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BATTERY DEAD 30 DAYS OLD

3K views 26 replies 16 participants last post by  spiderserie4 
#1 ·
After My new to me Spider S4 laid idle for 5 days my new 30 day old battery didn't have enough crank power to start. Very low dim lights. I checked to see if I left anything on and found nothing. While I was using it more on a daily bacis it would start up anywhere every time. Gave it a jump and started right away, tried starting this morning dead again. The few receipts I have from the previous owner shows that the alternator was rebuilt 3 years ago. Any suggestions or advice for trouble shooting would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks and Frustrated,
Chuck
 
#2 ·
Morning Chuck, You might check the courtesy lights.They are located down low ,above your feet on the bottom of the dash,drivers side and passengers side..I have had countless cars towed to the shop for this same issue.Left on will kill a battery in no time at all.Also you might check the timer relay for these lights they tend to stay energized and kill the battery also.This relay is the tallest in the fuse panel,when they are stuck on it will be warm to the touch.Good Luck Paul
 
#4 ·
testing for a parasitic drain

It is not impossible you got sold a dud battery. If you find no parasitic drain, give the battery back
while you are there with the multimeter you might as well check the alternator charge as well: start car and let idle, set meter to 20VDC, connect up to battery poles, it should read 13.8 - 14.4V
 

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#5 · (Edited)
If you don't have a multimeter, a simple test is to fully charge the battery, then disconnect one of its cables prior to not using the car for a few days. If it will still start the car five days later, then clearly there had been a parasitic drain. But, of course, this test requires a few days.
 
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#9 ·
Try taking off the positive cable and put a multi meter between the cable and the post, make sure that everything is right off. Check and see what voltage is there, you may have to remove all the fuses as well especially if you have a clock or radio, usually both of those are hooked up to constant power but they only draw a minimal amount of amps ( different then voltage, the clock and radio will draw full battery voltage ) Checking amp draw is very hard to do, it requires a special tester, expensive!
Doing a voltage draw test will at least tell you if there is a draw or not, finding it is another story You can also try putting the fuses back in one at a time and see if the draw changes
 
#11 ·
Good Morning Thanks for the clear explanation unfortunately my multi-meter died on me so I have to buy a new one. Any suggestions for a good meter brand? I also purchased a adjustable Voltage Regulator as mine seemed a bit worn out. The brushes wore unevenly maybe it wasn't installed correctly in any case for $30 it couldn't hurt.
Thanks,
Chuck
 
#13 ·
Make sure your radio is turned all the way off. Don't assume it is off and on trickle (to maintain time and presets) just because the ignition switch is off. Also, check the lighted visor above the passenger seat. It's possible to leave that bulb on even when the visor is flipped up.
 
#14 ·
I will almost guarantee it is the courtesy lights under the dash at your feet. They have an on feature by pushing upward on one side. My size eleven feet hit it on every time. Had numerous “dead” batteries until I figured it out. Take out the bulb. There is one on passenger side too.
 
#16 ·
First have the auto parts check the output of the alt with the car running. Next have them test the state of the battery once has been fully charged or replaced as it could just be you got a bad battery.... could it be that easy??? You should also check for a current draw with a multi meter. A normal drain is a value under 50 ma +/- 30 ma (about). Any more draw then that will drain the battery to a state were it will not start the car in as little as a few weeks or less. Most new batteries will have a charge of 12.5 to 12.8 volts not 13.5 plus. Check the simple things like all the courtesy lights, radios amplifiers etc buy disconnecting them and see if that is a potential problem. Good luck
 
#18 ·
You can check for parasitic drain with a test light. Remove the positive battery cable and connect a test light (with a filament bulb not an LED bulb) between the battery positive terminal and the positive battery cable. The light should not come on. If you have electronic ignition and and ECU controlled ignition system you may get a faint light. If the light is on and visibly bright then you have a parasitic drain. Pull fuses until the light goes out. That will tell you what circuit the drain in on. Very likely you have a stuck door switch or some other reason an inside light is staying on. In spiders its often the map light in the rear view mirror. Have found intermittent shorts there is several cars.
 
#19 ·
bought a multimeter yet?
when you get one, do the tests mentioned above by various people, then report back.

One of the best makes is a Fluke ($$$), but any 20$ digital tester from the local shops will do.
..... as an alfa owner, you will need it again in the future !
 
#20 ·
Yes the Fluke is a very good meter. I worked in an electronic lab for a number of years using them. I wrote to the "Fluke company" suggesting a new slogan for their advertising companion.
It was, "If it's a Fluke, it's accurate".
I never did hear back from them after all these years. ;)
 
#21 ·
It is true that Fluke meters are very good but a cheap Chinese meter is fine for making voltage measurements on a car. I have known two people who had meters explode in their hands when testing on 480 volt equipment and they would only use Fluke thereafter.
 
#22 ·
Just checking... Are you pulling the key out of the ignition or just leaving it in? Some people leave the keys in if it’s parked in a secure garage & this will keep a relay energized and cause excessive drain. When you pull out the key the relay opens. I always pull the key and just leave it resting next to the ignition.
 
#23 ·
I leave the key in the ignition when parked in my garage. I didn't know by leaving it in will keep a relay energized and drain the battery. I should have my meter delivered by tomorrow to start the trouble shooting. Thanks for all the great tips and procedures. I'll advise on the out come.
Chuck
 
#24 ·
That is most probably the issue. This generation Bosch electronics keeps one of the relays energized which draws more amps than with the key out of the car. Same situation happens in older BMWs from the same era. Pull the key out and the battery shouldn't have the same issue. Keep in mind that if you drained this battery good it might not keep a full charge anymore and might need replacement.
Good Luck!
 
#25 ·
I found that 'leave key in' thing hard to believe, so I went out to my S4 and tested it

my results: Euro S4 with the key left in the ignition has no draw.

tests:
0,02amp nominal draw, normal for radio and clock (doors shut and timer allowed to turn off)
put key in IGN, still 0.02amp draw
turn key to first notch, still 0.02amp draw.

otoh, leave a door open (even though the footwell lights are not on) and draw jumps to 0.20 amps....that will drain a battery after a time no problem

NB: it is possible that USA S4s are different, because you have the seatbelt warning buzzer stuff.....perhaps there 'the key left in IGN' does allow for a drop on top of the nominal 0.02amps
one of you guys is going to have to test that:)
 
#26 ·
Now you have me doubting myself! I just remember having dead batteries on our ‘89 325 which has a similar Bosch Motronic system and my ‘91 Spider had if I left the key in. I have just made it a habit to remove the keys and have some comfort hearing the steering lock “click.”
I will re-test this next time I’m with both the both cars .. still have both though the ‘91 was replaced by a ‘94 Spider.
 
#27 ·
I agree, I always remove the keys even if it is in the garage.....if it gets stolen and the ins. company finds out the car door was open with the key in the IGN, they won't pay your claim....garage or no garage.
they'd call it gross negligence.
 
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