Battery died after piston assembly replacement...

[hitbythebus]

My 2021 3.0 has been at the dealership due to the oil consumption issue for about 3 months. They replaced 6 piston assemblies, the water pump, the oil pump, and a ton of seals/gaskets.

I was expecting the battery to die, because I didn't think the dealer would maintain it while it was sitting for three months, but they said the car "started right up and was running fine". Then, according to my service advisor "somehow, the car got shut off". When they went to start it again, "it wouldn't start and got a low voltage error". They've ordered a new battery; it's supposed to be in today.

I found the phrasing "somehow the car got shut off" suspect, because it implies it wasn't deliberate. I also thought it was suspicious that the battery was able to start the car exactly once. I've been told the tech checked all the connections and is confident it's the battery.

If they have me pick up today, I was thinking I'd check the battery voltage, take a drive (varying rpms because I guess I'm breaking it in again), then check voltage afterwards to make sure it's not slowly draining or failing to charge.

I was wondering if anyone had any feedback, ideas on why this might happen, or opinions on the situation.

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[MisterSkiz]

My feedback.

"somehow, the car got shut off" - not sure if that is not a native english speaker, or it means that somehow someone turned the car off. They can charge the battery, but you are better off just getting a new one and charging that one - they will have to reset the low battery warning notice using their tools - it wont go away on its own.

Also, did they really rebuild the motor or just swap a new Longblock in? I would be weary if Toyota rebuilt my engine - I would probably trade the Supra in on a brand new one just to avoid gremlins.

Let the car warm up and beat on it, then change the oil/filter after like 1k miles or so, and see how it goes.

Please make sure you understand the warranty on the work/fixed motor and any issue have it noted by the dealership.

I've only had one motor let go on me and that was in my '04 LS1 GTO and they replaced it with a new longblock from the factory...

 

[oreobbq]

These bmw’s can sometimes drain themselves in a day if you don’t lock the door. Who knows what happened in those 3 months. Hope they got you sorted. I get itchy when I go on a trip and don’t drive the supra for a few days.

 

[J29DB03]

That is typical for the AGM battery in these cars. One moment they are perfectly fine, literally the next moment they are not. No in-between.

 

[FuzzyRev]

Did they leave it running for a while without disabling the auto start-stop function?

 

[razorlab]

Also, did they really rebuild the motor or just swap a new Longblock in? I would be weary if Toyota rebuilt my engine - I would probably trade the Supra in on a brand new one just to avoid gremlins.

Same, no F'in way would I trust some Toyota "tech" assembling a B58 engine in some rando Toyota dealer.

 

[hitbythebus]

Same, no F'in way would I trust some Toyota "tech" assembling a B58 engine in some rando Toyota dealer.

So… I made a comment about being a little “concerned about the Toyota techs taking apart my BMW engine”. The Service Quality Assurance Manager got really indignant and said he wasn’t going to just stand there and listen to me talking that way about his techs. I pointed out that I literally just called them “Toyota Techs” and didn’t know what to tell him if he thought that was an insult. I just meant that because they had never heard about the 2021 oil consumption issues, they probably had very limited experience rebuilding these engines. I think this is supported because it’s been delayed for tools and again for an engine stand.

 

[BMWAF]

So… I made a comment about being a little “concerned about the Toyota techs taking apart my BMW engine”. The Service Quality Assurance Manager got really indignant and said he wasn’t going to just stand there and listen to me talking that way about his techs. I pointed out that I literally just called them “Toyota Techs” and didn’t know what to tell him if he thought that was an insult. I just meant that because they had never heard about the 2021 oil consumption issues, they probably had very limited experience rebuilding these engines. I think this is supported because it’s been delayed for tools and again for an engine stand.

I think we all agree that a Toyota dealer is the last place we want our Supras to be but you haven't got much of a choice. In your case, diplomacy is key. Since you need work done and they're the only game in town, you really need to play nice and think about a long term solution, ie: get it fixed, then if need be, sell up. You're in a shit situation but there's no sense making it worse. Assess how you can walk away with the least amount of damage and play accordingly.

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