New battery flat after 8 days sittng

R

redsquash

How long before my batery goes flat?
New RACQ battery purchased 5 march 2015
march 9 drove 1100km to new accomodationandsince then driven 20km from March10 to april 3.
between those 2 dates car driven once a week total 20km
Today my battery was flat (430amp battery for 2.5 litre v6, bigget battery I can get for available space.)

The RACQ mechanic says it will normally go flat in a week because of the anti-theft security, clock computer etc which sounds like aload of garbage.

He also said I need to drive the car every 3 or 4 days for 10 or 20 minutes to prevent it going flat.It wont do any harm by driving it so frequently but the time inetrval seems very brief.
I cant afford the time either

Advice please
 
Sounds like it could be a charging problem. If the battery is getting little or no charge it will go flat. You might need to get the alternator looked at. How old is the car?
 
I would be very unhappy about that, last battery I bought had 2 year warranty on it.

Bloke in a car yard told me to give your battery a quick boost drive with your head lights on for a while, worked for me !
 
Something is draining the battery while it sits. Either find out what it is and stop/isolate it or just disconect battery during long periods of sitting.
 
A new battery should be able to sit at least for a couple of weeks - my car sits at the snow for 2 weeks + at a time and doesn't miss a beat. You can't get harsher conditions than consistently sub-zero (which does affect battery performance).
 
Stick a multimeter across the terminals while engine is running and check your voltage, your alternator may be failing
 
Scott No Mates said:
A new battery should be able to sit at least for a couple of weeks - my car sits at the snow for 2 weeks + at a time and doesn't miss a beat. You can't get harsher conditions than consistently sub-zero (which does affect battery performance).
Click to expand...

my thoughts exactly , yet he is dealing with this day in and day out so whats his agenda?
 
DaveM said:
Stick a multimeter across the terminals while engine is running and check your voltage, your alternator may be failing
Click to expand...

the 13 hour trip shopuld have drained the battery that being the case . RACQ did a check on old battery and alternator seemed fine.

but would an auto electrician do the same test or do something more sophisticated and involved ?
 
HD_ACE said:
Something is draining the battery while it sits. Either find out what it is and stop/isolate it or just disconect battery during long periods of sitting.
Click to expand...

I have suspected that for a long time but cant locate anything so far.
even 1 month sitting in a modern car with computer chip, antitheft should be fine . Am I wrong?
 
We left our cars 2013 VE Wagon & 2003 Hyundai Accent parked for 7 weeks and both cars started without any issue. It's obviously not the batteries issue if the first battery died and a second one shortly died too = charging issue = alternator
 
Last edited:
If there anything like the NRMA batteries their rubbish.
NRMA did use an imported battery from I think Thailand .
One lasted 6 months and had it replaced under warranty the replacement
lasted around 16 months so will not use their service again. (Holden v6)

Its getting harder to find an Australian made battery these days , I think Century,Besco
are still made here , Uassa was but not sure anymore.
On my third battery in my 1991 rodeo diesel , two Uassa and century now which all have lasted 8 years.

So I know your issue is the battery not lasting more than a week but battery
quality could be one reason if your alternator is not charging correctly.
 
portable alternator 'testers' test voltage levels, and are useless
an alternator tester is huge, runs around the shop on a trolley and includes loads

the alternator is polyphase, when 1 phase fails, it becomes a return path for the other 2 phases
the generated voltage still indicates 14.7, but most of the current returns through the damaged phase
enough to run the engine 7A and lights ~15A
not enough to to charge the battery past sulfation point, ~50% charge

a 430CCA battery has about 55AH capacity, 10 minutes of 350A starter motor and its dead
half charged, and its not enough to spin the starter
 
To test the alternator is charging the battery correctly, you need to put a DC volt meter across the terminals.

Start the car and bring the revs up to 1500 rpm minimum.

The voltage meter reading needs to sit between 13.8v and 14.2 volts.

If its lower than 13.8 v give it a few minutes at the 1500 rpm. If it doesnt come up to the specified range then there is an alternator and/or battery issue.

If volts rises above 14.2 then the alternator's regulator needs replacing. Dont leave it too long like this because it will boil the battery acid damage the plates inside.

A lead acid cell battery needs to have a good charge every 4 weeks minimum otherwise it will break down.

Also, do not leave a lead acid cell battery sitting on a concrete floor because this will affect the specific gravity and stuff the battery also.



I hope this helps.
 
AlmostBob said:
portable alternator 'testers' test voltage levels, and are useless
an alternator tester is huge, runs around the shop on a trolley and includes loads

the alternator is polyphase, when 1 phase fails, it becomes a return path for the other 2 phases
the generated voltage still indicates 14.7, but most of the current returns through the damaged phase
enough to run the engine 7A and lights ~15A
not enough to to charge the battery past sulfation point, ~50% charge

a 430CCA battery has about 55AH capacity, 10 minutes of 350A starter motor and its dead
half charged, and its not enough to spin the starter
Click to expand...

if i go to an auto electrician ,is this the alternator testing you describe something I would be charged for or is it usally a free test?
 
Rixter said:
To test the alternator is charging the battery correctly, you need to put a DC volt meter across the terminals.

Start the car and bring the revs up to 1500 rpm minimum.

The voltage meter reading needs to sit between 13.8v and 14.2 volts.

If its lower than 13.8 v give it a few minutes at the 1500 rpm. If it doesnt come up to the specified range then there is an alternator and/or battery issue.

If volts rises above 14.2 then the alternator's regulator needs replacing. Dont leave it too long like this because it will boil the battery acid damage the plates inside.

A lead acid cell battery needs to have a good charge every 4 weeks minimum otherwise it will break down.

Also, do not leave a lead acid cell battery sitting on a concrete floor because this will affect the specific gravity and stuff the battery also.



I hope this helps.
Click to expand...
A good charge ?
Would a 10 minute drive be a good charge?
is idling charging the car as I have no need to drive for 4 months
thanks
 
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