Toyota Repair: Battery installed backwards.., power fuse, fuse box

Question
Hello,

I was having trouble starting my truck - 96 toyota tacoma 4cyl. 5spd when i turned the key i heard a fast clicking noise and that was it. For about a week i had noticed the truck slugish in starting. We had replaced the starter contacts about 2 years prior and the clicking didn't sound like the starter to me.. but it did to my husband.

I posted in some forums and they suggested we try the battery first.. Due to the location of the truck, jumping it was out of the question and i couldn't get down to the auto store to buy a battery this is our only transportation.

A neighbors son said he would start his car and remove his battery then put ours in while the car was running to charge it... OK never heard of that before.. but willing to try it.

I took the battery to him and he says wait i'll put my battery in your truck since we know it is good.. makes more sence..

He brought his battery to my truck set it down and hooked it up... wrong : ( he says oops.. thats okay.. switched the cables and then says go try to start it.. I went and put the key in.. no ding's no lights. no power.. no starting. He rips open the fuse box by the battery has a hell of a time getting out the now blown 80a alternator fuse due to the second bolt and says here replace this and your truck will work.. this is your problem...

So we replaced the fuse and the battery the next day thanks to my generous mother. Still nothing.. dead as can be. So my mother changes the am1,am2 (2)40a and power (fuse box inside of truck)(2)30a there was another fuse in the engine box that she changed i just dont remember the name but it was a 30a.. near the relay switches. She also took all the relay switches with her to the auto shop and was told by site that they were fine.. now i hear you can't judge that by site? not sure.. anyways nothing no power : (

People are saying that the neighbors son fried my ecu and that i should sue him.. im not going to sue someone i asked for help.. i doubt he meant to kill my truck.. if thats the case.

Any info will help, please. Can they even test the ecu if everything is dead and fried? I dont have the money for this : ( I will be buying a pos 300.00 putter if i can't fix my truck soon, and she will just have to sit until i win the lotto.

Thank you for reading my rant, Katherine  

Answer
Look on the pos battery term and you should see two wires big & little, the little one may be a fuse link, a fuse link is a wire that melts fast, you can get this at any parts place, unless the key was on when he hooked up the battery, I doubt he let the smoke out of it, I see this done a lot and it just gets the fuse.  It will be Monday before I can get to a EWD, so please let me know.  If its been two years on contacts then the brushes are gone, Buy a starter or have that one rebuilt, me if its the Toyota starter I would have it rebuilt but not over 60.00, Toyota remans are 200.to 350,aftermarket are 150 to 200, you just have to ghange them every year or so.(aftermarket that is)