What fun we had today when parked in the middle of a farm field dog walking only to return to a flat battery so walked home and got my Van and went back to jump the RR, then got the van stuck lol ONE OF THEM DAYS...

So need some advice, think theres been a few warnings recently that ive not acted on, A few mornings normally when its been cold and car not used for a few days ive had the HDC inactive warning flash up but car always started and HDC worked.

Cars not been used for 3 days and again had frosty mornings and very cold here so today she started instantly but starter seemed a little bit slow and i only drove about a mile then parked up ( stupid i no ) returned about an hour later and turn the key and nothing other than dash lights, jumped started very easily and drove the mile home and left ticking over for about 25 mins, switched off and then she started up again as normal. Ive now got the battery on charge..

Recently the cars only been doing the school run a few times a week which is a 10 mile round trip although we did a 40 mile round trip middle of last week but other than that not been used for any long runs and lives on the drive not in a garage.

Before i order a new battery i need to make sure its not just a case of not being given a good run to charge it or if its the alternator rather that the battery.

I have a volt meter knocking about but im not sure on what i need to be looking for to tell if battery is in good shape etc so would appreciate some help please..

Thanks

Battery should be about 12.5 v when engine is off and 14v when the engine is running and battery is charing.

As with these things could be either bad alternator or bad battery.

Do you know how old the battery is?

2 things to check...first is the alternator charge which should be around 14.5 volts on idle.....

secondly would be the battery and the only sure way to test that is to do a drop test on it..
it might read 12'ish volts on a volt meter but when you have all the FF's ecus/fans/lights etc taking power from it , it might not have enough charge to accommodate all that.. ... - .- -.




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Also - how old is the battery ?

I usually reckon on 5 years - after which I consider myself on borrowed time.

not sure on the battery age as was on the car when i got it 8 months ago and just trying to find a bill for it..

just used the volt meter and getting 12.68 on the battery and when running at tick over it was a bit erratic and bouncing from 13.6 to 13.9 then settled down a bit showing 13.9 to 14.0 then with the main lights on and aircon it dropped to 13.7-13.9 again at tick over

Sounds like the alternator is OK, over 13.5V is considered OK. It will vary depending on load and rpm.
You need to fully charge the battery and then check voltage after letting it sit for a few hours (to remove surface charge) with the engine off (and preferable not connected but don't worry too much). The voltage you get will give an indication on the battery age, 12.6V and over and your battery is in good condition. Less than that and it's showing signs of aging, if it's nearer the 12V mark then it might be time to consider changing it. Most decent battery places will be able to load test it for you if you think it's on the way out and that will give a definitive answer. As Alastair says, over 5 years old and consider replacing it anyway. You can fit a larger battery, there are 110Ah versions that fit compared to the standard 90Ah which give a little extra 'headroom'.

With your driving habits then even a brand new battery is going to need charging every so often, I have to do the same depending on use and mines a couple of years old 110Ah upgrade.
The usual indicator of a low battery is when the HDC inactive comes on at start up. Mine can sit for about 4 weeks or more though without dropping to that level from fully charged but when it comes on I know it's charging time.
I have just topped mine up this weekend after it came on, bear in mind a full charge from that level will take over 12 hours and that is with a 10 Amp CTEK (well more like 7 Amp as I don't use the temperature probe), a lesser output charger will obviously take longer.
It's a lot kinder on the battery if you charge a low battery with a proper battery charger on a lower current than relying on the alternator which will output high current and age the battery doing so.

thanks again, i took it for a drive yesterday and the battery was showing 12.2 volts before i started the car then 14 v at tick over. i drove for about 10 miles and when i got back battery was showing 12.4v engine off, this morning its showing 12v engine off but its been very cold again here over night.

Think ill leave it a few days and check if the battery drops under 12v, as you mentioned ive had the HDC inactive message a few times. Good point about giving the battery a charge up now and again thats something ill start to do. Think the battery is most likely starting to wear out so will look to change that, will be cheaper than the alternator so thats good news

If your only getting 12night after a drive its time for a new battery.

@suggs, a fully charged battery should read 12.6 volts, yours has 12,4 so its not far off....i should think a longer journey or a bench charge should be enough... ... - .- -.




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Thanks for the tips folks. im going to stick it on a long charge and monitor the voltage, and order a new battery

I've decided it's just part of ownership. Mine didn't start on Sunday after a cold night and not being used for 3 days. Put it on charge for 6 hours and it was fine. I've learnt to live with it....on a plus side, was away with tintent the wknd before and the Japs/Koreans got stuck.....I didn't and took it with grace and dignity  Is this where I put the car details and a bit about myself ?........

Do we charge with battery connected or leads off ? and excuse my ignorance but what is HDC ?

My battery reads 12.5 at rest, don't know how old it is but often get " battery low, start engine" when working with door open for about 15 minutes anyway, saving up for a new battery before setting off with the caravan in summer ( when it comes ) Just to be on the safe side. RR owner

You can leave the leads on, just make sure the ignition if off.
HDC stands for Hill Descent Control (you have got a switch for it on the lower center console not far from your gear knob. l=Oo\________/oO=l l:OolΞΞΞΞΞΞΞloO:l

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Ah now I'v got it, Thanks.  RR owner

@Suggs

In my experience with boat batteries (which live a very hard life), as soon as they have been left to discharge, it is the beginning of the end. No amount of charging will bring them back to life long term.

Colder weather depletes batteries faster than warmer. Add in the short trips and current draw of the heated seats, steering wheel, heated screens etc and the alternator just won't have a chance to top up the battery enough. It might be ok when the batteries are newer and at the peak ability to retain charge but once they're more than a few years old. Intermittent warning lights are often a good indicator a battery is on its way out - the ECUs power up with the ignition and if they can't get enough voltage or current to run their initiation checks before the engine starts, they'll chuck up errors.

Get yourself a good AGM battery. 020 batteries are bigger, have more cranking power and capacity and fit in pre 2010 models (designed for 019 but I have fitted an 020 in) and 019 only in 2010 onwards cars (because of the fuse box which was later added). Bosch, Varta, Exide, Numax are all decent batteries to go for and from somewhere like Tayna, are a smidge over £100. 2015 Range Rover Autobiography 4.4 SDV8