andyelcomb Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 No offense, but stop faffing about and take the battery along to any motor factors or spares place and ask them to put a discharge tester on it. It's just a pair of steel spikes with a meter in the middle and will show up if there is any weakness within the battery. If you don't, you're going to struggle on and sooner or later it's going to let you down when it is most inconvenient. The nights are getting colder now and marginal batteries that have coped in the summer are going to become liabilities from now on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 I ended up doing that when I had battery problems and was trying to find the cause. Went to WIM who have a battery tester and they confirmed straight away it was junk! Reminds me I should really replace the Civic one, it showed signs of struggling last winter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted September 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 No offense, but stop faffing about and take the battery along to any motor factors or spares place and ask them to put a discharge tester on it. It's just a pair of steel spikes with a meter in the middle and will show up if there is any weakness within the battery. If you don't, you're going to struggle on and sooner or later it's going to let you down when it is most inconvenient. The nights are getting colder now and marginal batteries that have coped in the summer are going to become liabilities from now on. None taken mate, didn't even know I could do that - I'll do that on the weekend. I will continue my testing over the next few days though, quite interesting to see how the voltage fluctuates. To be honest I'm not using the car as I'm worried it won't start at some point, so do need to get this sorted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vipercar93 Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 No offense, but stop faffing about and take the battery along to any motor factors or spares place and ask them to put a discharge tester on it. It's just a pair of steel spikes with a meter in the middle and will show up if there is any weakness within the battery. If you don't, you're going to struggle on and sooner or later it's going to let you down when it is most inconvenient. The nights are getting colder now and marginal batteries that have coped in the summer are going to become liabilities from now on. Yep they like to go in the winter =) More drain (not a huge issue) and it takes more juice to crank over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickT Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 It's called a "load test". The spikes thing is where an electrical loaf that simulates the starter motor is put across the battery terminals and the voltage is read. This is the only test you can do (other then getting the specific gravity from each cell but most batteries are sealed) The battery is an important device these days especially with e c u s which can cause random faults due to low voltage by the battery. Also get the best one correctly rated to oem or better. Never under spec the amp hour and cca rating required. Winter is not that far away either. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickT Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Electrical load not loaf... mobile phone auto spell check Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Thanks, did look those drop testers up on the net thinking I could just buy one but then found they cost over £100 which seemed a bit excessive - it seems Halfords do free battery tests, will they be able to do this (as there's one not too far from me so that makes it simple) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liner33 Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 http://flashoffroad.com/electrical/Batteries/BatteryDrain.html Job for the weekend , you either have a electrical draw, or you have a faulty battery Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 http://flashoffroad....tteryDrain.html Job for the weekend , you either have a electrical draw, or you have a faulty battery That's a great guide, thanks will try that out tomorrow. Probably being really dumb, but I don't completely get what it's saying to test across. Do I disconnect the positive cable from the battery, and put the 2 probes across the disconnected positive cable and the still connected negative battery terminal? And negative probe to positive cable, and positive probe to negative battery terminal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted September 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 Few updates from a bit of testing: 1. Tested the resting voltage having left the car all week - was reading 12.17V. However when I then tried to start the car, it did start, but was quite sluggish doing so. 2. Good news is that with the battery charged up, it's now showing a constant 14V when the engine is running so hopefully the alternator is fine. 3. Tried checking the drain as in the link above, and it was showing 0.38, that sounds a bit high doesn't it? I didn't have time to go through taking fuses out so thought I'd continue testing today, but weirdly when I try it now I'm just getting zero on the meter, and not getting a little spark when I touched the probes on as I did yesterday - have I broken my meter or is there something else wrong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 I would get the battery tested first to see if it's ok or not. If it is then maybe get an auto electrician out? I had to get one out years ago for an old Escort as everytime I put the indicators on the fuse blew. They found and fixed the problem in minutes!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 I would get the battery tested first to see if it's ok or not. If it is then maybe get an auto electrician out? I had to get one out years ago for an old Escort as everytime I put the indicators on the fuse blew. They found and fixed the problem in minutes!! Well I was hoping to do the drain test, and if that didn't show anything up just book the car in (it's due a service anyway) and get them to investigate. Any idea why I wasn't getting a current reading when I tried the second time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Electrics aren't my strong point so I have no idea. I suppose if you don't really depend on the car it's worth trying to check yourself, it just seems like a long winded process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Electrics aren't my strong point so I have no idea. I suppose if you don't really depend on the car it's worth trying to check yourself, it just seems like a long winded process. Yep it's not a major problem having the car out of action and it's quite interesting trying to figure it out so I'll waste a bit more time on it before eventually booking it in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted November 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 I've left the car alone for a while as I haven't needed it nor had the time to do anything with it, took it for its MOT this morning with a freshly charged battery and they did some tests - unfortunately according to their equipment I need a new alternator, wouldn't read more than 12V with everything on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Expensive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 If the alternator isn't charging the battery light on the dash should be on. They're not that expensive but can be a pain to change depending on the location. On the Corolla it's at the top front of the engine so easy to remove. On the Mondeo it was at the back halfway down! