Possible Faulty Battery

[local hero]

I am a little embarassed to say 2wks ago my 20mth old 8500mls XT4 D4D failed to start (flat battery) I wasn't too suprised as it was bitter cold + the car hadn't had a decent run for weeks, I gave it a good run + it has started everytime since, however checking everything over today, i found the Battery indicator on top of the Battery was showing a red centre with a white circle around it which indicates Batt needs charging, Car started instantly + i took it for a good run 70mls, I also bought a Hydrometer from Halfrauds + tested each cell All were showing a poor charge, I have a scangauge fitted which is showing a charge of 14.1>14.3 amps, any suggestions or assuming the Battery is under warranty should i just get Mr T to replace it? The car is starting perfectly now

[shcm]

LH,

How long was it between the two runs? i.e. did it have time significantly discharge again.

You've got the hydrometer. Could you also see if all the plates inside were covered completely with electrolyte?

Is it now showing the normal blue (isn't it?) for normal charge?

I'd keep my eye on it for now and see how it goes. Just for info, mine stood for 3.5 weeks in December without any bother and I'm fairly certain it was showing "normal" charge state before starting after that period. But then, apart that period, mine normally gets used most days.

[local hero]

Mine indicates, blue circle red ctr good, red circle white ctre needs topping up, white circle red ctre,(which it is still showing) needs charging.. The day i had the problem + had to jump start it, i did 70mls, since then it has done 3/4 short journeys no problems at all that was 2wks ago + today it started perfectly + i have just done a 70ml run + used the hydrometer to test it which showed a poor charge all cells had plenty of fluid in them..

[shcm]

Mr moderator (otherwise known as sir), might talk about drop testing the Battery later, which is the best way of determining its state.

Sometimes you can get a rough idea from the terminal voltage. 12.6V and above is usually quite good. Below 12V is getting towards a bit iffy, but this method is certainly far from being definitive.

14.2V charging voltage (assume that's what you mean or is it really showing the charge current?) sounds OKish to me. However, this model does have a Battery condition/charging monitor and it doesn't charge the Battery all the time I believe, if it thinks it doesn't need to. All in the name of battery longevity and fuel economy probably.

[anchorman]

We drop tested the Battery when Stew came for a brew recently. It tested fine. However, the proper way is to trickle charge the Battery for at least 12 hours beforehand. I don't really know why it discharged as it shouldn't really unless there is some kind of draw on the Battery but it was late and snowing so we never actually did that.

Things may have changed a bit since I did my auto electrics course but in the days of Lucas ACR range alternators, they were "battery sensed" and would in theory only ever recharge a battery to the level it started. In other words if it started charging a battery that through a discharge originated from something much less than 12V it would only recharge to that level. That is why you had to remote charge to the desired level. I couldn't be sure if alternators are smarter than that these days but certainly the 4.3 manual states that the first stage should be re-charge the battery.

I guess the next thing is to go back to a dealer and tell them the story so they can go through the process to see if there is a warranty issue. I also don't know how accurate those indicators are or how they can be influenced by external factors.

[bothwell_buyer]

go to the dealers and tell them you need a new Battery cos its bgrd.

And dinna tell them yuv dropped the bldg thing cos thatll negate the warranty!! :lol:

[vivianM]

I am a little embarassed to say 2wks ago my 20mth old 8500mls XT4 D4D failed to start (flat battery) I wasn't too suprised as it was bitter cold + the car hadn't had a decent run for weeks, I gave it a good run + it has started everytime since, however checking everything over today, i found the battery indicator on top of the battery was showing a red centre with a white circle around it which indicates Batt needs charging, Car started instantly + i took it for a good run 70mls, I also bought a Hydrometer from Halfrauds + tested each cell All were showing a poor charge, I have a scangauge fitted which is showing a charge of 14.1>14.3 amps, any suggestions or assuming the battery is under warranty should i just get Mr T to replace it? The car is starting perfectly now

Did you jump start it or use a Battery charger?

