Yesterday my car suddenly wouldn't start - I got a clicking noise, and all my electrics seemed "weak", i.e. the e/w were moving v. slowly, central locking was not always working. I got the car started with jump leads and drove for 30 minutes. Then as soon as I stopped, the electrics were dead again.
While I was driving, the electrics were not 100%, e.g. opening the el. window made the headlights dim.
Overnight, I borrowed a battery charger and attached it to the battery, but after half an hour or so, the charger reckoned the battery was fully charged, but still no joy with starting the engine.
I'm a bit clueless and hope to get a bit of advice before I take a garage's word for it that I need a new this and that.
Cheers
P.S. The car's an L-reg Rover 414 SLi
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The only way to really ascertain the condition of a battery is to charge it for a period and then put a Battery tester across the terminals and also check the S.G of each cell. You'll need to go to a garage of fast-fit place to have the battery test done (unless you want to buy one costing say £35 from Machine Mart) but you can buy a hydrometer (to test the S.G. of each cell) in any motor shop for less than a fiver. Apart from that I would buy your own battery charger!
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I did charge the battery using a battery charger overnight, but it was still dead in the morning - the light on the battery charger indicated that the battery was fully charged - that's why I am unsure whether it's really the battery that has died.
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It is likely from your description that your batttery is dying or dead. Bateries that claim to be charged as quickly as half an hour and then fail to deliver are duff ones. Now with winter on its way, is a good time to change it.
Does some other things as part of routine winter maintenance at the same time.
Change the battery
Clean the battery terminators on the leads and cover with vaseline to prevent corrosion.
Check you have a good earth from engine to body
Check you have a good earth from battery to body.
Get a digital voltmeter onto the battery connections, with no engine running it should be in excess of 12.4 volts. With engine running it should be in excess of 13.8 volts. This checks the alternator.
Its not much work and is time very well spent.
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If the battery is a few years old, just change it anyway.
According to AA, RAC, et al, most breakdowns are caused by flat batteries.
People always wait until they breakdown and get stranded before changing the battery.
They usually pack up on boxing day, christmas day, or otherwise at the least convenient time, and then you have to rush rather than get one at the best price.
They should be part of the service schedule, like every 2, 3 or 5 years depending on the quality of the battery and type of use (often hinted by the length of warranty)
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Poor connection between either earth lead and/or poss.lead and battery clamp . Check for bluish corrosion where lead contacts clamp, or where earth lead fixes to body and/or engine
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Another knackered battery. get someone to test it for you where you know that you can pick one up for a decent price £30 to £50.
Money well spent.
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063 type battery can be had for as little as £25 if you know where to look - but you do get what you pay for.
Sounds like battery failure to me; it might be worth checking the alternator output after the new battery is fitted.
If the battery is knackered (short-circuit cell or similar) no amount of driving or charging will revive it.
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I got a perfectly good Lucas for my 1.6 Pug SRI for under £30 a few years ago - from a Lucas AutoCentre.
The car was written off nearly 2 years ago, I kept the battery though and it served in a couple of cars since.
Came with 4yr guarantee. They simply etched the purchase date on the top - can't argue with that!
H
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Your battery is dead as a dodo.
My neighbour came out to me while I was working on a car the other day, and asked me to help him with his - the engine wouldn't turn over. I put his headlights on, and could only see a very faint glow in the elements. I told him his battery was dead. Then I tested it with a voltmeter, and it read over 12v, so I said perhaps it wasn't the battery, perhaps it was the starter motor or a bad earth somewhere. But a couple of days later he saw me again and told me he'd taken it to a garage where a new battery was fitted and all was well again. So, it shows you that batteries can be funny things, they can look like they are fine when they're not. But yours sounds totally gone, no question.
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