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffers Posted November 19, 2012 Report Share Posted November 19, 2012 Only just caught this. This seems really odd. .38 (380mA) current draw with everything switched off does seem high. What meter setting did you have it on? I don't know if your meter has several decimal places on current setting. Hopefully it is .038. How long have you performed this test for? Something else intermittent may be causing it. Does your meter have a peak reading button? - it will hold the highest value on the display. If not keep checking over a period of the day. If you're measuring current on your meter, they have internal fuses that sometimes pop - possibly just that. I may have misread this but have you charged the battery and put it on the car. Not done anything and then come back to it a week or two later and its drained a few volts? If so, its nothing to do with the alternator - its either current drain or a faulty battery. They don't often go this quickly but if a cell has buckled for some reason then it will have symptoms you are describing. It could also be pulling the output of the alternator down giving a false positive on the alternator test. Or get a full load test from Halfrauds if they are giving them free. If it is definately drawing .38 then you'll have to do the pulling fuses method. Not convinced on the alternator but you may have a second fault - its hard to tell without the battery being fully functional. You should be able to leave the car a lot longer than you can without it having difficulties. I would hope the garage put a temporary known working battery on to rule out the possibly faulty bringing the voltage down under charge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffers Posted November 19, 2012 Report Share Posted November 19, 2012 Just had a thought - .38A is very close to a 5w bulb. That's close to a 5w bulb (.41A @12v, .36 @13.8v) Might be coincidence though but something to think about. I wonder if your boot switch is actually faulty? I'd take the bulb out as a test for that one. Just thoughts here, I'm not doubting anything you have tested in any way Parthiban. Also, just for info, while on charge my IS used to stay pretty constant at 13.8v. Cars vary while on charge between 13.8 and 14.4v. as acceptable range. Just depends on the build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted November 19, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2012 Haven't tested anything yet since the MOT, but I'm not convinced it's the alternator, because I'm not getting any warning lights, the dash/headlights don't dim, etc. Plus with my voltmeter I got a steady 14V. Hi Geoff, yep exactly that, I can charge the battery and leave it and it appears to be going flat on its own. I do think it's a drain, but I've checked all the lights and none of them are on. My first thought is it must be one of my aftermarket parts, so I'll try the fuse thing and if not remove my car kit and other bits and see if that helps. Unfortunately Halfords don't do a load test, but I think the battery's fine - when I charged it up and left it off the car, it didn't drop in voltage. Before Saturday I hadn't used the car in about a month (maybe a little more), last time I used it battery was charged up and engine would start, before I charged the battery ahead of the MOT it was completely dead (couldn't even operate the central locking). So yes it's going flat without the car even running so I'm more inclined to think it's either the battery or a drain. Oddly the reason why I never finished testing it was that after that first time, everytime I hooked up my multimeter to read current, I was just getting 0 all the time. Haven't tried it again since, but would that imply my meter is dead? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffers Posted November 23, 2012 Report Share Posted November 23, 2012 I agree - it seems like drain. It's probably one of those dodgy mirror closure units... Your meter will have two fuses inside. Usually 200mA and 10A. my guess its its taken out one or both of them. May have just been a small arc as you put it on the battery or if you switched something on, its start up current was great than the fuses. Just whip the back off the meter and have a nosey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted November 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 I agree - it seems like drain. It's probably one of those dodgy mirror closure units... Your meter will have two fuses inside. Usually 200mA and 10A. my guess its its taken out one or both of them. May have just been a small arc as you put it on the battery or if you switched something on, its start up current was great than the fuses. Just whip the back off the meter and have a nosey. Haha I'd honestly forgotten about that when I was going through in my head what bits I've added to the car - I've had it so long and it's worked so flawlessly it's become OEM Cool I'll check if it has any fuses, otherwise the meter is working so that's seems to make sense. Used the car again at the weekend, was a fraction sluggish to start (but almost imperceptible), and felt a bit funny for the first 5 or 10 mins but by the end of the drive the car felt perfect. So points more towards the battery losing power while sitting still and charging up fine while the car's running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted November 26, 2012 Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 I still go with it being the battery, get one on euro car parts and use 'UKPAS25' to get 25% off, should be around the £50 mark then Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parthiban Posted November 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 I still go with it being the battery, get one on euro car parts and use 'UKPAS25' to get 25% off, should be around the £50 mark then That's a fair point, I do really need to try and get the battery drop tested to be sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 I would.... Most places drop test the battery for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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