Flat Battery issue

[Timmon]

On 3/7/2021 at 9:20 AM, TonyHSD said:

Your cars has full LED lights right? With led side lights it’s ok to drive from safety point of view, however if your car is older and has standard side lights bulbs like my one has w5w it is very dangerous to drive a vehicle with only side lights ON because these bulbs emits low intensity light that creates a “stroboscopic effect” which makes moving objects look stationary or moving at much slower speeds.,  conditions for unavoidable collision with other road users. I personally never drive a car with side lights on , always full lights or drl. 👍

Interesting Tony, I did not realise. I only use the side light switch, because the headlights flash on and off during dark winter days. There is a car park for  an out of town retail centre, and to enter / exit, you go into the shade of buildings. This prompts the auto headlights to switch on without notice, and I have had to emergency brake when cars pull out in front of me. This happened a few times before I realised it was the headlights swiching on, making other drivers think I was flashing them out of side turnings. So I only use my side lights during the day when it is dull, to prevent the lights flashing on. In the new Corolla, you cannot switch the headlights off expecpt by doing this, or cutting the main power. Totally poor in my opinion.

Alternatively, I switch the headlights on myself, then I know when they have illuminated, not risk them turning on when I am approaching a junction, something I would never do myself due to the obvious confusion this might cause.

 

 

[TonyHSD]

3 minutes ago, Timmon said:

Interesting Tony, I did not realise. I only use the side light switch, because the headlights flash on and off during dark winter days. There is a car park for  an out of town retail centre, and to enter / exit, you go into the shade of buildings. This prompts the auto headlights to switch on without notice, and I have had to emergency brake when cars pull out in front of me. This happened a few times before I realised it was the headlights swiching on, making other drivers think I was flashing them out of side turnings. So I only use my side lights during the day when it is dull, to prevent the lights flashing on. In the new Corolla, you cannot switch the headlights off expecpt by doing this, or cutting the main power. Totally poor in my opinion.

 

That’s not good if you can’t manually switch off headlights, drl are there for this reason I think. , hm I will start dislike newer cars more and more then. 🤭👍

[Timmon]

On 3/6/2021 at 8:39 PM, RabButler said:

Why not switch the lights to full rather than side. Then you will be legal as well as unconfusing.

Yes, I do. But not when it is still so light out there that i am the only driver with lights on. But the issue is that the auto headlights are too sensitive, and flash on and off when no other cars have theirs on. The garage has tried to reduce the sensitivity, but they can't. It is daft that the driver has no control over their own headlights. 

[Timmon]

3 minutes ago, TonyHSD said:

That’s not good if you can’t manually switch off headlights, drl are there for this reason I think. , hm I will start dislike newer cars more and more then. 🤭👍

Yes, to my knowledge, most cars with auto headlights have the option to over ride that system. Surely we are not in the age where drivers are so incompetent that they have to have the car decide when to turn the lights on or not! Especially when the system switches them on and off without an audible warning. it is usually too light in the cabin to notice the headlight warning lamp has illuminated. But I am used to hearing a "click" which is the system switching the lights on, unless I have the radio on.

[Roy124]

Well, car went in for service, they were supposed to check the Battery. They asked me to leave it overnight as it needed a trickle charge.  I declined as I can use my own charger. 

After I previously used the Ctek charger the discharge rate improved from about 0.4 v/d to less than 0.1 v/d though at one point it dropped to 6.8 v in a week. 

After a charge and switching the automatic interior light off it has been OK. I guess I will need to do a Battery check every week that I don't drive. 

. 

 

[Looking4advice]

I have a 2021 Toyota Corolla hybrid(non plug in ev).  My car was left while I was overseas for a month and just came back to a car that won’t start.  I put a charger on the standard Battery but it says it’s fully charged but the car won’t start(no lights, nothing).  
 Any ideas on what I can do? 
 

[Derek.w]

Your Battery voltage is to low for a charger to start charging so it shows a green light as if its fully charged.

Time for a new Battery!.

[Looking4advice]

1 hour ago, Looking4advice said:

I have a 2021 Toyota Corolla hybrid(non plug in ev).  My car was left while I was overseas for a month and just came back to a car that won’t start.  I put a charger on the standard battery but it says it’s fully charged but the car won’t start(no lights, nothing).  
 Any ideas on what I can do? 
 

Just a note I have a charger that will charge a dead Battery with 0 voltage(to full).  Zero voltage is not an issue! 

[Roy124]

9 minutes ago, Looking4advice said:

Just a note I have a charger that will charge a dead battery with 0 voltage(to full).  Zero voltage is not an issue! 

And that charger is a .....?

[Cyker]

A lot of the lithium-based jump-starters, e.g. the Nocos, won't charge a really flat Battery unless you do the override procedure - Could that be why?

Even with a dead Battery, most jump-starters will put in enough 12v that you can start the car so the traction Battery takes over the 12v system.

[Derek.w]

No voltmeter then try puting a 12 volt bulb across it if its dim or out then Battery fault.

Note this is still a low power drain compered to its starting load.

If a cell has failed then a Nocos wont start it.

[Looking4advice]

4 hours ago, Looking4advice said:

Just a note I have a charger that will charge a dead battery with 0 voltage(to full).  Zero voltage is not an issue! 

It’s ok I figured it out! It was the Battery with a voltage too low to be able to start the vehicle. (Side note: I started it with another Battery then removed the other Battery and reinstalled the old one) I drove around for about 45 mins and then returned home.  I turned it off and it started again no issues.  I will check it over the next few days to see how it’s progressing?  Although likely I will install the new battery anyway.   

[Looking4advice]

3 hours ago, Cyker said:

A lot of the lithium-based jump-starters, e.g. the Nocos, won't charge a really flat battery unless you do the override procedure - Could that be why?

Even with a dead battery, most jump-starters will put in enough 12v that you can start the car so the traction battery takes over the 12v system.

I do have a jump start/boost facility on the charger unit and I did try that?  For about 3 hours. That also didn’t work.  

[Looking4advice]

I do appreciate your reply. Thank uou

[Roy124]

14 hours ago, Looking4advice said:

I started it with another battery then removed the other battery and reinstalled the old one

I can understand using another Battery and then removing it.

Reinstalling the old one suggests you switched off and then restarted with the old Battery.

That suggests the old Battery was not dead.

Can you check what I think you said. 

[Derek.w]

On 2/7/2024 at 12:01 AM, Looking4advice said:

It’s ok I figured it out! It was the battery with a voltage too low to be able to start the vehicle. (Side note: I started it with another battery then removed the other battery and reinstalled the old one) I drove around for about 45 mins and then returned home.  I turned it off and it started again no issues.  I will check it over the next few days to see how it’s progressing?  Although likely I will install the new battery anyway.   

I presume you recharged the old Battery before refitting it so you will have lost some Ah holding capacity when it was in a low state of charge.