Dead battery in the wife's rig

Tobra · Tobra's Garage

Got up this morning, wife leaves, comes back into the house.

Dead battery

Jump start it, tell her to drive in 2nd(slushbox) to charge it back up. She stops for coffee on the way to the office

Dead battery

At lunch, go jump it again, she drives around in 2nd for about 30 minutes, and it just will not hold a charge. Runs fine, so the alternator is good, right? 5 years on a 7 year battery, which is not bad I guess. If'n this happened last week, would have the benefit of Mr Sun shining down on my red neck as I am changing it out. Freakin' Mondays piss me off.

At least it is not raining.

Shaun @ Tru6 · 11-08-2010, 05:06 PM

if it's not sealed, pull the caps, top off with distilled water, put it on a trickle charger.

just did this myself with a "good" battery that wouldn't hold a charge.

widgeon13 · 11-08-2010, 05:31 PM

Buy a new one, it's on it's way out and the next time it goes it will be cold wet rain coming down on you back, guaranteed! Or worse yet, she will be somewhere she can't get coverage.

DanielDudley · 11-09-2010, 02:04 AM

Corroded connections can give the same symptoms, but why screw around with the wife's car ?

red-beard · red-beard's Garage

Check the date on the battery. If passed, it is probably done, get a new one. I would definitely check the cables and the alternator.

masraum · 11-09-2010, 03:17 AM

5 years on a 7 year battery. It's probably bad. Time for a new one, but trickle charge it back up and get it load tested. That's the only way to know for sure.

billybek · billybek's Garage

Alternator charging?

kanadary · 11-09-2010, 04:20 AM

replace it. not worth it. i replace the batteries in the dds every 5 yrs regardless if its going bad or not.

masraum · 11-09-2010, 04:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by billybek

Alternator charging?

If she starts with a jump and she'll run, but not be able to restart the car, it's most likely the battery. The alt is providing enough juice to run the car, but the battery isn't taking a charge.

If the alternator wasn't charging, the battery would go dead, and the car probably wouldn't run after a jump.

Laneco · 11-09-2010, 06:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kanadary

replace it. not worth it. i replace the batteries in the dds every 5 yrs regardless if its going bad or not.

Agreed. Not worth the aggravation. Also, a bad battery will kill your alternator. Modern alternators are designed to charge intermittently. They over heat and croak if you leave a dead battery in the car because they must charge continuously. Old school (like 1960's american cars) alternators are alot more durable in this respect.

In brief, if you leave a dead battery in there long enough, guaranteed you will also be replacing the alternator shortly. And I guarantee it will be SNOWING when that happens...

angela

Tobra · Tobra's Garage

Connections are good, battery is gone.

It is because of how she drives it, all really short trips with an auto trans and it never revs up.

Why mess with the wife's car? I guess I should have called triple A when it was sitting in front of the house too.And they say there is no such thing as a stupid question.

HHI944 · 11-09-2010, 06:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by masraum

If she starts with a jump and she'll run, but not be able to restart the car, it's most likely the battery. The alt is providing enough juice to run the car, but the battery isn't taking a charge.

If the alternator wasn't charging, the battery would go dead, and the car probably wouldn't run after a jump.

Old Rovers are pretty infamous for their dynamo or alternator going partially bad. They'll pump out enough juice to keep everything running, but not enough to charge the battery. They're also known for charging adequately when cold, but dying off once warm. If you ever find someone who can explain exactly why this occurs, ask them how the brits make aluminum rust as well

Just a few thoughts, but my guess is that the battery is just dead

Joe Bob · Joe Bob's Garage

Multi meter time.....trickle charge the battery or replace it. Check the charge at idle and at 2500 rpms.

12.5-13 @ rest
13-13.5 @ idle
13.5-14 @ 2500 rpms

Poor man's load test with meter attached. The volts should dip to no more 10v when cranking.

You really should not run a car with a flat battery. The alt is designed to maintain a charge, it's hard on the system when it's forced to try to bring a battery up to charge. An alt is more expensive than a battery to replace.

vash · vash's Garage

i agree..multi meter time. without one, you really are just guessing.

Zeke · 11-09-2010, 07:03 AM

I seem to be putting batteries in every five years or less and I buy high quality batteries. That's a b!itch when Boxster batteries cost $200. (Skinny little things.)

Steve Carlton · 11-09-2010, 07:42 AM

I don't know what kind of car your wife drives, but don't most charge enough even at idle? I'd have the charging system tested when you replace the battery. Perhaps there's a pro-rated discount on your next one if it was a 7 year battery? Personally, I'd get a Die Hard and replace it around 4 years (I don't know if they're still as good as they used to be, though). I rather replace a battery a little early vs a little late. The value of that last 20% of the battery isn't worth the inconvenience.