Electrical gremlin - easier than you might think

"PartyPooper2012" (PartyPooper2012) 01/05/2018 at 07:19 • Filed to: None

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Wife works about a mile from home. She drives there and back obviously. Car doesn’t like such short trips and battery is getting sorta weak. My guess is the alternator doesn’t have enough time to charge it.

Also could be that the cold weather is making the battery sluggish, but I just got the battery this summer so there should be no issues... but there do be issues.

Whatchu think? Just the way the universe works, or do I have a dying alternator?

jimz > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 07:25

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alternators don’t “weaken,” they just up and quit. Either the voltage regulator stops voltage regulating, or the rectifier diodes go poof.

pip bip - choose Corrour > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 07:29

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take it for a long long run and see how it holds up

if she works that close to home, why not cycle or walk?

PartyPooper2012 > jimz 01/05/2018 at 07:29

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In the summer she went away for couple of weeks. Came back and car wouldn’t start. My guess battery was on the edge of just enough power to start before she left and eventually died. I am not sure what to do here. I don’t think there is a battery draw. But I also don’t want her stranded with a dead car.

PartyPooper2012 > pip bip - choose Corrour 01/05/2018 at 07:32

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she is some sort of a nurse and needs to be at work as fast as possible. Plus weather conditions and an uphill road - she needs to drive.

When the car gets driven plenty, car is fine. But there is no reason to drive far for the most part.

Urambo Tauro > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 07:43

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A mile? Yeah, I don’t think that’s enough time to recharge the battery after using that starter motor. Cold weather sure isn’t helping...

Sounds like a good candidate for one of those permanently-installed battery tenders with the short cord that you unplug before going anywhere. Maybe a solar charger too, if she parks out in the open at work.

pip bip - choose Corrour > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 07:45

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seeing the occupation, yep time is of the essence

SmugAardvark > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 07:56

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Does the car get parked in a garage? Might be worth trying a battery tender to see if that helps matters. You can get a good one for $50.

PartyPooper2012 > Urambo Tauro 01/05/2018 at 08:04

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I’ll look into it. She will look at me sideways if I have wires and solar panels stuck to her car.

PartyPooper2012 > SmugAardvark 01/05/2018 at 08:05

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maybe. ill look into it

Urambo Tauro > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 08:19

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Wires can be tucked under the hood or even in the trunk. The worst part would be having to remember to plug/unplug it. But you might be able to get away with only plugging it in for a recharge once a week.

I’m not a big fan of bulky solar panels either, but maybe if you could fit one under the rear window... A more extreme measure would be to wire up a second battery in the trunk to increase capacity.

PartyPooper2012 > Urambo Tauro 01/05/2018 at 08:33

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There isn’t much of a rear window in a mini cooper. With night and snow cover, it might not work even if I left the panel on dashboard.

I might just have to charge it on cold days.

diplodicus > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 09:24

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You have a multimeter? You can test the voltage output of the alternator to make sure the battery is getting charged. Typical reading for an alternator that puts out enough voltage is constant 14.4v at the battery with the engine running. Some newer cars do reduce the alternator output on engine start up to reduce engine load on cold starts. If you’ve got 14.4v I’d take the battery to a parts store and have them test it just to be sure.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 09:40

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Did she forget to turn off some silly interior light? Like a vanity mirror? Or glove box? How cold is cold? Let the car run for a bit before heading out? I start up my car then run back in the house to finish the hair combing and teeth brushing and such.

PartyPooper2012 > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 01/05/2018 at 09:43

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She turned off everything. Cold as in about 10 degrees F

She has a remote start on the car and typically starts it before heading out. Problem was it didn’t work that day for some reason. She thinks it was too cold or not enough oomph to get it going.

Somehow she was able to crank it by hand and go to work. I am now not sure if the battery is low or if there is something in remote start that senses voltage in battery.

It was same amount of cold when she tried it with remote start and by hand. I don’t think remote start is broken. it’s a fresh install

crowmolly > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 09:48

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When you replaced the battery did you get one with an equivalent or better CCA rating?

PartyPooper2012 > crowmolly 01/05/2018 at 09:50

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yeah. same rating. Oddly, today is even colder than the other day and car allegedly started just fine.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 09:56

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Just a cheap battery charger will work as well, and double as a jump starter if you need it. You can hook it up and set it to charge on a nice low amperage setting. The black a decker will work as a maintainer and is super simple to use. HF even has one that might be cheaper with a coupon. The Schumacher one is one that I’ve used a lot, I was able to pick it up for less than $40 on sale on amazon a while back, but they are nice to have on hand. This one won’t jump start though. Schumacher makes one that goes 2a, 10a, and 50a for jump starting. Orielly carries them and they are about $60.

Just keep the amperage low if you keep the battery hooked up to the car so you don’t damage any electrical curcuits in the car, or unhook the battery and juice it at 10amps or so. But it sure wouldn’t hurt to give it a bump for now. I just did this with my daily driver as well. And I typically will do it if the car sits for more than a few days as well. No sense stressing the battery or the charging system. Problem you’ll have is, you will burn up the alternator over time or trying to have it charge a weak battery.

crowmolly > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 09:56

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What brand battery?

PartyPooper2012 > crowmolly 01/05/2018 at 09:58

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I can’t remember. It was in the summer so it’s been out of my mind till when car didnt start.

Some autozone shit.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 09:59

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If you throw it on a tender once a week or so, and you should be good to go.

PartyPooper2012 > merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc 01/05/2018 at 09:59

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I’ll give it a whirl or drive her car once a week. We’ll see.

crowmolly > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 10:03

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Yeah, I wonder if the battery is actually OK. I’ve gotten 2 bum duralasts in the past year or so.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 10:05

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Was the dead battery the new one? If so, the battery might be shot too. Once you discharge the old school lead acid batteries, they sometimes will become damaged to the point that they won’t take a charge, or will take a charge, but then quickly lose it because of a bad cell. If it’s a newer style AGM style (think optima red top type) then those are much more resilient and can take some abuse of discharges and recharges.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > PartyPooper2012 01/05/2018 at 10:07

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You’d be better served to get a tender and run it a couple nights a week first. Otherwise you may kill the alternator, and that will be a pricier repair.