Battery.......again!!!

D

dans6490

Active member
After going out to start my zed a few weeks back, the battery was dead. Jump start, drive, next day the same.

So I changed the battery and again, all was well for a while but now I'm back in the same situation. I've taken it to a auto electrician who couldn't find any drain issues.

However, he did say he thinks my new battery is too small. It's a Bosch s3 005 type 027.

I have an ashtray plug in, showing the voltage and at rest it now says 11.2v. On start up it shows 13.9v.

Do you think the battery could be too small and doesn't have the power to start the engine?

This is driving me nuts now as I can't drive the car as even after jump-starting, I can't be sure it will start for the return journey!! :headbang:
 
dans6490 said:
After going out to start my zed a few weeks back, the battery was dead. Jump start, drive, next day the same.

So I changed the battery and again, all was well for a while but now I'm back in the same situation. I've taken it to a auto electrician who couldn't find any drain issues.

However, he did say he thinks my new battery is too small. It's a Bosch s3 005 type 027.

I have an ashtray plug in, showing the voltage and at rest it now says 11.2v. On start up it shows 13.9v.

Do you think the battery could be too small and doesn't have the power to start the engine?

This is driving me nuts now as I can't drive the car as even after jump-starting, I can't be sure it will start for the return journey!! :headbang:
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Something is dragging your battery down if it's only showing 11.2v at rest, it's not a size issue.
Rob
 
If the battery is ok, there is obviously a drain. 027 is a bit on the small side, at 56ah however it should easily start the car, but has less "in reserve" for times of high drain, at the end of the day the 027 is fitted to the ///M... An 096 is normally the one for our cars, with about 68-80ah capacity.

Sounds like you need a better auto elc, rather than a bigger battery...

Mike
 
I was hoping I just needed a new battery but a drain does seem more likely. Particularly as it at 13.9v when I stop the car and then 11.2 the next morning.

How do I go about finding a decent auto electrician? Google I'm guessing?
 
Just buy a new battery and I bet all your problems will go away. It's not a size issue its probably just very low capacity due to age.
 
ph001 said:
Just buy a new battery and I bet all your problems will go away. It's not a size issue its probably just very low capacity due to age.
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This one is a new battery, a few weeks old. Strange thing is, it was ok for a few weeks
 
How often are you driving the car?

If has been sat for a while and then not had an extremely long run you will kill the battery. I would have to check up but I was told that each start takes about 4% of the battery's charge and excessive moving about will not do it any good.

Also, do you have a Ctek charger? I recently replaced the one on the M with a 096 AGM battery. The car didn't go out for a month but took it in and out of the garage a few times to do work and move stuff etc. Last week, I could tell it sounded slightly strained on initial start up. I put the Ctek on for a day and it was fine. I think keeping it fully charged at all times is the way to go as running them up and down is a killer.

H.
 
Do you have any obvious aftermarket electrical stuff fitted to your Zed, like aftermarket head unit or bluetooth/music kit? A common problem is having the permanent and ignition switched +12v feeds the wrong way around so the accessory continues to be powered up when the car is supposed to be off and this drains the battery. I once had a Parrot kit in a Mini with the adaptor lead incorrectly configured and it would kill the battery in 2-3 days.

Chris
 
Havard said:
How often are you driving the car?

If has been sat for a while and then not had an extremely long run you will kill the battery. I would have to check up but I was told that each start takes about 4% of the battery's charge and excessive moving about will not do it any good.

Also, do you have a Ctek charger? I recently replaced the one on the M with a 096 AGM battery. The car didn't go out for a month but took it in and out of the garage a few times to do work and move stuff etc. Last week, I could tell it sounded slightly strained on initial start up. I put the Ctek on for a day and it was fine. I think keeping it fully charged at all times is the way to go as running them up and down is a killer.

H.
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It doesn't get much use so it could be this, I'm going to get a charger and give that a go. :thumbsup:
 
rally-chris said:
Do you have any obvious aftermarket electrical stuff fitted to your Zed, like aftermarket head unit or bluetooth/music kit? A common problem is having the permanent and ignition switched +12v feeds the wrong way around so the accessory continues to be powered up when the car is supposed to be off and this drains the battery. I once had a Parrot kit in a Mini with the adaptor lead incorrectly configured and it would kill the battery in 2-3 days.

Chris
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It has a gaptech type module fitted, so it could be that? Also has a cd changer that did work when I bought the car back in May but now doesn't.
 
Any connection between the time the CD changer stopped working and the Gaptech was fitted, or between either event and the battery drain issue starting? If so I would look at disconnecting the module temporarily to see if the problem goes away.

Chris
 
rally-chris said:
Any connection between the time the CD changer stopped working and the Gaptech was fitted, or between either event and the battery drain issue starting? If so I would look at disconnecting the module temporarily to see if the problem goes away.

Chris
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Both were already fitted when I bought the car and haven't been touched. The battery was fully charged at the auto electrician a few weeks back and all was fine for a while so I'm wondering if it could be the low use and short journeys that have done it.

I might take the cd changer out at the weekend as it's not working anyway and I don't use cds also!!!

Looking at the CTEK, they seem quite expensive. Would a normal battery charger do the job just as well?
 
Good idea to isolate the CD changer if it is not working - I'm pretty sure that previous cars I've had maintained power to the changer even if the ignition was off, to allow the cartridge to be ejected. If there is an internal fault in the CD changer then it's possible it is causing your battery drain issue.
 
Gaptech modules do tap a permanent live from the 12v socket, hence why they’re able to work via the remote. Maybe try unhooking it for a few days and see? I doubt it will be that but it’s simple to check.
 
dans6490 said:
ph001 said:
CTEK MXS 5.0. I wouldn't even consider anything else. Where abouts in the country are you?
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Just bought one with delivery tomorrow. Fingers crossed it works!!!
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You won't go wrong with the Ctek. I have two at home.

Even if you have a slow drain, keeping the battery at optimum capacity can't be a bad thing while not in use.

H.
 
A bit late to join this discussion but in the past I have found that immobilised cars, not used for some time can suffer battery drain. I am lucky in that my car is always garage kept with a Ctek type charger but I always leave the car doors unlocked to save any drain. Obviously you cannot do this if car kept outside but worth a try if you have a secure garage.
 
Mike6 said:
A bit late to join this discussion but in the past I have found that immobilised cars, not used for some time can suffer battery drain. I am lucky in that my car is always garage kept with a Ctek type charger but I always leave the car doors unlocked to save any drain. Obviously you cannot do this if car kept outside but worth a try if you have a secure garage.
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I have done this occasionally but I wonder what the insurance would say if they found that the car wasn't locked. Ours are in an alarmed garage but if it was just a door lock between the car and some pesky thieves, I wouldn't be taking the chance.

Even with the car immobilised the drain must be minimal whist on charge. Probably puts another 5 mins on what takes a few hours.

H.
 
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