January 22, 2026
I took my car in for an appointment to replace the 12V battery. I was told to jump-start the car before towing it to the dealer. I waited while the service was done, and there was no problem. When finished, my service advisor showed me where my car was parked. I got in to go home and noticed my computer screen was locked.
I went back in to ask the service advisor. He took it back to the technician. The technician said the jump-start fried my computer. So I went in for a $450 repair and was going home with approximately $2,000 in damages. No one, absolutely no one, was going to tell me before I drove off the dealer's lot. Did the technician see it? If not, why? Nothing would have been said to me about the $2K in damages.
Since then, I have called Gary, the service manager. He now says it was because the battery was 'too dead' and caused the damages. He said this when I kept reminding him I was instructed to have the car jumped. He also told me it was not his fault that I didn't drive my car enough to keep the battery charged and thoroughly told me he could not help me.
I have called Big Toyota, and they sent McGills a questionnaire, and that's it. The dealer said there was no liability; the low battery was the problem that caused the fried computer. Case closed by Toyota.
I am asking for documented damages to my computer. I have no infotainment center. What are the exact damages so I can assess the cost for repairs? In order to find this info, I need a diagnostic done on the computer, and the dealer informed me that would cost approximately $234. This should have been given to me before I was allowed to leave the lot on 2/23/26. There is nothing right about this.
Update 3/8/26: "Do not drive your car."
On 3/6/2026, Friday, at 4:30 PM, I noticed my steering wheel and brake light were on when starting the car. I called Cody at Toyota to report this. Gary, the service manager, had already left for the day, so Cody asked a technician about this. The technician said, "Do not drive the car."
I was told nothing of these dangerous damages on 2/22/26 and was allowed to drive the car off the lot. My life or someone else's could have been at risk due to these damages.
Now, since my hybrid cannot be driven and therefore the battery will not remain charged, the $450 battery replacement will drain its charge. What am I supposed to do? Now I have to tow the car to the dealer just to get a diagnostic they want me to pay for. I cannot drive my car as of Friday, 3/6/2026!
So I idled my car on Friday, 3/7, and Saturday, 3/8, 2026, since I am waiting for Monday, 3/9, for management to return to work. I am now without a car.
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