Battery Item

[cossie]

Anyone know anything about these?
http://www.noflatbatteries.com/index.htm
After having loads of trouble with flat batteries on my other car,with no one able to find out why,I was wondering wether to get one?

[Timmo]

okay as long as you dont ave ann aftermarket alarm system as every time it disconects it will set the alarm off!!
i still havent got round to getting mine on a diagnostic machine to trace my drain but when not using it in the coming few days i just disconnect mine and leave the solar charger attatched to the battery to top it up!!

[thanuttiscotsman]

hi there,
you would be better off just to find the fault. a common one on bs's that you dont see is the bootlight, it can drain the battery a fair bit over night and you cant see the light. its been a fault on a few bx's ive had. you should check it out.

also would check your ignition wires, if the barrel has been changed at some point in your cars life (which is quite probable) then you may find the replacement one's electrical connectors have the wires in different positions so even when you think the ignition is off, some systems may be powered up.

i have just changed by whole column inc barrel wheel etc. and the wiring positions in the connectors was different between the two. although the old one i know is aftermarket as my mate replaced it but the one i have put on is an origional piece i think. they both appear to work the same but the wiring setup is different but i dont know if it has an affect on the electric system.

cheers rossco

[AlanS]

If you've got a Sony ICE/CD radio you'll find that's where a drain can come from.
I suddenly started having problems when I got one fitted to mine a couple of years ago and my son did some tests and found that to be the source. I posted that info on the old forum and discovered that some others who were having similar problems also had Sony systems fitted.
I run an isolator now on that and when I leave the car, I just throw the switch to totally disconnect it from the power source. The downside is that you can't retain the station pre sets so you have to do this prior to a trip or manually search for them as you go, which is no big deal out here because apart from the ABC, the rest of the stations here are syndicated and all play the same crap.


Alan S

[Mike E (uk)]

I agree with Alan, if it's not the boot light it will probably be the alarm or stereo.

Get a multimeter on to the amperes range, and you will soon find the cause.

You can also fit an easy disconnect battery terminal, these a very cheap from cpc.co.uk.

I fitted 2 on my battery after I had a starter motor solonoid problem- they are very handy when working on the car too.

Mike

[cossie]

Thanks for the replys guys,but MY other car is an S-Type Jaguar.This is the one I am having problems with not my 16V.
It doesnt do it all the time,just now and then.Its in at a Bosch service center right now,and they cant find the problem.They say it is all ok..........at the moment.
Its been into Jag main dealer also,and they cant find it either.Obviously it has to do it to be found.
Iains 16v sits outside for two weeks or so at a time,as he uses a company van,and that has no trouble starting up.Anytime.
Oh well ,back to the drawing board. lol

[Toddman]

I too suffered with the dreaded Sony drain but all seems cured now due to-
1. New battery clamps
2. Diesel spec battery
3. Solar battery top up which plugs into the cig lighter

Considering the car only gets very occasional use it is holding up rathe rwell now

Cheers
Luke

[thanuttiscotsman]

what year etc is the jag?? my mate has a 1990 soveriegn. 3.2 straight six autobox. goes like hot shi* off a shovel. he has had some problems with starting but not battery related. if its a common fault then try typing it into google and the answer may just pop up.

cheers rossco

[cossie]

Sory for the late reply.Its a 2000 S-Type,3 liter V6.Its a great car but for this (winter) problem.

[Adrian E]

All modern cars, especially those loaded with ECUs, electric motors, sat nav etc etc will drain a battery in 2 weeks without difficulty.

Don't know about the S type, but we had a 740 at work with a battery in the boot that wouldn't look out of place slung under a 7.5T truck, and that would only last 2 weeks if left sitting!!

If you can't find a specific fault, it might be worth trying to find a larger mah battery. Is the current battery original? If so it's probably a bit duff.

Depending on whether the car is garaged/on your drive then you could always run one of these battery optimisers when you know you won't be using the car for a few days - works a treat even with modern immobilisers, and is a very good way to bring the battery back to life without risk to the electrics. Not an option if it's parked on the street, clearly!

Adrian

[thanuttiscotsman]

All modern cars, especially those loaded with ECUs, electric motors, sat nav etc etc will drain a battery in 2 weeks without difficulty.

Don't know about the S type, but we had a 740 at work with a battery in the boot that wouldn't look out of place slung under a 7.5T truck, and that would only last 2 weeks if left sitting!!
Adrian

hi there,
that is very true!! when i worked for ford motor group (managing their cafe's) almost all of their brand new cars with new batterys (obviously) needed jump started for test driving after about 3-4 weeks because the immobilisers drained the bettery alone. so if you have multiple similar components or multiple additions to your system then that is normal. the battery saving device shown on advert through link on first post supposedly cause big problems with alarms and sometimes smaller problems with immobilisers as the adjustments it makes to voltage etc often sets of the cars alarm. which would activate the device to allow full power to system again cos alarm is wailing and when it stops and re-arms the voltage or whichever drops again setting it off again. from what ive been told can be a real bugger.

rossco