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Thread ID: 110119	2010-06-04 02:33:00	Car trouble!	george12 (7)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
1106561	2010-06-04 07:37:00	no. try a couple of hours at least. much easier to put the charger on over night and then see what the voltage is like. if its still low the battery may be stuffed. also check what the fluid level is like. its probably got caps just under the stickers you can unscrew.	tweak'e (69)
1106562	2010-06-04 07:51:00	Thanks, will do.	george12 (7)
1106563	2010-06-04 07:59:00	Winter- the season to put a suspect battery through it's paces. I would try and get a load test done on the battery to see if it holds up and taking that into account with it's age it might be replacement time.	sam m (517)
1106564	2010-06-04 08:21:00	to do a load test battery needs to be fully charged before hand.	tweak'e (69)
1106565	2010-06-05 01:30:00	Replace it. Modern batteries do not die slowly - they go instantly as I just discovered. Super cheap autos are a good place as they have a wide range.	Peter H (220)
1106566	2010-06-05 01:48:00	Replace it. Modern batteries do not die slowly - they go instantly as I just discovered. Super cheap autos are a good place as they have a wide range. yes/no. they can die suddenly, but usually because you have never noticed that it was dieing slowly! :lol: the battery i have in the work vehicle is about stuffed, both terminals are corroded and "growing" (have to clean them constantly and refill fluid) but for a 6 year old vehicle with original battery its not to bad. mind you i have put some battery revitalizer stuff in it which seams to help. the other work vehicle which is the same model and age had its battery replaced a few years ago. trying to keep this one going as big batteries are expensive especially if your fitting new ones every few years. had the same problem with clock and radio loosing settings but motor would still start. charge up battery overnight and problem solved. the big killers of batteries is constantly being not charged up fully and draining till they are totally flat (ie leave lights on). so put a charger on it every few months (prefer auto charger so will trickle charge or turn off when battery is full. otherwise you can cook the battery).	tweak'e (69)
1106567	2010-06-05 02:30:00	yes/no. they can die suddenly, but usually because you have never noticed that it was dieing slowly! :lol: the battery i have in the work vehicle is about stuffed, both terminals are corroded and "growing" (have to clean them constantly and refill fluid) but for a 6 year old vehicle with original battery its not to bad. mind you i have put some battery revitalizer stuff in it which seams to help. the other work vehicle which is the same model and age had its battery replaced a few years ago. trying to keep this one going as big batteries are expensive especially if your fitting new ones every few years. had the same problem with clock and radio loosing settings but motor would still start. charge up battery overnight and problem solved. the big killers of batteries is constantly being not charged up fully and draining till they are totally flat (ie leave lights on). so put a charger on it every few months (prefer auto charger so will trickle charge or turn off when battery is full. otherwise you can cook the battery). I think you're onto something. I do make regular trips about 4 days per week that are only around 6 minutes there and 6 minutes back. Then again I also make at least 6 or so 20 minute journeys per week. Is it actually possible that the length of the trip isn't enough to charge the battery fully and its in a constant state of not being fully charged? The thing I'm curious about though is how it can not have enough power to keep the clock in time, but have enough to start the car?	george12 (7)
1106568	2010-06-05 02:58:00	you have the same problem i run into. i do lots of short trips and often when in the field do lots of 100m "trips". may do 20 minutes driving but 30-60 starts in that time. the clock thing i'm not sure on. in this vehicle the clock is part of the gauges which is actually a small ECU, compared to my own vehicle where the clock is standalone and never has that problem. quite possibly the dash ecu drops out when the voltage goes to low but the main ecu doesn't. even at such low voltage there is enough capacity in the battery for the starter motor to run. starter motors don't necessarily need 12 volt for them to work.	tweak'e (69)
1106569	2010-06-05 03:20:00	you have the same problem i run into. i do lots of short trips and often when in the field do lots of 100m "trips". may do 20 minutes driving but 30-60 starts in that time. the clock thing i'm not sure on. in this vehicle the clock is part of the gauges which is actually a small ECU, compared to my own vehicle where the clock is standalone and never has that problem. quite possibly the dash ecu drops out when the voltage goes to low but the main ecu doesn't. even at such low voltage there is enough capacity in the battery for the starter motor to run. starter motors don't necessarily need 12 volt for them to work. Hmm OK. Final test results: Little round window: Black (according to sticker, Green = Good, Black = Recharge, Clear = Replace) Water levels: Up to the little plastic bits (which I suspect are a level marker), same level in each cell. No metal visible. No load voltage: 12.3V Headlights on voltage: 11.5V Engine running voltage: 13.8V For comparison, my mum's 93 Honda Civic (with no problems): No load voltage: 12.8V Headlights on voltage: 11.8V Engine running voltage: 14.3V So what is the verdict? Battery needs to be replaced, just needs to be charged, or is the charging voltage too low? One thing to keep in mind is that I had no problems for the first three months I owned the car, and the same driving habits have not been a problem in my previous cars. Also, probably not less than three weeks ago would be the last time I did a one hour drive.	george12 (7)
1106570	2010-06-05 03:28:00	Just get a new battery. I know thats what I would be doing. :)	Trev (427)
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