start-up problem

zola66 · 10th December 2008, 17:53

Hi all, car has a brand new battery in from halfords last thursday but the car took about 8 attempts before it would kickover tonight, the car has been left outside for the last 4 days so is this something you would expect?.

Simon · 10th December 2008, 19:04

Was the battery replaced like-for-like in terms of cold cranking power and overall capacity?

zola66 · 10th December 2008, 19:51

Hi, this was the correct spec battery for my 75 and in autoexpress it was rated within the top 3 for cold cranking etc,this is what they said..............
A surprisingly good battery, considering it’s from Halfords’ standard range. A night in the freezer still left the battery able to give five no-nonsense starts, and our part discharged cranking test showed equal vigour too – despite a relatively average 640 cranking amps rating. Even the bulb test resulted in a very impressive 315 minutes.

Simon · 10th December 2008, 19:53

Does the engine appear to turn over easily? If not then it may be the starter motor (a short sharp tap with a hammer can often 'unstick' them temporarily). If not it's either the cam or crank sensor - I forget which now - that can affect cold starting (the other affects hot starts). If they are on the way out then symptoms are as you experience.

zola66 · 10th December 2008, 20:01

I have never had a problem of it starting before, it has always turned-over 1st time every time, and a new crankshaft sensor was fitted in may when I had the cambelts changed.....I just thought ist might be because I havent used it in four days, the cold weather and its 1 month overdue for a service, as it was cranking over but not enough to start but as soon as it seemed to get warmer it started no problem....or do you suspect something else?

Simon · 10th December 2008, 20:14

I would personally see how things progress. If everything is working fine now and it starts okay even on very cold mornings then you ought to be fine. Could have been a one-off. As with all cars any temperature approaching zero or below undoubtably poses a few challenges to the cars systems.

Hopefully you'll be fine and the incident wont repeat itself.

zola66 · 10th December 2008, 20:21

many thanks for your advice, fingers crossed

TrevorL · 10th December 2008, 21:41

Some sound advice on purchasing Lead Acid Batteries always check the week date and reject if older than 6 months old, any battery that's been hanging round for longer than 6 months requires top charging ( due to sulphation ) to restore back to full charge. click on the link below for more info.

http://www.yuasa-battery.co.uk/autom...owbatteryworks

http://www.ibt-power.com/Lead_acid_t...acid_tech.html

Trevor

10th December 2008, 17:53	#1
zola66 Avid contributor rover 75 classic se Join Date: May 2008 Location: Surrey Posts: 249 Thanks: 10 Thanked 6 Times in 5 Posts	start-up problem Hi all, car has a brand new battery in from halfords last thursday but the car took about 8 attempts before it would kickover tonight, the car has been left outside for the last 4 days so is this something you would expect?.

10th December 2008, 20:01	#5
zola66 Avid contributor rover 75 classic se Join Date: May 2008 Location: Surrey Posts: 249 Thanks: 10 Thanked 6 Times in 5 Posts	I have never had a problem of it starting before, it has always turned-over 1st time every time, and a new crankshaft sensor was fitted in may when I had the cambelts changed.....I just thought ist might be because I havent used it in four days, the cold weather and its 1 month overdue for a service, as it was cranking over but not enough to start but as soon as it seemed to get warmer it started no problem....or do you suspect something else? Last edited by zola66; 10th December 2008 at 20:06..

10th December 2008, 21:41	#8
TrevorL Newbie ZT 1.8T Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Birmingham West Midlands Posts: 23 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Some sound advice on purchasing Lead Acid Batteries always check the week date and reject if older than 6 months old, any battery that's been hanging round for longer than 6 months requires top charging ( due to sulphation ) to restore back to full charge. click on the link below for more info. http://www.yuasa-battery.co.uk/autom...owbatteryworks http://www.ibt-power.com/Lead_acid_t...acid_tech.html Trevor Last edited by TrevorL; 10th December 2008 at 21:46..

10th December 2008, 19:04	#2
Simon Banned - Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: - Posts: 10,318 Thanks: 0 Thanked 4 Times in 3 Posts	Was the battery replaced like-for-like in terms of cold cranking power and overall capacity?

10th December 2008, 19:51	#3
zola66 Avid contributor rover 75 classic se Join Date: May 2008 Location: Surrey Posts: 249 Thanks: 10 Thanked 6 Times in 5 Posts	Hi, this was the correct spec battery for my 75 and in autoexpress it was rated within the top 3 for cold cranking etc,this is what they said.............. A surprisingly good battery, considering it’s from Halfords’ standard range. A night in the freezer still left the battery able to give five no-nonsense starts, and our part discharged cranking test showed equal vigour too – despite a relatively average 640 cranking amps rating. Even the bulb test resulted in a very impressive 315 minutes.

10th December 2008, 19:53	#4
Simon Banned - Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: - Posts: 10,318 Thanks: 0 Thanked 4 Times in 3 Posts	Does the engine appear to turn over easily? If not then it may be the starter motor (a short sharp tap with a hammer can often 'unstick' them temporarily). If not it's either the cam or crank sensor - I forget which now - that can affect cold starting (the other affects hot starts). If they are on the way out then symptoms are as you experience.

10th December 2008, 20:14	#6
Simon Banned - Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: - Posts: 10,318 Thanks: 0 Thanked 4 Times in 3 Posts	I would personally see how things progress. If everything is working fine now and it starts okay even on very cold mornings then you ought to be fine. Could have been a one-off. As with all cars any temperature approaching zero or below undoubtably poses a few challenges to the cars systems. Hopefully you'll be fine and the incident wont repeat itself.

10th December 2008, 20:21	#7
zola66 Avid contributor rover 75 classic se Join Date: May 2008 Location: Surrey Posts: 249 Thanks: 10 Thanked 6 Times in 5 Posts	many thanks for your advice, fingers crossed