Mungler Posted February 6, 2018 Report Share Posted February 6, 2018 So, I put a new car battery on one of my old bangers a couple of months ago, and today whilst driving home I lost every drop of electricity in the car (the radio stopped working and the car just lost power and died - there wasn’t enough juice to operate the hazards) - yes, it looks like the alternator has gone and may have gone some time ago. The battery was brand new at its last annual service in November. I’ve had the battery on a decent intelligent battery charger for the thick end of 4 hours now and it’s not showing any signs of taking a charge. Have I killed the battery? Any tips? I don’t need to use the car and so could leave it on charge until the weekend - will that make any difference and at what point should I call it a day? I thought modern batteries were made of sterner stuff and will see if I can get it swapped for a new one. Cheers all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walshie Posted February 6, 2018 Report Share Posted February 6, 2018 If it's that deeply discharged intelligent chargers only give it the slightest trickle over a long time rather than a boost to try to bring it back to life. Leave it on charge for a couple of days. The battery should still be under warranty, but I doubt you've killed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
washerboy Posted February 6, 2018 Report Share Posted February 6, 2018 Altinator knackered ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bornfree Posted February 6, 2018 Report Share Posted February 6, 2018 sometimes you need a higher voltage to get the battery to accept charge. if your charger has a 24v setting switch it on that until the ammeter starts to move then back on 12v. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stour-boy Posted February 6, 2018 Report Share Posted February 6, 2018 If you do the above disconnect the battery leads as the motor won’t like 24volts through its electrics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul223 Posted February 6, 2018 Report Share Posted February 6, 2018 Yep intelligent charger is probably not registering the battery, so things to try.... traditional battery charger jump leads onto another car to ‘boost’ the battery for a little while multimetter across the terminals to make sure the battery hasn’t collapsed internally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saltings Posted February 7, 2018 Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 old school battery charger or jump leads with engine running for a few minutes then crank it over and when started keep the revs up for a few minutes remove jump leads run about 20 min battery should be up and good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver pigeon69 Posted February 7, 2018 Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 7 hours ago, Mungler said: So, I put a new car battery on one of my old bangers a couple of months ago, and today whilst driving home I lost every drop of electricity in the car (the radio stopped working and the car just lost power and died - there wasn’t enough juice to operate the hazards) - yes, it looks like the alternator has gone and may have gone some time ago. The battery was brand new at its last annual service in November. I’ve had the battery on a decent intelligent battery charger for the thick end of 4 hours now and it’s not showing any signs of taking a charge. Have I killed the battery? Any tips? I don’t need to use the car and so could leave it on charge until the weekend - will that make any difference and at what point should I call it a day? I thought modern batteries were made of sterner stuff and will see if I can get it swapped for a new one. Cheers all. I presume you have checked the fan belt? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robden Posted February 7, 2018 Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 9 hours ago, Mungler said: So, I put a new car battery on one of my old bangers a couple of months ago, and today whilst driving home I lost every drop of electricity in the car (the radio stopped working and the car just lost power and died - there wasn’t enough juice to operate the hazards) - yes, it looks like the alternator has gone and may have gone some time ago. The battery was brand new at its last annual service in November. I’ve had the battery on a decent intelligent battery charger for the thick end of 4 hours now and it’s not showing any signs of taking a charge. Have I killed the battery? Any tips? I don’t need to use the car and so could leave it on charge until the weekend - will that make any difference and at what point should I call it a day? I thought modern batteries were made of sterner stuff and will see if I can get it swapped for a new one. Cheers all. How's it looking now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted February 7, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 About to go outside now - car is now covered in snow / thick frost. Deep joy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted February 7, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 Alright, the Ring charger says it’s still charging and looks like it’s holding 12.6-12.8 volts - it’s still on a slow charge cycle and says it’s still charging. I’ll see what’s changed when I get back from work this evening. Fingers crossed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted February 7, 2018 Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 When I recently had a new battery fitted, they stated what the alternator reading was at the time they fitted the new battery on the receipt which was also the warranty for two years . If your alternator was playing up would it affect your warranty rights ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted February 7, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 That’s a good question, but that battery is less than 3 months old and surely a modern battery can take a discharge and recharge? The trickle charger says it’s half way recharged so I’m going to keep it on charge until Friday when it’s booked into the local garage for a look over. I’m hoping that when the car went in for a service and a couple of bits in November someone at the garage just accidentally knocked a connector off the alternator - that’s maybe wishful thinking but the car’s done no more than 50 miles since November. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricko Posted February 7, 2018 Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 Batt light on dash usually shows when alternator has gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted February 7, 2018 Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 I've just done something like this, I forgot to disconnect the bike battery last year after putting her away, forgot all about the little digital clock on the dash and it's now flat as a pancake again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westward Posted February 7, 2018 Report Share Posted February 7, 2018 The possible causes are alternator not charging (but there should be a warning light), something draining the battery when the engine is off, or a bad battery. A halfway decent techie with a meter should be able to figure it out in about 5 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpringDon Posted February 8, 2018 Report Share Posted February 8, 2018 You should check that the battery is not discharging. Alternator coils can break down and drain the battery very quickly . An alternator just not charging should cause a gradual loss of battery power, not a total loss like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosd Posted February 8, 2018 Report Share Posted February 8, 2018 Hey Mungler Dont know if it’s any good or convenient for you, I’m on Cuffley now, but I can get my hands on an all singing and dancing Snap On charger if you want to drop the battery at mine. Happy to put it on that if you like. Cos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonny thomas Posted February 8, 2018 Report Share Posted February 8, 2018 Simetimes(rare) when an alternator dies it will drain power from the battery kind of becomes a motor rather than a generator As above proper charger or get the car going(change alternator)and run it with sidelights on This will up the output Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted June 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 Just an update - the car’s alternator (or rather dynamo) was replaced (exchange and fit was only £150) and I put the battery on an intelligent charger for about 5 days and the battery is happy and everything is back to normal. I’m taking the car out to the Le Mans Classic next month for a decent run - it did it last year to the 24hr at a steady 65 mph and it was smooth as silk. A 1000 miles round trip over one long weekend in a 1977 tax empt old Roller that owes me about £9k. Keep ‘em crossed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harrycatcat1 Posted June 18, 2018 Report Share Posted June 18, 2018 On 17/06/2018 at 12:09, Mungler said: Just an update - the car’s alternator (or rather dynamo) was replaced (exchange and fit was only £150) and I put the battery on an intelligent charger for about 5 days and the battery is happy and everything is back to normal. I’m taking the car out to the Le Mans Classic next month for a decent run - it did it last year to the 24hr at a steady 65 mph and it was smooth as silk. A 1000 miles round trip over one long weekend in a 1977 tax empt old Roller that owes me about £9k. Keep ‘em crossed. That sounds a nice trip ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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