Haven't used the FFRR for a few days, -5 overnight with a hard frost. On with the fbh via the remote. T n toast, then jump in to a flat battery
Doesn't it have a low voltage sensor for the fbh?
Or is the three year old battery for the skip? Ian

its testing times for our batteries at the moment...3 years is beginning to be on the borderline..i'd change it and not any risks.. ... - .- -.




Y. O. L. O.
.

3 Years is about the limit for a battery. Also you generally get 3 or 4 deep discharges out of a battery before it's goosed. Even on a new oone as it destroys the plates inside.

The FBH does have a low voltage sensor, but thats not to let you start the engine, its to ensure the FBH ECU can function... ALthough generally the two go hand in hand - unless your battery is not at its best. 

Cheers guys, I'll try it again with the fbh over the coming days. If/when it fails I'll call lr assist n let them recommend a new battery for the warranty. Ian

Battery now 5 and a half year old ........... ( kiss of death now )

it'll be flat tomorrow mick...  ... - .- -.




Y. O. L. O.
.

Just gone through the same, 3 year old battery, -12C, FBH in am, flat battery, not only flat but naker'd. £140 and new battery everything ok again  No body told me there would be days like these

L Reg dark purple/burgundy sort of Disco
R Reg very red disco
Bright Silver disco TD5
Sort of bright girly powder blue disco TD5
Gone (a while back) 1999 P38 4ltre Autobiography. 13 miles to the gallon, 10,000 miles to the engine
Gone MY06 RRS HSE Rimini Red
Gone MY10 RRS HSE Purple
Gone 2007 TDV8 Vogue OF Stornoway Grey (In Love again)
2011 4.4 TDV8 Vogue Baltic Blue
MY66 VOGUE TDV6 3.0 Red

I've never had a battery fail at 3 years, are they not as good as they used to be?


The last battery I changed was on my wife's car and it was 10.5 when it was changed just before we sold the car. One of my Mercedes the battery went at 7 years old again just before I sold it so it was a bit of a bummer having to fork out the money at the time

Exactly the same problem - two and a half years old, completely flat again this week (for about the fourth time) after using the FBH.

Useless.

47p2 wrote:

I've never had a battery fail at 3 years, are they not as good as they used to be?


The last battery I changed was on my wife's car and it was 10.5 when it was changed just before we sold the car. One of my Mercedes the battery went at 7 years old again just before I sold it so it was a bit of a bummer having to fork out the money at the time

dantheman wrote:

47p2 wrote:

I've never had a battery fail at 3 years, are they not as good as they used to be?


The last battery I changed was on my wife's car and it was 10.5 when it was changed just before we sold the car. One of my Mercedes the battery went at 7 years old again just before I sold it so it was a bit of a bummer having to fork out the money at the time

3 years should not herald the end of life for a battery... mine is still using the original battery (almost 5 1/2 yrs old and showing no signs of giving up the ghost at all - totally unaffected by the cold). I also had the original battery on my Alfa Romeo when I came to sell it after 8 1/2 yrs.

If anyone's battery is giving up the ghost at around the 2-3 yr point I would urge them to investigate further IMHO.

But this completely depends on how your battery is treated. After 3 years it is assumed you've generally had a couple of deep discharges - from leaving lights on, or from month long holidays (or more than likely laid up for 6 weeks in the dealer). It's the deep discharges that kill the battery, whether you do 1 a year or 3 in a month etc.

It's also worth noting that the battery in the RR is quite a small unit for the size of car and electrical load - compared to a "normal" car. Every car is different too, in respect to the type of journeys it does - lights, seats screen on etc? 

The dealer has told me that the battery is in good condition, "It just needs a good overnight charge". I detect the smell of b t!
Oh well we'll see................ Ian

The repeated combination of FBH use and short journeys will drain even a good battery. Unfortunately the low voltage detector does not do a very good job of shutting off the drain before the FBH (well actually the fans) deplete the battery beyond the point where it will start the engine.

TBH it is quite difficult to design a low voltage detector to do a reliable job, because the charge capacity required to start an engine is dependent on a number of factors, not least the temperature, which can affect the time that the glow plugs need to operate etc. Low temperatures also reduce the cranking power of a battery.

A new battery will not solve the problem (although a new battery may reduce the frequency), so I would recommend that you either buy a big booster pack, or trickle charge the battery once a week.

Paul

There are too many factors at play to generalise about when your battery should die.

At the end of the day, this is a car with a lot of drains on it and not a big enough unit to cope manfully, it gets by.

It is also a consumable item, they don't last forever, and when I replaced the battery on my TD6 it was £75 inc fitting by the local Indy garage. Plus, having a new battery made a world of difference, it sort of made me wonder why we wait till they go fully dead to replace really.

PS: Mine died after the FBH had been on too. Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

Its back today, i think i may adopt the optimate through the towbar electric route whilst sat on the drive. Ian