Member Since: 07 Jan 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 137
Battery flat only first thing !!!
The continuing saga of issues with our D3 continue.
It is now just out of warranty and we are having problems.
The latest is that first thing in the morning, the car won't start. Today, I had to use he booster n it to get it to turn over and start. Other mornings I have to jump it from my pickup.
We have had the battery tested and are told it is ok and holding the charge with no problems. Once the initial start has happened, there are no issues for the rest of the day.
One thing my wife has noticed is that on start up, the compressor fires up for around 15-30 seconds each time.
Could there be a connection? Could there be a short somewhee in this circuit that is draining the battery over night?
Any help would be appreciated.
Kev
26th Jan 2009 12:36 pm
heine
Member Since: 07 Feb 2007
Location: Midrand
Posts: 4054
Normal for the compressor to run . I would suggest leaving the bonnet open and checking the battery voltage first thing BEFORE unlocking car etc . A good battery should still be at 12.6 V overnight . Anything under 12 v you probably have problems
26th Jan 2009 12:48 pm
MARKW
Member Since: 29 Aug 2008
Location: SW
Posts: 2390
Even though it is showing volts, when they tested it did they do a drop test. From what I understand it puts a load on the batt and that will give the definitive answer as to the state of the batt.HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE
They shall not grow old as those of us left grow old. Age shall not weary them, nor the years condem. At the going down of the sun, and in the morning WE WILL REMEMBER THEM
26th Jan 2009 1:39 pm
KevF
Member Since: 07 Jan 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 137
Will double check the drop test...........cheers.
Think I may just as well get a new battery from other threads on here.
26th Jan 2009 5:33 pm
jjvd21
Member Since: 16 Jul 2007
Location: Chicago
Posts: 1070
My dealer tested and re-tested my battery and said that it was fine. I was receiving HDC faults, and other warnings. I convinced them that the battery was low, they finally agreed to replace under warranty. All fine now. What year D3 do you have? Just because the dealer claims the battery is ok does not mean that it is - at least in my experience. If you have an 05 like mine your battery may be getting low.16 D4 Landmark
05 D3 HSE V8
THE original D4 spotter
26th Jan 2009 7:05 pm
ronp
Member Since: 29 Nov 2006
Location: North Yorkshire
Posts: 15214
jjvd21 wrote:
My dealer tested and re-tested my battery and said that it was fine. I was receiving HDC faults, and other warnings. I convinced them that the battery was low, they finally agreed to replace under warranty. .
Exactly the same issues I had.
But I had to buy my new battery as it was out of warranty.
All is fine now.
So would just get a new battery KevF
I was a normal heterosexual chap, but in these new woke awakenings I now identify as a Wardrobe.
26th Jan 2009 7:09 pm
AXL022
Member Since: 29 Aug 2007
Location: Belgium
Posts: 94
same for me also
battery down but LR said ok
Last edited by AXL022 on 26th Jan 2009 8:47 pm. Edited 1 time in total
Dead battery and/or bad connections (i.e. high resistance)
If it can't crank the engine at cold (max load), then it's either unable to supply the current required, or the connections from the battery to the starter are not good, and are hence dropping volts due to high resistance.
The fact that you can start the car from the jumper leads, proves the car is working ok on start!08 LR3 SE V8 - 02 D2 SE7 V8
Porsche 911 (03 996) - 2013 MINI Cooper S
26th Jan 2009 8:19 pm
drivesafe
Member Since: 23 Feb 2006
Location: Gold Coast, Australia
Posts: 867
Hi KevF, unfortunately just measuring the voltage of the battery won’t give you any real indication of how well charged the battery may be.
Calcium/Lead/Calcium batteries in cold climates can show a voltage as low as 12.2 volt while the battery is cold but the battery may still be fully charged.
What sort of driving time is your D3 getting after each start, because one of the biggest causes of this kind of problem is what I call Shopping Trolley Syndrome, where the vehicle is only driven for short periods of time after each start.
Shopping Trolley Syndrome will commonly cause town car batteries to be under charged with their batteries rarely being over 70% of full charge and just measuring the batteries voltage will not give a true State of Charge indication.
If this is what you ( or your wife ) are doing, you are not fully recharging the battery after each start.
The alternator on the D3 is quite large and even at low revs, puts out a fair bit of current, the problem is that like most NON AGM type batteries, having both high current and high voltage is only part of the requirements for fully charging these batteries. They still need a minimum amount of charging time.
With any standard battery ( NON AGM ) particularly when the battery is cold, the battery will only absorb a low current charge.
Even if you had an alternator that was capable of producing 1,000 amps, it wouldn't make any difference because the BATTERY itself, governs how much current it is going to absorb and this absorption rate is based on charge voltage, charge current and battery temperature.
If you are not driving for long periods, changing the battery may temporarily solve the problem ( until the next cold winter ) and just giving your battery an overnight charge with a battery charger may be a cheaper and permanent solution.2008 TDV8 RR Lux + 2009 D4 2.7
26th Jan 2009 10:02 pm
KevF
Member Since: 07 Jan 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 137
Drivesafe,
You are right. My wife uses the D3 daily for the cross country school run which in itself is no more than a 10 mile jaunt albeit across some single track country lanes (not a Chelsea tractor ).
Its strange, as this morning, it was frosty and probably colder than yesterday, yet it started no problem. Yesterday, I needed the booster. There are no codes coming up either......When the stealer had the D3 in, I asked them to check the charging system (the cars not theirs as I know they definately know how to charge ) as I thought there may be a intermittent fault in the charging circuit.
They replied that all tested fine and the battery was showing a full charge....
I think I will be on the safe side and get a new battery (anyone got any thoughts on a VARTA battery?) and maybe keep the old one on trickle charge as a backup.
Just a thought as I had my battery replaced despite the dealer saying it was ok and I still had a problem. Eventually found the fridge wasn't turning off sometimes. Mine is a 2006 HSE and apparently some of these fridges did this, hasn't happened post fridge replacement. Do you leave the fridge on all the time as I used to and rely on the ignition doing the job for you ? I know it is supposed to stay on for a while but mine was still on a few hours laterPot Noodle Challenge Winner 2011
I refuse to have a battle of wits with an unarmed person
27th Jan 2009 1:47 pm
KevF
Member Since: 07 Jan 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 137
blueanchorinn wrote:
Just a thought as I had my battery replaced despite the dealer saying it was ok and I still had a problem. Eventually found the fridge wasn't turning off sometimes. Mine is a 2006 HSE and apparently some of these fridges did this, hasn't happened post fridge replacement. Do you leave the fridge on all the time as I used to and rely on the ignition doing the job for you ? I know it is supposed to stay on for a while but mine was still on a few hours later
Will check when I see the car later today....could be SWMBO keeps her lip balm or some other beauty product in there....
You need to leave the cubby box lid open and check the light goes out after a few minutesPot Noodle Challenge Winner 2011
I refuse to have a battle of wits with an unarmed person
27th Jan 2009 3:19 pm
SHARKYSHARKS
Member Since: 20 Dec 2008
Location: Saddleworth Oldham
Posts: 1954
Hi ya Kev check the output at the alternator it shoulld be kicking out about 14.5-15.5 volts at the battery as the toys on your disco needs a lot of juice to keep it functioning correctly, if its only kicking out 12 volts id change the alternator if you can get hold of one, unfortunately they are a stealer only part, but if you have got to do it yourself they are a doddle to do, hope this is of some help
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).
) as I thought there may be a intermittent fault in the charging circuit.
