Turn key nothing happens

So I been having an issue with my taco past few days this is going to be a long one but im going to give a little rundown on the situation. my truck wouldn't start previously, I don't drive it very often but it has a brand new battery I replaced 2 months ago. so I jumped it with my work van and drove it for about 30 min. turned it off and it wouldn't start back up. I hit it with a jump box and she fired up. I tried turning on the truck again today and the lights turned on but it just clicked. I tried jumping it again and it clicked trying to start and all the lights turned off. i checked the batter getting 12.7v. took the battery to autozone and they said the battery is still good fully charged. long story short I think its the starter but why wont any of my lights turn on I don't even get the beeping from the door? Could it be my ignition switch? My key has been giving me problems coming out. I would have to pop the hood and undo the battery for the key to come out. Could that be the issue or does anyone know how I can test the ignition switch?
TIA!!!

 

Sounds like a poor battery terminal connection .

When you do any boosting your most likely attaching to the cables.

How long does your truck sit maybe a battery tender might be an idea

 

I start it up and drive it every couple days but my battery is reading 12.7

 

Strange I just came out and tried starting it and she fired up I'll check back in if it happens again

 

Remove, clean and reinstall your positive and negative battery terminals. Check the voltage in the morning before you start the truck. It should be above 12 vdc. Rinse and repeat should yo think that your low voltage is intermittent. Your charging voltage should be well above 13.2 vdc and more like the lower 14s if not a bit higher. Pay attention to your battery's state of charge, this is the resting battery voltage that you should check in the morning when the truck hasn't been started.
If you have a low voltage problem remove, clean and reassemble the battery terminals and recharge the battery. Check the age of the battery. Hot summer days are hard on an automotive battery.. Check the sides for swelling, Does the battery hold a charge for a period of time like say a couple of days or a week, even a month?
You can verify a parasitic drain by removing the negative terminal and checking with a multimeter set up for Amps DC between the terminal and the battery post. If it is above .35 amps dc then it is drawing/draining too much current. Better that the parasitic draw is below .35 Amps DC like .2--.25 or so.
Corrosion on terminals means resistance and too much resistance reduces the life of a battery so clean the corrosion thoroughly.

 

Thanks for the quick reply also man

 

New battery I think it was the connections because when I was driving it my voltmeter was reading 13.7-14.2. I one that doubles as a USB port also. I think it was something as easy as the terminals not being tight enough

 

Easy enough.

 

Don't judge me haha

 

Believe it or not, 12.7 V for a battery is a bit low. It should be in the 13V range. Either your battery is weak, you have a connection that is loose or excessive corrosion somewhere.

 

well your battery was tested good, so checking the terminals and the ground connection was good advice. I’ve never heard of having to disconnect a battery to get a key out, usually it’s a matter of your steering wheel locked and just wiggling it one way or another to release the key. It is possible you have a switch problem. It’s not your starter if the lights won’t come on and a jump pack started it. I would check my fuses since the last time you jumped it the lights went out.

 

the key removal issue could be one of 2 things... in the center console there is a shift interlock mechanism that requires the shifter (automatic trans) to be in park. There is a plunger and a switch that is depressed when you put it in park. If the shifter bushings are worn there is enough play to NOT depress the plunger/switch when in Park. Or the key/ignition lock cylinder is worn out.

there is no magic bullet repair for the electrical problem. You are going to have to inspect the wiring starting with the battery terminals and the cables. There are 3 grounds on a Tacoma, Battery - to chassis, Battery - to engine block and rear of cylinder head to firewall. The engine compartment fues panel is powered through a cable off the positive side of the battery and depending on year and model through a large bolted in fuse.

my money is on bad grounds...

 

Yeah it was a bad ground boys you guys are legends. And yeah I'm thinking it's the shifter because no matter what key I use I have same issue and it hasn't happened in a couple days but there is times where it happens almost everyday I've contemplated putting a lil kill switch in the cabin just for that issue

 

I had a similar issue a few weeks back. Abbreviated version.
Turn key to acc, lights on, start engine, click, everything dead. Connect 2nd battery, truck starts just fine. It was an easy fix. the main battery ground was corroded. Weird though that the 2nd battery is grounded to the same post.

On the key issue, I had a similar problem awhile back when I still had the auto trans. I went through a mud pit, bad idea, and had to use the shifter lock. Turned out to be the neutral safety switch needed a good cleaning. That hopefully could be your issue.

 

Interesting when you double the amperage of the starting circuit how many problems can be over come for a short time.