Battery Flat/Good/Flat/Good/ Flat

[JakeTVR]

Returned from 2 weeks in the US to start up the the Chim on a lovely cold sunny day. Nothing. Battery flat.
After much searching and reading of the bible I discovered where the battery is located (I know i don't know one end of a spanner from the other) After much fiddling and messing about on a cold garage floor managed to attach trickle charger and charge for 7 hours. Started first time. Took for 50 mile run roof off, silly hat on, great. Went back to the the US for one week.... battery dead again. repeated whole thing again. same result.
Am I going to have to do this every time I leave for 1 week plus ? or is the battery knackered ?
Are the chargers which plug into ciggie lighter any good ? should I buy one.

[Big Al.]

To answer your two questions, OH & Oh .

Sounds like you’re an ideal candidate for one!

Save all that grovelling around on the garage floor every week.

[yiw1393]

Loads of threads on here regarding batteries, but in a nutshell........

1. Once your battery has gone flat it's time to get a new one. Halfords seems to be the cheapest.

2. Get a battery conditioner - cigar lighter on or plug direct to battery - I don't have one but (touch wood) use my car regularly.

3. Alternatively give the keys to trusted friend and let them drive it every day then again maybe not.

[shpub]

Trickle charging for 7 hours is not going to recharge a flat battery. It will need a recharge and driving around for 50 miles isn't enough either. It will need to be recharged overnight. See if you can borrow one if you don't have one.

Once the battery is charged, a conditioner is a god send. I have an Optimate one and another I got from a Motor Factors. Both good and keeping batteries alive.

[m142 yum]

I bought a conditioner with all the leads for the Cig lighter a few weeks ago as I was having exactly the same problem. Ten days and the battery would not have enough kick to turn the engine. I bought a conditioner from Leven who were really helpfull, and delivered next day. Car has been fine ever since and starts on the button every time. You must remember that the conditioner will ony work if the battery has some charge. It will not bring a compltely flat battery back as it does not have enough power to start the chemical reaction. Have a look at this thread. www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?f=8&h=&t=65601 .

[shnozz]

I have just bought a new battery ready to stick in this weekend. Its a bargain from Maccess (thanks AlanS ) £30

In addition I have got a conditioner which i can plug in and have been whilst the old battery has been running down within days. Only prob being that I dont have outside power so have to run extension leads out of windows etc which is a pain in the a*se.

The conditioner is a wedge automotive one..

[JakeTVR]

Ok,
Thanks Guys.
Now charged battery for 36 hours over weekend. But nothing happend on turning the ignition this morning. Just the usual whirrs and clicks but no sign of it turning over. My conclusion from this is the battery is completley Knackered. So looks like a new battery job.
Reading the bible this looks like a complex job (bear in mind I am mechanically challenged at the best of times)With nasty things like drilled rivets etc.
Is this something I should realistically attempt or am I better off getting it to a TVR garage ? Usually use Christopher Neil
If the latter then whats the best way to do this given that the car is currently immobile ?

[raceboy]

Getting the battery off is really quite easy
Lie on the floor with your head at the front of the passenger side door opening, under the floor you'll see 2 (about 13mm) Bolt heads, undo these.
Take all the carpet out of the passenger footwell and put a mark on the fiberglass floor where the battery box fits, and a mark on the box to allow you to refit it in the right plane left to right and far enough back
Now pull it all forward, disconnect and remove from the car, then......

the man from Haynes said:

Refit is reverse of removal

[shnozz]

i tend to leave the battery box in situ and simply remove the battery from it by hand and pull it out. Whats the advantage of messing around unbolting the box surround?

[raceboy]

Well on mine (94 4.0) the battery is going nowhere in the up direction untill the box it's in is clear of the footwell

[M@H]

shnozz said:

i tend to leave the battery box in situ and simply remove the battery from it by hand and pull it out. Whats the advantage of messing around unbolting the box surround?

We have a different Battery setup to the later cars though Shnozz.. ours is much easier.

Cheers
Matt.

[trefor]

JakeTVR said:

Ok, Thanks Guys. Now charged battery for 36 hours over weekend. But nothing happend on turning the ignition this morning. Just the usual whirrs and clicks but no sign of it turning over. My conclusion from this is the battery is completley Knackered. So looks like a new battery job. Reading the bible this looks like a complex job (bear in mind I am mechanically challenged at the best of times)With nasty things like drilled rivets etc. Is this something I should realistically attempt or am I better off getting it to a TVR garage ? Usually use Christopher Neil If the latter then whats the best way to do this given that the car is currently immobile ?

Join the AA/RAC. Get them to grovel in the footwell - they'll be able to tell you if it's the battery not holding charge or something else too ...

Then get a trickle charge if you have the facilities. Or a solar charger if the car/storage location doesn't have power.

[shpub]

M@H said:

shnozz said: i tend to leave the battery box in situ and simply remove the battery from it by hand and pull it out. Whats the advantage of messing around unbolting the box surround? We have a different Battery setup to the later cars though Shnozz.. ours is much easier. No it doesn't but does explain all those acid burns and bruises on your forehead caused by the inability to hold the battery in place with two hands while using your third and fourth to undo things... Cheers Matt.

[M@H]

shpub said:

M@H said: shnozz said: i tend to leave the battery box in situ and simply remove the battery from it by hand and pull it out. Whats the advantage of messing around unbolting the box surround? We have a different Battery setup to the later cars though Shnozz.. ours is much easier. No it doesn't but does explain all those acid burns and bruises on your forehead caused by the inability to hold the battery in place with two hands while using your third and fourth to undo things...

hmm.. will have to go and check my bible then, could have sworn the early Chim had a smaller battery etc. Which car did the battery location change on then, the griff..?? (I know one of them did !) I have not looked in a 2000 Chimaera so excuse my mistake..
Cheers,
Matt

>> Edited by M@H on Monday 8th December 13:58

[shnozz]

M@H said:

shpub said: M@H said: shnozz said: i tend to leave the battery box in situ and simply remove the battery from it by hand and pull it out. Whats the advantage of messing around unbolting the box surround? We have a different Battery setup to the later cars though Shnozz.. ours is much easier. No it doesn't but does explain all those acid burns and bruises on your forehead caused by the inability to hold the battery in place with two hands while using your third and fourth to undo things... hmm.. will have to go and check my bible then, could have sworn the early Chim had a smaller battery etc. Which car did the battery location change on then, the griff..?? (I know one of them did !) I have not looked in a 2000 Chimaera so excuse my mistake.. Cheers, Matt >> Edited by M@H on Monday 8th December 13:58

well having read the bible yesterday on the subject I also recall it saying that the earlier chims had a smaller "hole" and this is why i concluded the Fiamm 072 that i had bought would fit in there.

[RiverGirrl]

I think the best advice, which I will echo from earlier is: get a new battery I had trouble with my old one last winter, and the RAC confirmed it was knackered. Bought a new one, went to Canada for 2.5 weeks for Christmas, returned to the UK, turned the key, and was greeted with the pleasing sound of the V8 rumble. And all that with no charger. Then promptly took Ruby out for a serious caning