car/van battery problems

Z

zag

Guest
All,

Does anyone know whether it is possible to check in any kind of meaningful way the status of a vehicle battery ?

I have a somewhat troublesome battery in my campervan which normally starts up and drives (for an hour) every two weeks or so.

Sometimes it just doesn't start. Then without doing *anything* to the vehicle I can start it a few days later. This seems a bit odd as I would have thought if it was drained enough one day it wasn't going to recharge by itself. Perhaps co-incidentally the non-starting days seem to be the colder days of the year.

I guess the best bet would be to buy a new battery, but I don't want to do that if there is some other issue which I can address first.

Anyone know about batteries ?

Also, since it is a campervan it has a second battery onboard for the lights and stuff - I guess I could just jump start the engine from this one, but normally jump start instructions say you should have the engine running on the 'donor' car - is this likely to be an issue if there is no engine ?

Cheers,

z
 
Zag, any Auto electrician will be able to sort you out , Most good garages have one but there are a good number of independent ones. I would recommend going to one of these as they do it all the time whilst the ones in garages are mostly mechanics who also think they are auto electricians.
 
before paying out you should,
check the water levels.
remove the leads,give the terminals and lead connectors a light rub of sandpaper and after you have put them back together put some vaseline over the top to seal it against damp, corrrosion.

it might not be the battery at all. if the earth strap(s) connecting the engine to the chassis is corroded or broken, that would explain why your starter motor only works intermittently. ive found most jump leads not to be thick enough internally to work properly, but you could try using a jump lead to connect the engine block to the negative terminal on your battery. the lifting eye usually gives a good connection. if it turns over then that is your problem.
 
I have a 4 year old car battery. The other morning I got nothing when trying to start the car. Wipers were working though. Just a click when key was turned. I started it first time on a hill. It has been ok since. I think I may have left parking lights on overnight.
The battery has a window and is showing red. It cannot be topped up. Is it time to change the battery?
 
There may be a dodgy cell in your battery. You should check the electrolite (Acid) condition in each cell using a hydrometer, these cost about €10 in a motor factors. The specific gravity should be above 1200 in each cell. However some batteries are sealed and have no access to the electrolite. Your second battery is for domestic loads and may not be suitable for jump starting. Check its max load/cranking abilities, a car battery should be good for about 500 amps peak. Good jump leads cost €50 plus, €20 buys rubbish only, been there done that lesson learned.
 
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