I was taught something similar to Anchorman in that an alternator did not always fully recharge a flat Battery but it needed to be well charged with a Battery charger.

It seems very early in its life to be worn out - I usually expect 5/8 years life from a modern battery, though a diesel engine does hammer the battery more that a petrol engine.

A good battery supplier shown be able to put a heavy discharge meter across the cells to see if one duff.

If you do not have a good battery charger let me know but you would need a trip over to near Anchorman's to borrow one of mine.

Guy

Guy

[bothwell_buyer]

I am a little embarassed to say 2wks ago my 20mth old 8500mls XT4 D4D failed to start (flat battery) I wasn't too suprised as it was bitter cold + the car hadn't had a decent run for weeks, I gave it a good run + it has started everytime since, however checking everything over today, i found the battery indicator on top of the battery was showing a red centre with a white circle around it which indicates Batt needs charging, Car started instantly + i took it for a good run 70mls, I also bought a Hydrometer from Halfrauds + tested each cell All were showing a poor charge, I have a scangauge fitted which is showing a charge of 14.1>14.3 amps, any suggestions or assuming the battery is under warranty should i just get Mr T to replace it? The car is starting perfectly now

Did you jump start it or use a Battery charger?

I was taught something similar to Anchorman in that an alternator did not always fully recharge a flat Battery but it needed to be well charged with a Battery charger.

It seems very early in its life to be worn out - I usually expect 5/8 years life from a modern battery, though a diesel engine does hammer the battery more that a petrol engine.

A good battery supplier shown be able to put a heavy discharge meter across the cells to see if one duff.

If you do not have a good battery charger let me know but you would need a trip over to near Anchorman's to borrow one of mine.

Guy

Guy

easy solution - trade it in for a petrol!!!! You can always get the rear doors spot-welded as well as they are bound to be a major drag on the battery.

Ye - the alternators nowadays are supposedly intelligent!! Oh for the days of the dynamo.....or maybe not

[local hero]

I am a little embarassed to say 2wks ago my 20mth old 8500mls XT4 D4D failed to start (flat battery) I wasn't too suprised as it was bitter cold + the car hadn't had a decent run for weeks, I gave it a good run + it has started everytime since, however checking everything over today, i found the battery indicator on top of the battery was showing a red centre with a white circle around it which indicates Batt needs charging, Car started instantly + i took it for a good run 70mls, I also bought a Hydrometer from Halfrauds + tested each cell All were showing a poor charge, I have a scangauge fitted which is showing a charge of 14.1>14.3 amps, any suggestions or assuming the battery is under warranty should i just get Mr T to replace it? The car is starting perfectly now

Did you jump start it or use a Battery charger?

I was taught something similar to Anchorman in that an alternator did not always fully recharge a flat Battery but it needed to be well charged with a Battery charger.

It seems very early in its life to be worn out - I usually expect 5/8 years life from a modern battery, though a diesel engine does hammer the battery more that a petrol engine.

A good battery supplier shown be able to put a heavy discharge meter across the cells to see if one duff.

If you do not have a good battery charger let me know but you would need a trip over to near Anchorman's to borrow one of mine.

Guy

Guy

easy solution - trade it in for a petrol!!!! You can always get the rear doors spot-welded as well as they are bound to be a major drag on the battery.

Ye - the alternators nowadays are supposedly intelligent!! Oh for the days of the dynamo.....or maybe not

Thanks for help, I have it booked in at MR T in the AM, they say they have some sort of machine which will tell if it needs a new battery or just a re-charge..(any bets) so we will see.. PS I jump started it..

[bothwell_buyer]

The only problem I have with my RAV is the alternator making a slight whirring noise, but thats probably cos its getting over-worked now the engine is running up to 7000rpm.

On the other hand, I'm using an MR2 alternator on the beast. Maybe they are better.