Starter Battery

[Leo No2]

I have a small challenge. When I left my car in Weybridge to bring the boat back to Stoke Bruerne the battery warning light came on about five minutes before arriving at the boat. The battery is not old (9 months and still under guarantee) so I suspect it may be the alternator has failed on the car (8 years old and 70,000 miles). I will take my multimeter with me and check what voltage is at the battery before starting it (hopefully) and after. I expect, if the alternator is working, it will be about 14.2v.

 

As it is a day trip to get the car I don't suppose I'll have much chance of getting the alternator fixed if it is that which is playing up. I have been trying to do some lateral thinking and know that the boat starter battery is now almost 7 years old (and working fine) but I suspect it is getting towards the end of its useful life. I know the specification (90ah), the physical size of the battery and the terminal layout.

 

Now to the question (!). If I need to buy and new battery to get me home I thought I may as well buy one that would be suitable as a replacement starter battery for the boat as once the issue with the car is resolved I would expect the current battery to recharge and be OK so is there anything I need to be aware of if I need to buy a new battery to get me home so that it is suitable as a replacement starter battery for the boat.

 

Thank you in advance for any advice.

[Offcumden]

Presumably any of your boat batteries if fully charged would be able to start the car via jump leads IF I have read your post correctly

Edited October 7, 2013 by Offcumden

[Phil Ambrose]

You need to be aware that it may not be possible to fit a 90amp battery under your bonnet, if you can it would be best to start your journey so you arrive home in daylight allowing time to change the battery on the car. If you are sparing with power use on the car ie no radio,heater,wipers etc you may make it.

I have done this in the past but only over a relatively short (30 miles) distance. Good luck

 

Phil

Offcumden, I don't think starting is the issue but running the car as if no charge is going into the battery it will drain down as the ignition electric fuel pump etc consumes power.

Phil

[Offcumden]

Offcumden, I don't think starting is the issue but running the car as if no charge is going into the battery it will drain down as the ignition electric fuel pump etc consumes power.

Phil

I take your point Phil, however would the non charging alternator just ruin the new battery?

John

[Kwacker]

Alternator belt snapped?

[Robbo]

If you want the dogs balls of a starter battery: http://www.exideuk.com/em1000-start-orbital-agm-217-p.asp

[Kwacker]

Do alternators fail these days? I've certainly never experienced it personally, nor on any of the vehicles we have ever run, covering millions of miles.

[ditchcrawler]

Do alternators fail these days? I've certainly never experienced it personally, nor on any of the vehicles we have ever run, covering millions of miles.

The ones on boats do, often. So why shouldn't cars

[Kwacker]

The ones on boats do, often. So why shouldn't cars

I think that's more to do with the greater loading put on them ... do you know of anyone who has had an alternator fail on a car in the last ten years?

[tommytelford]

I think, as stated earlier, that your problem is more likely to be a fan belt. A failed battery would not normally cause the ignition light to come on and a dim ignition light rather than a bright one would probably suggest a ailing alternator unusual with a relatively modern vehicle..

 

Did you notice if the temperature gauge was rising or the steering getting heavier

[Phil Ambrose]

Your talking to one, not uncommon when I was a rep doing 45000 miled a year. The point is the OP needs to get his car home and just wants a solution to his problem not a discussion on the longevity of alternators.

Phil

[bigste]

Car alternators rarely fail. As said it is due to the load. The more the output the more it takes to turn the pulley so it has to put more wear on the boats alternator. Often it is the bearings wearing out that then causes the windings to short out due to a sloppy rotor bearing. Car alternators don't need as much output and therefore work less.

[Phil Ambrose]

Still the OP needs a solution not a disertation on modern alternators.

Phil

[Kwacker]

If she takes a new belt and an adjustable spanner it might be simpler than lugging a battery around

Edited October 7, 2013 by Kwacker

[Offcumden]

Phil,

Again I find myself agreeing with your sentiments,and I assume that Leo has checked that the fan belt is neither snapped or lose.

I have reread the original post and can find no indication of the distance of the car to home journey she has to make.

My understanding of a car alternator is that its function is to replace the initial drain on the battery that the starter takes out and then retain the charge which ,as you point out will be less if you do not use radio, air con etc.

My intial suggestion of using a fully charged battery to jump start the car still stands, I was not suggesting that it be connected in permanently and could be used to jump start the engine again should the existing battery fail en route.

