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2009 Toyota RAV4 Fuse Location For Power Outlets – Vehicle Jump Starter – USB Volt Meter

2009 Toyota RAV4 Fuse Location For Power Outlets – Vehicle Jump Starter – USB Volt Meter

This blog article is actually three separate stories but all related. 

Please be advised that the information I am providing you here worked for the vehicle I currently own.  I have come to realize that Toyota, in my opinion, provided me incorrect Owner’s Manual information.  Thus, my solution might not work for your model RAV4.  It seems to me that every Toyota RAV4 year model sees changes in fuse locations.   Be careful!  My advice right now is look carefully at the your car fuse container lid to see where the correct fuse is and question what the owner’s manual tells you.

In the year 2020 I inherited my sister’s 2009 RAV4 car due to her passing away.  The RAV4 had milage in the low 30,000!  It was a great car to drive.  But, I encountered a very frustrating problem in 2001.  I had to buy a car starting device to get my son’s Toyota 4Runner started so we could donate it to a charity.  I purchased a Audew car starter battery.

 Audew 1000A Peak Portable Car Jump Starter (Up to 6.0L Gas or 4.5L Diesel Engine) Auto Battery Booster, 12V Car Jumper, Power Bank Power Pack with Dual USB Ports and Flashlight

I had done a lot of research and chose this device.  It worked perfectly.  It worked perfectly as soon as we discovered a very small switch labeled “BOOST”  in the main power plug which we had to press to get maximum power (see image below). 

 

This device plugs into the side of the Audew Jump Starter when you want to jump start a car. We discovered that the trick is to press the very small button labeled “BOOST” to send a LOT of current into a dead or low car battery. You must be ready to start the car quite quickly after the BOOST button is pressed.

I was so happy with this purchase!  After donating the 4Runner I decided that I wanted to keep the Audew Jump Starter charged for future use. 

The RAV4 has 2 power outlets. One is inside the flip up storage container between the driver and front passenger seats.  It looks like an arm rest but it can be flipped open and inside is a power out connection.  The second power connection is on the driver side of the vehicle just inside the rear door.   I made the mistake of using a volt ohm meter to find out when the power connectors provided power.  My mistake must have been causing a short and I blew the fuse for the user power connections.  I then purchased this next device.  It shows when power is provided by the connector and the voltage and also supplies two USB output connections.

Jebsens 4.8A 24W Dual USB Car Charger Volt Meter Car Battery Monitor with LED Voltage & Amps Display, for iPhone 7 / 6s / Plus, iPad Pro/Air 2 / Mini, Galaxy S7 / S6 / Edge/Plus, Note 5/4

The Audew, jump starter, also gives you a USB cable for charging it’s own battery but also this cable can charge your cell phone or any other device that can run on USB power.  My idea was to keep the Audew in my RAV4 and keep it charged with the power connector near the rear door.  I reasoned that you never know when you might come across a person who needs a battery jump start so I wanted my unit to maintain a constant charge.  The USB cable that comes with the Audew is a bit short.  I do not want his battery sliding around inside my car so I added a much longer cable so the Audew could be placed into a very convenient storage spot. 

 

Small Jebsen Volt Meter is on the left connected with a USB cable so it will charge the Audew Jump Starter (But note that the Audew can slide around. I added a longer cable in the next image below so I could place the jump starter into a more secure location.

 

I already had a much longer cable and used it to place the Audew inside a pocket provided inside my RAV4.

 

Note that I have now included a much longer USB cable so that I can place the Audew Jump Starter into a very convenient storage slot. I do NOT want the Audew to slide around causing future problems.

But, I needed to find the blow fuse in my RAV4. Let me tell you that Toyota was absolutely no help!  The 2009 Owner’s Manual that came with the car was awful, a piece of crap for solving this problem. Pages that were to show the location of fuses were wrong.  I called my local dealership parts office and they were no help.  I spend hours on the Internet, plowing through YouTube videos from wonderful people sharing how to solve finding RAV4 fuses but for me every one was in error. 

Another problem was the location for the blown fuse panel.  It was located on the driver side near the driver door under the instrument panel. 

