1998 TOYOTA TERCEL Owners Manual

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Part 7
DO- IT- YOURSELF
MAINTENANCE Ð
Chapter 7- 3
Electrical components
Checking battery condition
Battery recharging precautions
Checking and replacing fuses
Adding washer fluid
Replacing light bulbs
CAUTION
BATTERY PRECAUTIONS
The battery produces flammable and
explosive hydrogen gas.
Do not cause a spark from the bat-
tery with tools.
Do not smoke or light a match near
the battery.
The electrolyte contains poisonous
and corrosive sulfuric acid. Avoid contact with eyes, skin or
clothes.
Never ingest electrolyte.
Wear protective safety glasses when
working near the battery.
Keep children away from the bat-
tery.
EMERGENCY MEASURES If electrolyte gets in your eyes,
flush your eyes with clean water
immediately and get immediate
medical attention. If possible, con-
tinue to apply water with a sponge
or cloth while en route to the medi-
cal office.
If electrolyte gets on your skin,
thoroughly wash the contact area. If
you feel pain or burning, get medi-
cal attention immediately.
If electrolyte gets on your clothes,
there is a possibility of its soaking
through to your skin, so immediate-
ly take off the exposed clothing and
follow the procedure above, if nec-
essary.
If you happen to swallow electro-
lyte, drink a large quantity of water
or milk. Follow with milk of magne-
sia, beaten raw egg or vegetable
oil. Then go immediately for emer-
gency help.
Checking battery c onditionÐ
ÐPrecautions

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ÐChecking battery exterior
Terminals
Hold- down
clamp
Ground cable
Check the battery for corroded or loose
terminal connections, cracks, or loose
hold- down clamp.
a. If the battery is corroded, wash it off
with a solution of warm water and baking
soda. Coat the outside of the terminals
with grease to prevent further corrosion.
b. If the terminal connections are loose,
tighten their clamp nuts±but do not over-
tighten.
c. Tighten the hold- down clamp only
enough to keep the battery firmly in place.
Overtightening may damage the battery
case.
NOTICE
Be sure the engine and all accesso- ries are off before performing main-tenance.
When checking the battery, remove
the ground cable from the negativeterminal (º- º mark) first and rein-stall it last.
Be careful not to cause a short cir- cuit with tools.
Take care no solution gets into thebattery when washing it.
ÐChecking battery fluid
There are two types of batteries:
maintenance type and non- maintenance
type.
A non- maintenance battery has
ºMAINTENANCE FREE BATTERYº on its
top. A maintenance type battery does not
have such indication.
Maintenance type batteryÐ
Check the fluid condition by the fluid level
lines on the side of the battery.
Non- maintenance batteryÐ
Check the battery condition by the
hydrometer on the top of the battery.

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Upper line
Lower line
CHECKING BY THE FLUID LEVEL LINES
(MAINTENANCE TYPE BATTERY ONLY)
The fluid (electrolyte) level must be be-
tween the upper and lower lines.
When checking the fluid level, look at all
six cells, not just one or two.
If the level is lower than the lower line,
add distilled water. (See
º ADDING DIS-
TILLED WATERº.)
Type A
Type B Green Dark
Clear or light yellow
Blue White Red
CHECKING BY THE HYDROMETER
(NON- MAINTENANCE BATTERY ONLY)
Check the battery condition by the
hydrometer color. Hydrometer color
ConditionTy p e ATy p e BCondition
GREENBLUEGood
DARKWHITECharging necessary. Have
battery checked by your
Toyota dealer.
CLEAR orLIGHT
YELLOWREDHave battery checked by
your Toyota dealer.
Low O.K
ADDING DISTILLED WATER
(MAINTENANCE TYPE BATTERY ONLY) 1. Remove the vent plugs.
2. Add distilled water to cells n eeding
fluid.
If the side of your battery is covered,
check the water level by looking down
directly above the cell as illustrated
above.
3. Retighten the vent plugs securely.

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184
NOTICE
Do not overfill the cells. Excess elec- trolyte could squirt out of the batteryduring heavy charging, causing corro-sion or damage.
Battery recharging precautions
During recharging, the battery is pro-
ducing hydrogen gas.
Therefore, before recharging:
1. Maintenance type batteriesÐRemove the vent plugs.
2. If recharging with the battery installed on the vehicle, be sure to disconnect
the ground cable.
3. Be sure the power switch on the re- charger is off when connecting the
charger cables to the battery and when
disconnecting them.
CAUTION
Always charge the battery in an un-
confined area. Do not charge the
battery in a garage or closed room
where there is not sufficient ventila-
tion.
Non- maintenance batteries: Only do
a slow charge (5A or less). Charg-
ing at a quicker rate is dangerous.
The battery may explode, causing
personal injuries.
Maintenance type batteries: Be sure
to remove the vent plugs before re-
charging.
NOTICE
Never recharge the battery while the
engine is running. Also, be sure allaccessories are turned off.

