Will letting the battery go flat cause any problems?

T

Tommo61

Member
 Tring, Hertfordshire
I've got my e85 SORNd and holed up in a local authority garage which has no power for the winter/lockdown period. The battery isn't great and will only crank slowly if left standing for a couple of weeks, so I suspect leaving it for an extended period it'll flatten completely. I've got a jumper pack to restart it, but are there any known issues (and fixes) arising from letting the battery run flat for a couple of months? - I put it away 1st Dec and the way lockdown is looking, I doubt I'll re-tax it till 1st March. TIA

I'm also looking at the options for putting a cheap solar panel on the garage roof to trickle charge it if anyone's got any experience or suggestions.
 
Tommo61 said:
I've got my e85 SORNd and holed up in a local authority garage which has no power for the winter/lockdown period. The battery isn't great and will only crank slowly if left standing for a couple of weeks, so I suspect leaving it for an extended period it'll flatten completely. I've got a jumper pack to restart it, but are there any known issues (and fixes) arising from letting the battery run flat for a couple of months? - I put it away 1st Dec and the way lockdown is looking, I doubt I'll re-tax it till 1st March. TIA

I'm also looking at the options for putting a cheap solar panel on the garage roof to trickle charge it if anyone's got any experience or suggestions.
Click to expand...

Look up “transport mode” on here :?
Rob
 
It sounds like your battery is on its last legs.Just buy a new battery when you come to tax the car.I would disconnect the battery.
 
Letting the battery completely discharge over a couple of months will absolutely knacker it permanently. The plates will get very sulphated and the original capacity of the battery can never be recovered.
 
If it's not goosed already you'd be better off bringing it inside and keeping it charged it if you can't get to it outside.
 
If you mean is there any thing other than the battery that will be damaged. Then I believe the answer is no. You can leave an E85 with no battery. Keep the battery charged at home in the shed. Then put it back in, in the spring. I left mine without a battery for just over a week once and was worried it may have caused issues, but the car simply started and every thing worked as before. :) Be sure to leave the hand brake off too.
 
Thanks for the feedback! I'll nip down there and remove it altogether and put it on a ctek at home. I know a new battery is really the answer, but holding off that till I'm back on the road. I just don't want a Christmas tree of warning lights due to discharge when I finally re run it.
 
Removing the battery and charging at home seems the best thing to do given where its garaged. I would also put some mouse traps in and around the car if its going to be there for any length of time. Hood up and windows cracked open to provide air flow to the inside.
Personally I would visit it once a month and start it and move it back and forth a few times and use the brakes when you do to keep them working and not sticking. For an extended stay consider jacking it up so the tyres are off the ground to avoid them flat spotting over time. A set of 4 axle stands are not that expensive to find.
 
Do you have the facilities to trickle charge the battery whilst sitting up over this lockdown period? May save you £100's when you come to have to buy a new battery, there not cheap anymore for decent ones :(
 
You can also buy wheel savers/ tyre trainers/ wheel cradles to prevent your tyres from flat spotting and/or rolling away if you’re leaving your handbrake off (recommended to stop it binding). You could buy a new battery and leave it in the car disconnected; it’s unlikely to discharge itself over a winter, but leaving it connected and letting it go flat for any length of time will kill it.
 
Removing it all together should avoid any risk of transport mode. They only go in to it if left to slowly discharge and only if transport mode hasn't been fully deleted (just deactivated) as it should have been as part of the pdi at the supplying dealer
 
If you need a new one, it might be worth considering a visit to Halfords.
I bought a new one from them last June for a £130 (fitted).
Yuasa HSB110 (now relabled as YBX5110 I think).
Same physical dimensions as the original but greater amp hour rating and maximumum current rating as well I think.
Good piece of kit IMHO.
 
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