What is the black box next to the battery in a toyota solara?

My mom has a 2000 toyota solara. If she does not disconnect her battery every time she gets out of the car it kills the battery. Now she smelled it burning and noticed a howling sound. the car would not turn off. she had to disconnect the battery to make it stop. The burning smell was coming from a black box next to the battery. Does anyone know what this could be?|||It the mane fuss box. ya have a short some where in ya wiring unhook the battery and don't hook it back up till ya get it fixed ya might burn ya car up. or fry all ya wiring.|||rat nest|||It sounds like the fuse terminal. Open it and see if you see relays and fuses.|||That is the main fuse/relay box. you can remove the top cover and isolate the fuse or relay that looks burned. By the sound you are describing there may be an issue with one of the engines cooling fans. While the key is removed from the ignition you can open the hood and manually turn the fan blades on the fans. If one of the blades is hard to turn then the motor is locking up and causing an overcurrent situation. If it is the motor you can get one and replace it with minimal tools.|||A burn smelling black box. Just kidding...





Hon, looking in the way you asked, seems that even if we know what it is, you would not be able to fix it. The previous guy seems right on what he said. But to be honest, take it to a Service Tech and search on the phone book and ask to friends and family. Get quotes and use your best judgment.





Good luck :)|||The black box that you are refering to is the fuse and relay junction box. In this box most of the wiring for the vehicle comes together for power distribution. If you open the cover of the box you will see relays ( they look like big plastic blocks) and fues (different colored small rectangles). If the car won't turn off I would venture to say that there is possibly a relay that has been overheated and is now permantly closed. Look up the index in the users manual. Try and find the section labeled fuses/relays. There should be a diagram of which relay and fuse are associated with each section. If you are not sure how to do this, you may want to take the vehicle to the dealership and lat a certified technician work on it.