My car won't start - What to check before I call the AA?
Discussion
Due to prolonged illness, my 57 BMW 130i has been sat on my drive since December unused.
This is what I'm faced with:
1 - Car opens on the fob, interior lights come on.
2 - Folding iDrive screen opens when I put the key into the slot.
3 - I can hear the fuel pump whir once the key goes into the slot
4 - Hit the start button, hear a warning chime from the iDrive but no message and then just getting a clicking noise.
Could this simply be that the battery is nearly flat and only has enough juice to do low power activities? Or should I be looking at other options?
This is what I'm faced with:
1 - Car opens on the fob, interior lights come on.
2 - Folding iDrive screen opens when I put the key into the slot.
3 - I can hear the fuel pump whir once the key goes into the slot
4 - Hit the start button, hear a warning chime from the iDrive but no message and then just getting a clicking noise.
Could this simply be that the battery is nearly flat and only has enough juice to do low power activities? Or should I be looking at other options?
- There is 1/4 fuel left in the tank when I left it last year
If you can, measure the battery voltage when the car is at rest. 12.6V represents fully charged. 12.0V represents fully discharged. Below 12.0V means the battery has been excessively discharged and may have been damaged.
If the battery is discharged and you have a charger, you could put it on charge overnight and see whether that fixes the problem. If not, you will need a new battery.
If you don't have a voltmeter or battery charger, you can either get somebody else to do those things for you, or just fit a new battery. You may end up needing that anyway.
If you don't address the underlying problem that caused the battery to go flat, the new one will go the same way. A battery maintainer is the best way to maintain the battery on a car that isn't used much.
If the battery is discharged and you have a charger, you could put it on charge overnight and see whether that fixes the problem. If not, you will need a new battery.
If you don't have a voltmeter or battery charger, you can either get somebody else to do those things for you, or just fit a new battery. You may end up needing that anyway.
If you don't address the underlying problem that caused the battery to go flat, the new one will go the same way. A battery maintainer is the best way to maintain the battery on a car that isn't used much.
plasticpig said:
The AA will jump start it using a booster pack. They will then check the health of the battery. They should also be able to code a new battery if you need one. I had a new battery fitted by the AA last year. They were slightly more expensive than buying on line by £10 or so.
Thanks, I think I will go down this route.GreenV8S said:
If you don't address the underlying problem that caused the battery to go flat, the new one will go the same way. A battery maintainer is the best way to maintain the battery on a car that isn't used much.
I don't have access to anyone with that equipment unfortunately. I've only done 900 miles between MOT's, so that's probably not helped with battery health. Once it is moving again I will be putting it up for sale as we're going to give a one car family a try.
Thanks for all your help chaps.
If you don't want the faff of running a plug socket vaguely near the car then the solar-powered chargers can be enough to keep a battery topped up - sit it on the parcel shelf/dash and plug into a permanently live 12V socket (probably in the boot on BMW if the dashboard one goes off)
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