Battery Drain on Coupe4

[edelbrock1]

Hi all

I have my Coupe4 up on blocks over winter and while I get the wheels touched up. I usually start it every couple of weeks to keep things flowing.

Went out there last night and the thing was dead. Would not even open the doors. I had to climb under the car and put the battery charger on the alternator and body to get enough power in the system to get the doors open and then the bonnet.

This happened a couple of months ago too, but then it just had enough power to turn over and start the car. I put that one down to the car being unlocked (dunno why that would make a difference)

So, why is it doing this? What load would be on the battery? I have an old HK that can sit for 6 months and still crank over like a new one.

Obviously my battery is now rooted and will need a new one, but how do I stop it from happening again? Surely it is just not the clock in the radio that is draining the battery??

Or do I have to disconnect the battery every time I park it for an extended period of time??

Thanks

[fatas]

boot light or glove box staying on ?

[edelbrock1]

boot light or glove box staying on ?

Yeah I thought of that, but if it was I would expect it to go flat within a day or 2. This only has a noticeable drain after a couple of weeks.

My brother had a WH Statesman that was going flat after a couple of days. It turned out to be the Holden Assist. It was disconnected, but the mobile phone module was constantly trying to "phone home" thus draining the battery.

But I have none of that in the Coupe4. Only thing that stays on is the clock and maybe the factory alarm is monitoring something?

Thanks

[IJ.]

Take the + terminal off the battery and put a multimeter between it and the battery, start pulling fuses and watch the meter.

Deep cycle battery helps in this situation, I've had normal batteries take a dump on my when left like this and do what you're describing.

[Evman]

It just sounds like the battery is dead. It doesn't get topped up on a regular basis like a normal car, it's already been drained flat before and it's winter (batteries don't like cold either). All are bad for batteries, all point towards a dead one. Replace the battery and buy one of these (http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/CTEK-MXS-5-0-BATTERY-CHARGER-12-VOLT-5A-REPLACES-XS4003-/220829080632?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item336a705c38) to keep it topped up properly :)

[matls1]

i might be wrong but could you not put the key in the door to undo it ?

[edelbrock1]

i might be wrong but could you not put the key in the door to undo it ?

NOPE. I thought it would have too. But I guess it needs some power in the system to operate the lock solenoid. As soon as I hooked up the charger it was able to operate the lock.

Looks like a new battery for me. Not just yet though, I will buy it when I am ready to put it back on the road.

Thanks for all your input.

[IJ.]

i might be wrong but could you not put the key in the door to undo it ?

Not sure if that will work if it's "deadlocked" 2 lock button presses.

[XUV]

Ya still got the alarm doing it's thing , sucking amps .

How old was the battery /

Mine started going , first it went flat listening to the car radio , while working on it ,
so i babied it with a trickle charger , then gave it a deep charge ,
no good wasnot holding enuff , battery was 6 yrs old , it's still going in my tonner with a solar charger attached .

if battery needs replacing , get this http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290420397341&ssPageName=ADME:L:COSI:AU:1123#ht_4829wt_905

bit more bang for ya buck 610cca as opposed to the 470 that came standard .

[michaels1v8]

Not sure if that will work if it's "deadlocked" 2 lock button presses.

Hey IJ just for your info, it does still work :)

Almost feels like your going to snap the key but it does open.

[IJ.]

Hey IJ just for your info, it does still work :)

Almost feels like your going to snap the key but it does open.

Thanks Michael, never tried it from deadlock!

[michaels1v8]

Haha unfortunately for me I have tried it :(

I think the the cold starts when you turned the car over might've drained the battery more than what it would of recovered running and unfortunately, sitting flat the battery is probably dead now.

You'll have to just put the wheels on the coupe4 and get out there driving it more :stick:

[TAKEITEZ]

two things i'd suggest...
Disconnect the battery Neg lead when the car is in storage...

Install a C-Tek charger or something similar that you can have trickle charging and then floating and maintaining the battery voltage...

[Toddler78]

Install a C-Tek charger or something similar that you can have trickle charging and then floating and maintaining the battery voltage...

exactly what I was going to suggest I have just bought one and its great.

I would by this before buying another battery first. the c-tec will condition the battery as well so it should save it.

also if you are just starting the car once every couple of weeks and then letting it idle for a couple of mins, thats not enough, cold cranking the car will drain more power from the battery then what a 5min drive will be able to put back in

[HSV Listy]

Hey IJ just for your info, it does still work :)

Almost feels like your going to snap the key but it does open.

Tried this from deadlock and it did break the key. I read that it was possible. I got a locksmith out an he used his unlock thingy and went under the bonnet. Took him ages as I did not have the stock spoiler, have oil coolers installed etc.

With the battery and it is going to sit for ages get a deep cell battery and a trickly charger. You could also just charge it once a week for a few hours.

[IJ.]

Tried this from deadlock and it did break the key. I read that it was possible. I got a locksmith out an he used his unlock thingy and went under the bonnet. Took him ages as I did not have the stock spoiler, have oil coolers installed etc.

With the battery and it is going to sit for ages get a deep cell battery and a trickly charger. You could also just charge it once a week for a few hours.

