Battery connector not working... of jump lead too thin?
Discussion
Hi
The last time I had a flat battery, the AA guy and myself were not able to jump start the car using the battery connector (below the car) but we eventually managed to jump start it removing the wheel and connecting his own jump leads to the battery directly.
Have you been in that situation as well? Do you think it's because I have a faulty battery connector below my car... or my jump lead is too thin? (he think that's the reason...)
thank you
The last time I had a flat battery, the AA guy and myself were not able to jump start the car using the battery connector (below the car) but we eventually managed to jump start it removing the wheel and connecting his own jump leads to the battery directly.
Have you been in that situation as well? Do you think it's because I have a faulty battery connector below my car... or my jump lead is too thin? (he think that's the reason...)
thank you
I think that you need to look at the thread at the top of the Tuscan area entitled "Warning - Battery Charge Point".
Several owners have had problems as the connectors under the car degrade and crack. At best you can't charge the car, at worst you get electrical shorts and even in extreme cases a fire.
Even if this hasn't happened, the charge point will either be corroded (so that you don't get a good contact) or full of rubbish. Get it checked.
I would be surprised if it was anything to do with your cables - if they have the right connector on the end then they will have been specced to work.
Several owners have had problems as the connectors under the car degrade and crack. At best you can't charge the car, at worst you get electrical shorts and even in extreme cases a fire.
Even if this hasn't happened, the charge point will either be corroded (so that you don't get a good contact) or full of rubbish. Get it checked.
I would be surprised if it was anything to do with your cables - if they have the right connector on the end then they will have been specced to work.
I had the same problem. Flat battery and couldn't jump the car from the Anderson connector under the car. The AA man reckoned the cable from the Anderson connector to the battery wasn't capable of carrying the charge for a jump start - only trickle charging. So we had to take off the wheel and connect the jump leads directly to the battery.
The car was very new at the time, so I don't think there was any corrosion etc - I just don't think TVR intended the plug under the car to be used for anything other than trickle charging
The car was very new at the time, so I don't think there was any corrosion etc - I just don't think TVR intended the plug under the car to be used for anything other than trickle charging
Edited by TUS 2 CON on Tuesday 27th September 01:37
Actually I suspect something else. The cables should be able to supply enough current. The connector is certainly upto the job but the Tuscan connector is ID keyed and it is quite possible to think that you have plugged in but without making any connection. It will look as if it goes in but it doesn't go far enough to make contact. Normally the "standard" connector to use is the RED one but this is not ID compatible with the TVR one (gray). I suspect the AA man had a red connector.
It has happened to me a couple of times so I now use modified connectors on my jump lead sets etc that are universal and will accept any plug of the right size.
The issue with the connector and fires is more to do with the fact that the original leads are only crimped and the plug is very exposed. The cover is described as a dust cap and the manufacturers do not make any claim for its waterproofness. Corrosion gets in as a result, the lead breaks and shorts out. To overcome this, an owner asked me to do a more resilient connector assembly. I use several layers of adhesive heatshrink that seals the connections and effectively glues the cable to the connector and housing. The end result is a more weather resistant assembly and one were the cable can't come loose even if corrosion gets through the sealed heatshrink.
It has happened to me a couple of times so I now use modified connectors on my jump lead sets etc that are universal and will accept any plug of the right size.
The issue with the connector and fires is more to do with the fact that the original leads are only crimped and the plug is very exposed. The cover is described as a dust cap and the manufacturers do not make any claim for its waterproofness. Corrosion gets in as a result, the lead breaks and shorts out. To overcome this, an owner asked me to do a more resilient connector assembly. I use several layers of adhesive heatshrink that seals the connections and effectively glues the cable to the connector and housing. The end result is a more weather resistant assembly and one were the cable can't come loose even if corrosion gets through the sealed heatshrink.
Check your Anderson connector.
The factory design for the connector is flawed. As shpub advised there are methods to improve its design.
The main reasons in my opinion it fails are:-
Moisture getting inside the connector as there is no factory weather proofing from above, so heat shrunk cables and glued/sealed in connection to keep moisture out is a must.
The fit of the charging/jump Anderson connector is a tight one so when they are fitted blind they can be forced and the connectors can break/crack especially when old as they get more brittle.
The connector on the car is held in place by two M5 bolts onto a bit of thin right angled bracket welded onto the chassis. When corrosion sets in, plastic gone brittle and you’re trying to force the connector on blind, things crack/break/bend and you won’t know unless you take the battery out to check which not enough people do or things catch fire.
The cables that run from the connector to the battery can also come out (over time) if they are not glued in.
On another note:-
The battery from factory has the terminals the wrong way round, positive near terminal near roasting hot chassis and the battery is hardly held in place by a poorly designed bracket.
I have made an upgrade kit that includes:-
Anderson connector with sealed in cabling with heat shrunk connections and addionally held in place/sealed by adhesive
Fixing Brackets for battery with positive terminal other side to chassis
Cabling for battery and Anderson connector correct lengths so less chance of vibrating/rubbing together and causing a short.
125amp fuses
New heat protective aluminium backed shield for +12v lead to starter.
I was thinking about making the kits, but was unsure if people had as much interest in this upgrade as I do.
The factory design for the connector is flawed. As shpub advised there are methods to improve its design.
The main reasons in my opinion it fails are:-
Moisture getting inside the connector as there is no factory weather proofing from above, so heat shrunk cables and glued/sealed in connection to keep moisture out is a must.
