Dodge Caliber - Car won't start - battery issue?

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Mon 7 Jan 2019 19:57
Dodge Caliber - Car won't start - battery issue? - ldene

hi, new to the forum, hoping for some help/advice please.

i own a Dodge caliber, bought brand new in 2008 (automatic, 2 litre, petrol). On a handful of occasions over the last 8 weeks or so, it's needed a jump start to get going.

I took it to a national, reuptable servicing company after a couple of times of it not starting who ran a diagnositc on the battery and they said it neeed a re-charge and to go on a long journey (apparently i do too many short journeys and it doesn't re-charge properly). Given that i have a battery charging device, i didn't do the long journey but re-charged the battery, but this hasn't worked. We re-charged it again a couple of days ago and today it woudn't start again.

Last week, a warning light appeard (the Malfunction Indicator light, which accoring do the book could be "fuel cap not on properly, instability in the fuel etc" - not very helpul, but it went off after 2 days (which the book says it might do). Again today, it needed a jump start and the warning light came back on.

The battery is just over a year old (the original one started leaking), no other problems with the car. I do hardly any miles (about 3,000 a year), mainly commuting to work and back, shopping trips etc, probably nothing more than 10 miles at a time.

Any advice please? is the battery not holding the charge? or the alternator not working properly? Will a long trip actually solve it? or do i have make regular long trips?

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Mon 7 Jan 2019 21:05
Dodge Caliber - Car won't start - battery issue? - elekie&a/c doctor
If the car still won’t start after a recharge, then Sounds like the battery may be in trouble. What make is the battery?
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Mon 7 Jan 2019 23:12
Dodge Caliber - Car won't start - battery issue? - ldene

It was charged Sat 5th, it started today - Mon 7th, in the morning (8:30 ish), but wouldn't start in the evening (5pm ish).

The only informatuon I have about the battery to hand is "12v 3yr gtee batteey"

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Tue 8 Jan 2019 13:40
Dodge Caliber - Car won't start - battery issue? - Railroad.

Car batteries are designed to deliver a lot of power very quickly, and unlike deep cycle batteries which you'd find on electric vehicles are not suitable for completely discharging and recharging. A starter (car) battery will perform at its best if it is always fully charged. Frequent short or stop/start journeys will mean the battery is always delivering more than is being put back, and its service life will be seriously reduced. Have the battery tested and replace it if needed. Then if you really must do short trips charge the battery on a trickle charger overnight at least once per month. Cold weather kills batteries that are in a discharged state, so if yours has gone flat it's very unlikely it'll recover to a healthy state. Static battery voltage if it's healthy should be 12.6v. If yours measures under 12.2v it's discharged. If it measures under 12v it's completely discharged.

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Tue 8 Jan 2019 18:37
Dodge Caliber - Car won't start - battery issue? - ldene

Thanks Railroad.

1 thing i don't understand, is why do i have the problem now? The first battery lasted 9 years and if anything i did less driving then than now, so why didn't i get this problem before?

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Tue 8 Jan 2019 19:07
Dodge Caliber - Car won't start - battery issue? - elekie&a/c doctor
It would be great if you find the make of the battery. 12 volt 3 year warranty does not mean very much. If there is no visible label on the top of the battery with the make and spec, then it could be one of those cheap and cheerful jobbies.
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