Well the first minus temperatures of the Autumn have killed my battery.

It was a Bosch S5 S020, 18 months old bought from Euro Car Parts. They replaced it under warranty (5 years on this battery) after testing it. It was down to 75% and cranking amps down from 920 to 723!

I am getting a dab hand and changing RR batteries. 5 minutes to remove and 10 minutes to replace (with plenty of blaspheming and scraped knuckles!).

I suggest you all check your batteries are up to Winter duties and you are not left with a stranded RR on your driveway.

Brand new one fitted at a main dealer 3 weeks ago when its EBA chip went off again

(EBA Chip - Empty Bank Account)


(Suppose it could be called an 'Audrey' chip - After the plant in Little Shop of Horrors! FEED ME SEYMOUR!!!! )

OK Folks best prices and places to get batteries! Previous cars:
S-Max 2007-2013 (only diesel I've had, good car but expensive when diesely bits go wrong, so what's the point?)
Galaxy 2001-2007
Mondeo Estate 1997-2001
Sierra Estate 1993-1997
Uno Turbo 1987 -1993
Fiesta 1984 - 1987
Fiat 127 1982 - 1984

where ever you get a battery make sure you get one locally so that in the event of it going faulty you can take it back and get a replacement...try doing that mail order . ... - .- -.




Y. O. L. O.
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appj62 wrote:

OK Folks best prices and places to get batteries!

Halfords, if you have a trade card

I have bought my last two batteries from http://tayna.co.uk, more or less best price around, delivered to your door. I have used the Varta Silver as opposed to the Bosch. (Not forgetting to mention I now have one in the front and one in the back which should keep the HDC Inactive message at bay this winter!) .
Experience is the only genuine knowledge, but as time passes, I have forgotten more than I can remember
Volvo V70 P2 2006 2.4 Petrol 170bhp Estate SE
MG Midget Mk1 1962

Previous: L322 Range Rover TDV8 3.6 2008; L322 Range Rover TD6 3.0 2002; P38A Range Rover V8 1999

For anyone nearby who fancies one I have a nice big Varta in the garage that's been reconditioned on my CTEK twice to make sure its good and sits nice on a table in the garage just waiting for an FF to slide into

However this morning I pressed the ON button on the remote fob and walked up to a nice warm vehicle just waiting for me 35minutes later  FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
Mantec Sump Guard, Rigid Load liner, MY10 BT upgrade.

This maybe a silly question then - how does one check one's battery then.. )no silly replies like "try to start your car.".!)

I drive 65 miles each way to work and back every day (sometimes taking 2 1/2 hours) round the dreaded M25 so in theory my batt should be fully charged all the time but I gather it's a question of whether the battery holds the charge when it gets in there.

Is there a simple test or is it down to a "shop" to get it tested?

Thx Ash
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2016 SDV8 AB

The simple test is if it starts the car without issue in the morning. Even better to run the fbh for s by before hand but this could push most batteries to the limit  FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
Mantec Sump Guard, Rigid Load liner, MY10 BT upgrade.

Buy a half decent multimeter - really cheap these days and measure the voltage on the battery. 14.4 is about right for when running (ie alternator charging) below 11 and you're going to struggle to start. As you say 65 miles should be enough by a country mile.

To actually test a battery requires a battery tester which measures the rate of discharge and gives an idea of health. They're quite a lot though.

Useful accurate voltmeter to install in your car without drilling holes etc, mounted in place with velcro.
Can also be obtained with blue digits.
If you connect it to a permanent voltage source you can read it from outside the car as well as when driving.
If your battery is good you should get 12.5-12.6V when the car is closed and 14.1-`14.4V when driving.
A simple and reasonably accurate way of determining the health of your battery and alternator.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Slimline-Volt-Vo...4897.l4275

Either:
1- Disconnect the battery using procedure in the wiki then test voltage across the terminals with a multimeter. Result should be 12.6v. 12.5 is ok but less is a problem. The lower the voltage the worse the battery condition. If it's not too bad a trickle charge will help or even better a full refresh with a Ctek charger.
Or:
2- If you prefer to leave the battery in place switch everything off and open bonnet, put a weight on the bonnet switch (top left corner looking at the engine bay), lock car, leave for at least 20 mins then test voltage across battery terminals. Result should be 12.6v. 12.5 is ok but less is a problem which since the battery is connected could indicate either a battery problem or a current leakage in the vehicle circuit. Again, the lower the voltage the worse the problem. 2012 5.0L S/C
Previous:
3.6 TDV8
4.4 HSE
P38 4.6 HSE
Classic 3.9
90 County
Series3 Lightweight

Starting the car doesn't let you know about battery health. On old cars, yes. On new ones, no. The computers will mask the problem until the battery completely knackered. The clue for impending failure is a bunch of ominous warning of various systems failing as the computers try to make do without enough power.

The multimeter will tell you if the battery is terrible, but many car batteries will give good voltage results when they aren't under load.

Most mechanics have battery testers and can sort out any issues pretty quickly and easily. That's the only way your going to really know. (A multimeter CAN tell you about the health of the alternator when the car is running.) Trying yourself is pretty limited without the right kit, but I guess a car that starts eagerly on very cold mornings and has a history of NO weird warning messages is probably okay.

Might put mine on the ctek overnight

If I want to do a full recon do I have to disconnect the battery. I assume that charging it connected is fine for a standard charge/trickle. There is nothing that can't be fixed with a hammer😜😜
FFRR 4.4 SDV8 Autobiography Santorini Black.
Fiat 500x 1.4 multiair Lounge 2015
2010 LR D4 Commercial 2.7 TDV6

For reconditioning I would say it's best to take the battery out as the high voltage used for desulphation can create quite a bit of heat. 2012 5.0L S/C
Previous:
3.6 TDV8
4.4 HSE
P38 4.6 HSE
Classic 3.9
90 County
Series3 Lightweight