 

 

It was awful getting light up into that space.  It was simply awful to pull the fuse cover plate off.  I had to lay on my back with half my body sticking out the door to work on this panel.  It was damned awful to pull and replace any fuse for testing and replacing.  I hated this problem.

 

The solution that worked for me was to remove the fuse cover plate and scan the image on that cover and printed it out.  I put copies of the pages into the owner’s manual.   I was to discover that this cover plate seemed to be quite accurate.  Next, I provide to you the image I scanned for both of us to use (see image below).  I found out that a single fuse, number 27, a 15 Amp, PWR OUTLET, had blown. I replaced it and now both power outlet connectors are working.  It seems that in later models of RAV4 there seems to be separate fuses for each of these two power output connectors.  On my RAV4 one fuse supplies power to both power connectors.

I plugged in the small Jepsen volt meter and it showed power at both power ports.  I keep the Jepsen meter inserted into the rear connector all the time so I can quickly confirm that I am charging the Audew Jump Starter.  I do have to make sure nothing slides into hitting this meter when driving.

I connected the Audew car starter battery to the rear power connector and using a long USB cable put the battery into a nice storage slot over the rear driver side tire location.  Every time I run the car, this battery should be charged.

 

 

 My view of Toyota cars has diminished as a result of the large number of problems I had solving what should have been a rather easy problem to fix.

What I learned from this experience is the following:

  • Before buying any vehicle, check to see how hard it is to replace fuses.  Can you easily get to each of the fuse panel locations?
  • Check to see how accurately the owner’s manual are written.

 

 

Posted April 25, 2021

Old Age & Corona Virus Has Advantages Some Times

Old Age & Corona Virus Has Advantages Some Times

My California drivers license was due to expire July 2020 but I was sent a letter from the DMV, June 5, 2020, extending the expiration of the license to November 2020.  This was obviously due to the pandemic.  I expected to take a written exam and also behind the wheel test.  I spent two days studying for the DMV written exam.  There are 6 California practice exams on line. 

I went to the DMV, arrived just before 2 pm.  I wanted to check the DMV situation out one day prior to getting there early to start the process.  My daughter told me to get there early.  I was planning to arrive real early the next morning to avoid crowds.  I saw a very long line off to the side of the DMV building extending into the parking lot.  There were two easy ups canopies tied together at the head of the line where two DMV people were sitting at a table.  I went to the easy ups to ask how long it would take.  One of the DMV persons at the easy up asked if I was over 60.  I was given a paper and was told to go to the entrance of the DMV and started the process.  I got my license in just under one hour.  No written test.  No behind the wheel driving test.  I am SHOCKED!  This includes real ID for air travel!  Incredible!  

I then get my new drivers license with the real ID mailed to me in just 12 days!  YIKES – INCREDIBLE!

 

 

Posted November 27,2020

INFORMATION REPORTING WEB SITES ARE NOT RECOMMENDED UNLESS YOUR ARE REALLY CAREFUL.

INFORMATION REPORTING WEB SITES ARE NOT RECOMMENDED UNLESS YOUR ARE REALLY CAREFUL.

Information Reporting Web Sites Are Not Recommended Unless You Are Really Careful.

 

Be careful of web sites that give you information for homes and cars.   They may lead to monthly payments.  Pay particular attention to the cost.  I personally do NOT trust the these web sites because I do not remember agreeing to monthly payments.

ON LINE HOME CHECKS

I noticed that I had a charge that came up every month that I did not expect. It appeared on my credit card statement as follows: ONLINEHOMECHECKSCOM 866-2037898 UT

When you try to get a report on a property you have TWO options.  Make sure you choose wisely. The option that I though I had selected was one report for $1.  I am sure that is what I selected.  That is NOT what took place.

I was charged $18.95 each month.  I must have tried to find the value of a house at some time in the past but by asking for the value of the house I inadvertently subscribed to their monthly service.  I had to call their number 800-704-9751 to talk to a person who stopped this charge.

https://www.onlinehomechecks.com/

Corp Details:
J&C Lee Enterprises LLC
200 W Parrish Ln,
Centerville, UT 84014
United States
Contact Us: 1-866-203-7898

  • I had to call and give the person answering the phone the last 4 digits of my credit card.
  • I then had to give my name.
  • I had to give the e-mail address that I used.
  • I then asked to have the service stopped.

