Battery life

[torque2me]

Originally Posted by Arctic

Anyone use these Chinese products with any success


https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_n...r+bank&_sop=12

Always amazes me with regard to the various price points for the same product.
Kev

[SCP440]

Agreed it should last 2 weeks, the run to the airport should fully charge it. The biggest problem is if your alarm is sensitive to aircraft noise and its being activated every time an aeroplane takes off. My 260 sat at Bristol airport for 10 days in January at it started instantly.
If you put a set of jump leads in the car and you do have a problem you should be able to find some one who you can jump from.

[SD1too]

Originally Posted by SCP440

... the run to the airport should fully charge it.

Unfortunately that hypothesis depends upon so many variables:

• Which airport did Dave travel to?
• What was the condition of his battery before the journey?
• Were a lot of high current accessories used during the journey (e.g. HRW, heated seats, air conditioning)?
• Was the journey at slow urban speeds with significant time spent stationary?

The crucial point is the second one above and it's impossible to know the answer unless a smart charger is used prior to departure to the airport. I recommended this precaution earlier in the thread.

Simon

[Synchromesh]

When it has gone to sleep my 2L V6 petrol draws 16mA with higher pulses of current corresponding to the red flashing alarm LED. I connected the ammeter using some long test leads so I could close all the doors, the boot and the bonnet to ensure it was fully asleep. I didn't observe the ammeter as the various systems went to sleep so I don't know how long it took to drop to 16mA. I think I returned to it after an hour.


During covid lock down when car wasn't getting much use I used a solar panel from Halfords plugged into the cigarette lighter socket. It saved me from having to use an extension lead and battery charger. Some 75 cigarette lighter sockets remain on all the time and some switch off when the electronic modules go to sleep.

[Mike Noc]

Yes the earlier cars are switched through the ignition switch and later cars are constantly connected.

[freewheeler]

Thanks for all the responses. An update on the current situation. I've had the RAC out due to the battery having a 5 year warranty, cost me £30 due to no longer being a member. Anyway all his checks showed no problem on his testing gizmo but the problem persists, I am convinced the battery is faulty but because the tests showed ok they will not honour the warranty. The patrolman confirmed no excessive drain and alternator is charging correctly but showed the battery was at 67% and that was after a 80 mile round trip last night. I had to charge the battery to start the car before the trip and my charger showed 80% so it's lost at least 13% over night. It's got to be the battery. Cheers, Dave

[SD1too]

Originally Posted by freewheeler

... the battery was at 67% and that was after a 80 mile round trip last night. I had to charge the battery to start the car before the trip and my charger showed 80% ...

Hello Dave,

What sort of life has this battery had since you bought it 2 years ago? Has it been flat once or twice? Has it been left for long periods without using a maintenance charger? From what you've said, particularly that you "had to charge" it, sounds as if it's sulphated to me. So yes, it may well be the battery as you've said but not due to a manufacturing fault.

You could try disconnecting the negative battery cable (to stop current consumption by the car) then using your charger for at least 24 hours, but preferably 36 hours. If it's a smart charger this will cause no harm but it will ensure that the battery has the maximum time to accept a full charge. Ignore the percentage display.
If the battery is still in good condition, that should restore reliability but if you're doing mainly short journeys, particularly with a lot of starter motor use, the charge level is likely to reduce slowly unless you supplement it with a smart charger.

Simon

[torque2me]

Originally Posted by freewheeler

Thanks for all the responses. An update on the current situation. I've had the RAC out due to the battery having a 5 year warranty, cost me £30 due to no longer being a member. Anyway all his checks showed no problem on his testing gizmo but the problem persists, I am convinced the battery is faulty but because the tests showed ok they will not honour the warranty. The patrolman confirmed no excessive drain and alternator is charging correctly but showed the battery was at 67% and that was after a 80 mile round trip last night. I had to charge the battery to start the car before the trip and my charger showed 80% so it's lost at least 13% over night. It's got to be the battery. Cheers, Dave

Being having that issue since 19th November 2023 with a battery purchased in January 2023. Would you believe it, but the seller gave the the battery the all clear as had a independent elec tech. Vehicle attempts to go into sleep mode after the correct phase time but immediately everything goes back to switch down mode (0.87mA which is correct) Suspected the Sat Nav and disconnected that but the battery failed to hold a good charge even after a 106 mile journey.

Took it to a Jag dealer who lightened my wallet by a miserly £180 disconnected everything, stated the "new" battery was duff and put the old 4 year+ battery back in. Not had any starting issues for three weeks now. Mind you, no music or interior lights and such. Back to 1950's motoring.
Kev

[freewheeler]

Originally Posted by SD1too

Hello Dave,

What sort of life has this battery had since you bought it 2 years ago? Has it been flat once or twice? Has it been left for long periods without using a maintenance charger? From what you've said, particularly that you "had to charge" it, sounds as if it's sulphated to me. So yes, it may well be the battery as you've said but not due to a manufacturing fault.

You could try disconnecting the negative battery cable (to stop current consumption by the car) then using your charger for at least 24 hours, but preferably 36 hours. If it's a smart charger this will cause no harm but it will ensure that the battery has the maximum time to accept a full charge. Ignore the percentage display.
If the battery is still in good condition, that should restore reliability but if you're doing mainly short journeys, particularly with a lot of starter motor use, the charge level is likely to reduce slowly unless you supplement it with a smart charger.

Simon

Hiya Simon, my plan is to disconnect the battery altogether on Monday and do a repair via the smart charger and get as much charge into the battery as possible and then check the voltage drop on the battery over a couple of days whilst still disconnected. Cheers, Dave

[freewheeler]

Originally Posted by torque2me

Being having that issue since 19th November 2023 with a battery purchased in January 2023. Would you believe it, but the seller gave the the battery the all clear as had a independent elec tech. Vehicle attempts to go into sleep mode after the correct phase time but immediately everything goes back to switch down mode (0.87mA which is correct) Suspected the Sat Nav and disconnected that but the battery failed to hold a good charge even after a 106 mile journey.

Took it to a Jag dealer who lightened my wallet by a miserly £180 disconnected everything, stated the "new" battery was duff and put the old 4 year+ battery back in. Not had any starting issues for three weeks now. Mind you, no music or interior lights and such. Back to 1950's motoring.
Kev

Hiya Kev, took mine to Quikfit a couple of weeks ago to have their free winter check done and they said everything was fine. Cheers, Dave