Great info Listy thanks for posting, I guess a worn/older already stressed key would fail, Michael's might have been a fresh key or he got lucky, I don't think it's something I'd chance and would follow Edelbrock's lead and hook up to the Alt + and pop it via the button!

[smokiebbear]

two things i'd suggest...
Disconnect the battery Neg lead when the car is in storage...

Install a C-Tek charger or something similar that you can have trickle charging and then floating and maintaining the battery voltage...

Great advice. C-Tek are currently running out there xs4003 range as they have now shifted to the xs5000 so you should be able to pick one up for under $100 on ebay or around $130 at a battery store. They have a 5 year warranty and are the best charger on the market.

If you battery is a maintenance type battery (can add water to cells) you will find if it's not started for a few weeks it will be a struggle to start sometimes as the immobiliser/alarms on new vehicles have a constant draw and will run your battery down.

If the battery is shot make sure you buy a sealed maintenace free battery which has calcium inside. They will hold their charge up to 5 times longer (when not in use - however will still run down at the same rate if a constant draw is on them). If you plan on disconnecting when not in use this would be a better choice. I would reccomend the Ac Delco 22FR660SMF (30 month warranty) which has 660CCA or the Century 58VTMF (24 month warranty) which has 530CCA. Both will do the same job however the Ac Delco does produce more Cranking Capacity than the Century. Unless your running a high horsepower engine with a high compression ratio anything over 400CCA is sufficient on these engines. The above batteries retail for around $160 each and you can expect a service life between 3-6 years on these if you look after them.

Another option you have is going AGM (Absorbed Glass Matt). These will hold up to 80% of their capacity even if they sit around for up to 12 months however the worst thing you can do to a battery is to let it sit around not being used as this kills them. Any battery that is not being used for more than 2 weeks at a time needs to be on a trickle charger.

If you decide to go AGM you have two mainstream options which are the Optima Red Top 34R or the Odyssey Pc1400-35. The Optima produces around 800CCA and has spiral cell AGM technology, the Odyssey has 820CCA. The Odyssey however has 1400PCA (Pulse Cranking Amps) which means it will produce 1400CA output for the first 5 seconds once the key is turned to start. The Optima's usually last 5-7 years and the Odyssey's have a general life span of between 7-15 years if you look after them. These two batteries use on 99.99% pure lead and the Odyssey uses only virgin lead (never been used before, fresh from the ground). To be honest i've never really checked if Optima do this also (will look into this today). Both these batteries carry a 36 month full replacement warranty.

You can expect to pay around $400 for an Optima and $500 for an Odyssey however if you shop around you can get them a fair bit cheaper. NEVER buy these off the internet because if they fail and you need a warranty most shops will not help you if you have not purchased the battery from them. The thing to remember is that if your spending that much money on a battery should it fail under warranty you need to have the knowledge that your warranty is worth the paper it's written on and a bricks and mortar store is a better choice than some guy that brought in a pallet from the USA and is flogging them off cheap online.

Last but not least is the charge times between these batteries. The AGM battery will take up to 100% of its capacity when chargeing as they have little to no resistance to charging (ie: the two AGM batteries I mentioned above are around 50ah each so if you have a 50amp charger you can charge these fully in 1hour, a 25 amp charger would take 2 hours to full charge and a 5amp charger would take 10 hours to fully charge.) The other batteries I mentioned are not AGM so they will only accept up to and around 10% of the charge you can put into them. In other words if you were using a 50 amp charger they would only accept up to 5amps an hour so you would not waste your time trying to charge one of these with anything bigger than a 7-10amp charger as it won't accept the full charge anyhow.

Hope that helps you out.

Matthew

[VTSSDUDE]

It sucks, my battery was only 8 months old, over winter it decided to go flat as I hardly drive the SS. I gave it full charge, hasn't been the same since. Keeps going flat, I think batteries don't like going dead flat.

[El Narros]

Hi fellas,

i have the same problem and have had for years, i have changed the battery twice, most recently 6 months ago. However i just came back from 3 days interstate and it wouldnt fire up this morning. I'm guessing the alternator is stuffed. any one agree?

[Toddler78]

Hi fellas,

i have the same problem and have had for years, i have changed the battery twice, most recently 6 months ago. However i just came back from 3 days interstate and it wouldnt fire up this morning. I'm guessing the alternator is stuffed. any one agree?

no, I would suspect your altenator is fine however your battery is not accpeting charge or is discharging quickly. If you altenator was buggered the car whilst running would eventually stop.

The beauty of these Ctec trickle charges is they also desulpherfy the battery and recondition it to make it last longer. My last battery on my monaro that was buggered had simular symptons to what your describing. if I didnt start the car every day the battery wouldnt have enough juice to kick it over, then it eventually came down to losing enough charge if the car had been off for 30mins the car wouldnt start.

[Toddler78]

It sucks, my battery was only 8 months old, over winter it decided to go flat as I hardly drive the SS. I gave it full charge, hasn't been the same since. Keeps going flat, I think batteries don't like going dead flat.


no they the dont but as I said to elnarros the Cteks will also condition it and you may be able to save that battery

[El Narros]

recharged the battery over night, fired it up and all good. took it for a spin today. parked for 30 min then wouldnt start, a tradie suggested tapping the alternator???? worked, took it to an auto sparkie who said the alternator is fine but something is draining the battery. Booked in for a proper look tomorrow.