___________________________________

US VEHICLE REPORTS. VINRECORDSUSA.COM 8007049751 DE

I noticed that I had a charge that came up every month that I did not expect. It appeared on my credit card statement as follows: VINRECORDSUSA.COM 8007049751 DE

  • vinrecordsusa.com/Cardatarecords.Com multiple charges
    236 East Delaware Ave
    Suite 208
    United States

I keep getting charged $24.95 every month.

  • I had to call and give the person answering the phone the last 4 digits of my credit card.
  • I then had to give my name.
  • They had some difficulty finding my account.
  • I then asked to have the service stopped.

https://www.ripoffreport.com/report/multiple-charges/east-delaware-ave-suite-cc-1499894

_____________________________________

CARDATARECORDS.COM
My credit card statement shows this entry:  CARDATARECORDS.COM 18007207918 NJ

  • Car Data LLC
  • 49 Park Row, Wallington, NJ 07057
  • Customer Support Phone Number: 1 (800) 720-7918. They do not answer the phone.  Must leave a message.
  • Customer Support Email: support@cardatarecords.com
  • Web site:   https://cardatarecords.com/

When they answer the phone they identify themselves as US Vehicle Reports which is rather odd because I have already dealt with US Vehicle Reports as seen above.  Why?

 

 

Posted: November 7, 2020
Revised July 10, 2022

Ford 2006 Escape – New Car (#7 in a series).

Ford 2006 Escape – New Car (#7 in a series).

We are currently doing research and are pretty much convinced that the Toyota RAV4 is the best choice for a young girl, in my opinion.  We will continue this story as we progress buying the replacement vehicle.

Please visit this site again to see how this turns out.

Ford 2006 Escape – Lessons Learned (#6 in a series).

Ford 2006 Escape – Lessons Learned (#6 in a series).

  •  This Ford Escape experience seems directly related to why I love the Mac and despise Windows computers.  I work for a university and they have to hire a lot of computer support people because the Windows computers are like Ford and the Mac is like a Toyota.   I am a contract worker so I should love Windows computers because I can increase my billing hours.  I am always having to repair Windows but Mac issues are vastly insignificant in comparison.  My point is that you can buy cheap computers so your immediate up front cost is less.  The problem with this “logic” is it may cost much more if you tally all the time and money you spend over the life of the device.
  • If you have a daughter or son, take the time to make a well researched vehicle choice that  is Mac like, reliable and safe.
  • Really consider buying Japanese automobiles.  There are web sites and cell phone applications that will help you to easily decode the VIN numbers so you can be sure of where the vehicle came from.  Use the words “vin number decoder” when doing a Google search.
  • If you buy a Ford consider buying an extended warrantee.  If you buy a Ford also consider buying AAA Premium.  If you buy a Ford and live in a cold climate, store survival gear in the trunk.
  • I still think that the dealership should be an important component for choosing a vehicle.  The mistake I made was that we should have decided upon the vehicle first and then found a dealership that could best buy from and support our choice.  We did go back to McCoy Mills because we could not find fault with them and their front end service people were perfect.  And, have asked them to find us a Toyota RAV 4.

 

Ford 2006 Escape – Analysis (#5 in a series)

Ford 2006 Escape – Analysis (#5 in a series)

Within a span of one week the Escape was in for repair three times.  Without making any comments to my daughter about how I felt about the Escape, I asked her how she felt about the car.  She said she had lost confidence in it.  She reminded me that she had planned trips to other cities and the mountains but she was now fearful that the car would break down.  I then told her that I felt the same way.  We were going to get rid of the Escape.   We would never buy another Ford.  This was getting to be similar to my Volkswagen bus experience.  I would never buy a Volkswagen ever again because my bus had a Porsche pancake engine with sodium valves which separated about every fifty thousand miles, requiring an engine rebuild.  When I determine that a product engineering team and/or assembly workers can make such bone headed mistakes I immediately dismiss them from future consideration.  I would be stupid to be twice burned.

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