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Ty p e AGood
Good
Good
Ty p e B
Ty p e C
Blown
Blown
Blown
If the headlights or other electrical
components do not work, check the
fuses. If any of the fuses are blown,
they must be replaced.
See ºFuse locationsº in Chapter 7- 1 for
locations of the fuses.
Turn the ignition switch and inoperative
component off. Pull a suspected fuse
straight out and check it.
Determine which fuse may be causing the
problem. The lid of the fuse box shows
the name of the circuit for each fuse. See
Part 8 of this manual for the functions
controlled by each circuit. Type A fuses can be pulled out by using
the pull- out tool. The location of the pull-
out tool is shown in the illustration.
If you are not sure whether the fuse has
blown, try replacing the suspected fuse
with one that you know is good.
If the fuse has blown, push a new fuse
into the clip.
Only install a fuse with the amperage rat-
ing designated on the fuse box lid.
If you do not have a spare fuse, in an
emergency you can pull out the ºDOMEº
or ºA/Cº fuse, which may be dispensable
for normal driving, and use it if its amper-
age rating is the same.
If you cannot use one of the same amper-
age, use one that is lower, but as close
as possible to the rating. If the amperage
is lower than that specified, the fuse
might blow out again but this does not
indicate anything wrong. Be sure to get
the correct fuse as soon as possible and
return the substitute to its original clip.
It is a good idea to purchase a set of
spare fuses and keep them in your ve-
hicle for emergencies.
Checking and replacing fuses

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If the new fuse immediately blows out,
there is a problem with the electrical sys-
tem. Have your Toyota dealer correct it as
soon as possible.
CAUTION
Never use a fuse with a higher am-
perage rating, or any other object, in
place of a fuse. This may cause ex-
tensive damage and possibly a fire.
Adding washer fluid
If any washer does not work, the wash-
er tank may be empty. Add washer
fluid.
You may use plain water as washer fluid.
However, in cold areas where tempera-
tures range below freezing point, use
washer fluid containing antifreeze. This
product is available at your Toyota dealer
and most auto parts stores. Follow the
manufacturer 's directions for how much to
mix with water.
NOTICE
Do not use engine antifreeze or any
other substitute because it may dam-age your vehicle's paint.
Replacing light bulbsÐ
The following illustrations show how to
gain access to the bulbs. When replacing
a bulb, make sure the ignition switch and
light switch are off. Use bulbs with the
wattage ratings given in the table.
CAUTION
Halogen bulbs have pressurized gas
inside and require special handling.
They can burst or shatter if scratched
or dropped. Hold a bulb only by its
plastic or metal case. Do not touch
the glass part of a bulb with barehands.
NOTICE
Only use a bulb of the listed type.

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Light bulbs
Bulb
No.WTy p e
HeadlightsHB260/55A
Parking, front side
marker and front turn
signal lights115727/8B
Rear side marker lights1685C
Rear turn signal lightsPY21W21B
Stop and tail lightsW21/5W21/5C
Back- up lightsW21W21C
License plate lightsÐ5C
High mounted
stoplight92118C
Interior lightÐ8D
Trunk light1943.8C
A: HB2 halogen bulbs
B: Single end bulbs
C: Wedge base bulbs
D: Double end bulbs ÐHeadlights
1. Open the hood. Unplug the connec-
tor. Remove the rubber cover.
If the connector is tight, wiggle it.2. Release the bulb retaining spring and remove the bulb. Install a new
bulb and the bulb retaining spring.
To install a bulb, align the tabs of the
bulb with the cutouts of the mounting
hole.

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3. Install the rubber cover with the ºTOPº mark upward, and snuggle on
the boss. Insert the connector. Then
install the plastic cover.
Make sure the rubber cover fits snugly on
the connector and the headlight body.
Aiming is not necessary after replacing
the bulb. When aiming adjustment is nec-
essary, contact your Toyota dealer.Use a Phillips- head screwdriver.
ÐParking, front side marker
and front turn signal lights