HTH

John

Edited October 7, 2013 by Offcumden

[Leo No2]

Thanks for all your replies - the power steering is fine and the temperature was 'normal' - that's why I suspect the alternator but of course it may be a battery that just didn't last the course. I'll know that on Wednesday - I'll update with what I find.

 

I think if the car starts (2.0 HDi diesel) I should be OK - the plan was to run jump leads from the passenger side footwell to the battery if I needed to. Thanks for the advice re not running anything electrical.

[bottle]

the plan was to run jump leads from the passenger side footwell to the battery

 

If you do this please,please make sure the battery cannot move whilst you are moving, or keep moving when you stop.

 

Better to strap it down in the boot and only connect it if needed.

[bizzard]

Thanks for all your replies - the power steering is fine and the temperature was 'normal' - that's why I suspect the alternator but of course it may be a battery that just didn't last the course. I'll know that on Wednesday - I'll update with what I find.

 

I think if the car starts (2.0 HDi diesel) I should be OK - the plan was to run jump leads from the passenger side footwell to the battery if I needed to. Thanks for the advice re not running anything electrical.

That'll do it, if the leads aren't long enough lash the battery down on the bonnet and poke the leads through the grill or leave the bonnet popped on its security hook to get em in through there, but drive slowly in case the the hook lets go.

I once upon a time had an old 1954 Standard utility 8, when I bought it both bonnet hinges were broken completely. I left them broken because I found that as I, ''depending on wind speed and direction'' drove it up to the dizzy speed of about 45mph the wind ablowing through the grill would gently lift the rear end of the bonnet up and up, up,up until I couldn't see anymore, slow up a bit and it gently settled back down. This floating bonnet behaviour frightened my passengers terribly but it did stop me speeding when I'd had a few.

[Phil Ambrose]

Thank you Biz for bringing a grin to my day.

Phil

[bizzard]

Thank you Biz for bringing a grin to my day.

Phil

My pleasure. I later stuffed a Triumph Herald 1200 engine into that old car and lashed the bonnet down with a length of that springy curtain wire, the stuff you'd hang net curtains on. Well on a day out in kent with my terrified girl friend and a mate who went by the name of Arther Hancock and his bird shortly after the Dartford tunnel had opened. The run up to the tunnel on the Kent side on the way home is on a long long downhill gradient so I floored the old Standard to see what it could do and its speedo went off the clock at 80mph. At this dizzy speed the whole car was viberating and atwitter. The toll booths were alooming up in the distance, time to apply the brakes. Now the brakes on those cars were tiny little drum brakes and I applied em hard, the toll booths were looming closer and closer, fast!!, I stood on the peddle and got the speed down to about 45mph and then they just completely faded out, the heady pong of of overheated brake linings was awful, so hand brake also hard on now with no apparent reduction in speed whatever, in fact it seemed to make it go faster. The toll booths were upon us now which had no actual stop barriers just a flashing red stop light in those days and we shot straight through almost into the tunnel mouth where the road leveled out a bit and I managed restrain the beastie and force it to a halt after a rush of extra adrenalin which unleashed some extra power in my right leg muscles. I reversed back to the toll booth rather sheepishly and embarrassingly paid my toll with smoke billowing from the brakes. The chap in the toll booth seemed non plussed, I reckon he'd seen performances like it before. Once through the bloomin tunnel we stopped at the Albion on the A13 for a good old drink whilst the brakes cooled down and recovered their stopping ability.

Edited October 7, 2013 by bizzard

[Phil Ambrose]

Happy days eh Biz, got a few stories like myself, couldn't get away with stuff like that today.

 

Phil

[ditchcrawler]

That'll do it, if the leads aren't long enough lash the battery down on the bonnet and poke the leads through the grill or leave the bonnet popped on its security hook to get em in through there, but drive slowly in case the the hook lets go.

I once upon a time had an old 1954 Standard utility 8, when I bought it both bonnet hinges were broken completely. I left them broken because I found that as I, ''depending on wind speed and direction'' drove it up to the dizzy speed of about 45mph the wind ablowing through the grill would gently lift the rear end of the bonnet up and up, up,up until I couldn't see anymore, slow up a bit and it gently settled back down. This floating bonnet behaviour frightened my passengers terribly but it did stop me speeding when I'd had a few.

Just been a chap on BBC news doing that, driving with the bonnet open. He got nicked.