the battery and spending a lot of time messing with that, well, there is always CAA membership.

 

[John Gibson]

We travel internationally a lot and often our vehicles sit in the garage for a month or more. I have had all of them at different times have the battery go flat while we were gone. GM, Lexus, etc. So I bought battery maintainers to put on them while we are gone. I also, in my RAV hybrid, put a weego in the glove box so I can start it if necessary. I have one in my Tundra also. Modern cars uses quite a bit of power to keep the basic systems alIve. I think when I was checking the parasitic current draw on my RAV4, it was about 200 milliamps.

 

[tin_tin]

I carried a booster in my glovebox for years and it still had 90% charge when I checked it. If you don't want to carry one, and short of disconnecting the battery and spending a lot of time messing with that, well, there is always CAA membership.

Thanks for this. Would simply disconnecting the battery do the trick ?

 

[NCFRM]

Thanks for this. Would simply disconnecting the battery do the trick ?

Yes, disconnecting the battery would guarantee you had no draw on the battery. It’s the lowest cost option ($0).
frm