The fit of the charging/jump Anderson connector is a tight one so when they are fitted blind they can be forced and the connectors can break/crack especially when old as they get more brittle.
The connector on the car is held in place by two M5 bolts onto a bit of thin right angled bracket welded onto the chassis. When corrosion sets in, plastic gone brittle and you’re trying to force the connector on blind, things crack/break/bend and you won’t know unless you take the battery out to check which not enough people do or things catch fire.
The cables that run from the connector to the battery can also come out (over time) if they are not glued in.
On another note:-
The battery from factory has the terminals the wrong way round, positive near terminal near roasting hot chassis and the battery is hardly held in place by a poorly designed bracket.
I have made an upgrade kit that includes:-
Anderson connector with sealed in cabling with heat shrunk connections and addionally held in place/sealed by adhesive
Fixing Brackets for battery with positive terminal other side to chassis
Cabling for battery and Anderson connector correct lengths so less chance of vibrating/rubbing together and causing a short.
125amp fuses
New heat protective aluminium backed shield for +12v lead to starter.
I was thinking about making the kits, but was unsure if people had as much interest in this upgrade as I do.
Full Throttle said:
Check your Anderson connector.
The factory design for the connector is flawed. As shpub advised there are methods to improve its design.
The main reasons in my opinion it fails are:-
Moisture getting inside the connector as there is no factory weather proofing from above, so heat shrunk cables and glued/sealed in connection to keep moisture out is a must.
The fit of the charging/jump Anderson connector is a tight one so when they are fitted blind they can be forced and the connectors can break/crack especially when old as they get more brittle.
The connector on the car is held in place by two M5 bolts onto a bit of thin right angled bracket welded onto the chassis. When corrosion sets in, plastic gone brittle and you’re trying to force the connector on blind, things crack/break/bend and you won’t know unless you take the battery out to check which not enough people do or things catch fire.
The cables that run from the connector to the battery can also come out (over time) if they are not glued in.
On another note:-
The battery from factory has the terminals the wrong way round, positive near terminal near roasting hot chassis and the battery is hardly held in place by a poorly designed bracket.
I have made an upgrade kit that includes:-
Anderson connector with sealed in cabling with heat shrunk connections and addionally held in place/sealed by adhesive
Fixing Brackets for battery with positive terminal other side to chassis
Cabling for battery and Anderson connector correct lengths so less chance of vibrating/rubbing together and causing a short.
125amp fuses
New heat protective aluminium backed shield for +12v lead to starter.
I was thinking about making the kits, but was unsure if people had as much interest in this upgrade as I do.
I had exactly the same issue. You may have to modify your Anderson connector on the jump leads.The factory design for the connector is flawed. As shpub advised there are methods to improve its design.
The main reasons in my opinion it fails are:-
Moisture getting inside the connector as there is no factory weather proofing from above, so heat shrunk cables and glued/sealed in connection to keep moisture out is a must.
The fit of the charging/jump Anderson connector is a tight one so when they are fitted blind they can be forced and the connectors can break/crack especially when old as they get more brittle.
The connector on the car is held in place by two M5 bolts onto a bit of thin right angled bracket welded onto the chassis. When corrosion sets in, plastic gone brittle and you’re trying to force the connector on blind, things crack/break/bend and you won’t know unless you take the battery out to check which not enough people do or things catch fire.
The cables that run from the connector to the battery can also come out (over time) if they are not glued in.
On another note:-
The battery from factory has the terminals the wrong way round, positive near terminal near roasting hot chassis and the battery is hardly held in place by a poorly designed bracket.
I have made an upgrade kit that includes:-
Anderson connector with sealed in cabling with heat shrunk connections and addionally held in place/sealed by adhesive
Fixing Brackets for battery with positive terminal other side to chassis
Cabling for battery and Anderson connector correct lengths so less chance of vibrating/rubbing together and causing a short.
125amp fuses
New heat protective aluminium backed shield for +12v lead to starter.
I was thinking about making the kits, but was unsure if people had as much interest in this upgrade as I do.
Please see the topic below for more info:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a... Heath - Anderson connector fitting - Have you checked?&mid=184571
I've been selling uprated anderson connector assemblies for some time. I also supply fuse holders and the infinitely better midi fuse as an alternative to the strip fuse.
thank you guys
my issue seem to be different this time, i suspect a completely dead battery, can you please confirm?
I was able to start the car plugging a booster directly onto the battery (removing the wheel, etc etc...). However, the engine wouldn't idle, had to stay above 2000 rpm or the engine would stall.
Stayed for a few minutes at 2000rpm, hoping this would charge the battery a little bit. But that wasn't enough to even move the starter again once I turned the ingnition key off and back on. Not enough juice to even close the windows!
---> does that prove my issue is a completely dead battery? Something else?
thank you
my issue seem to be different this time, i suspect a completely dead battery, can you please confirm?
I was able to start the car plugging a booster directly onto the battery (removing the wheel, etc etc...). However, the engine wouldn't idle, had to stay above 2000 rpm or the engine would stall.
Stayed for a few minutes at 2000rpm, hoping this would charge the battery a little bit. But that wasn't enough to even move the starter again once I turned the ingnition key off and back on. Not enough juice to even close the windows!
---> does that prove my issue is a completely dead battery? Something else?
thank you
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