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battery dying

9K views 18 replies 9 participants last post by  Red Raspberry 
#1 ·
Any suggestions, 2009 Accent GL Sport manual transmission. Battery keeps dying. 2 batteries over the last 9 months. This is on my son's car. Replaced battery and a few months later it's dead again. Had the system checked no drains on the battery, alternator work great. No fathom drains in the system. The car can set for a week before being driven. The only thing we can think of, because it's not driven every day, the little battery drains out by the systems in the car(clock, etc.). we think there's a .8 amp drain or less.

can anyone think of anything else?

cheers
 
#2 ·
Seems like you covered the main items, but a few things I'm curious about:
- How does the battery that "died" behave? It no longer takes a charge? Any residual voltage? Have you had it load tested? Any unusual appearance or smell?
- How are you testing the charging system? (and know "The alternator works great")? Can you provide voltage readings with and without the engine running?
- How are you arriving at a guess of 0.8A or less of parasitic load?

My first thoughts are that the battery might be seeing too much voltage and overcharging until it fails. I'm also a bit wary of the possibility there is nearly an amp of drain -- this seems excessive to me, though perhaps I'm mistaken. Finally, how long did the previous battery last? If the history of failure is one extra replacement, it's possible the replacement was a defective battery.
 
#3 ·
0.8A of drain is normal. That will not drain a battery over a week. I see batteries sit for several weeks with 0.8 and they recover fine. That said, it depends on driving habits (assuming you have not gotten bad batteries). If it sits for a week then is used to run 5 min trips over the weekend then it sits again for another week, that will drain a battery over time. If you run any less than a 20 min trip, the act of starting the car takes more out of the battery than the alternator has a chance to put that charge back in.

Just because the vehicle was checked for a parasitic drain and tested at 0.8A, it doesn't mean that a light wasn't left on when the car was sitting.

The alternator needs to be properly tested, it could have good voltage and amperage but still have an open diode which will fry a battery.

After sitting for a week what is the voltage of the battery?
 
#6 ·
EGADS!!!

I put a used AutoZone (Duralast) battery in my Mazda, and paid $19 for it at Autozone.

That was 5 years ago. I gave the car away in April, and the battery is STILL in the car!
 
#7 ·
3 batteries since 2009 -- in winter they all froze. Alternator is perfect,, the drain on the battery is low normal, that number might not be correct can't remember if 0.8 is correct. battery is just about done. Load test confirmed this. No fathom drains,it has all been tested. What I trying to ask why would batteries in this car die quickly. My only thought is setting long times, and only be driven to town and back once a week (or once in 2 weeks). Trip 40miles or 65 kilometers round trip. I will be able to have this replaced thru warranty, but that's not the point.

fyi-- water level in the battery is perfect, so no dry cells either
 
#8 ·
Holy Cats! The batteries froze??? Where the hack are you, upper Yukon???

It appears the lack of driving my be your biggest issue, coupled with the cold. I can't imagine right now it is that cold where you are.

Do you keep buying the same brand of battery every time? If so I would certainly try another brand. Like I and someone else said, Exides do fairly well in the northeast. I have one in my Scion and it sits most of the winter with only a bit of a grunt when I start it in April.

What else I might suggest is putting some kind of trickle charger on it between starts, even one of those solar things that sits on the dash. Batteries to not like being deeply discharged and then charged all of a sudden, and it does wear them down prematurely.
 
#9 ·
Frozen battery won't effect it too much- unless it's frozen for long periods or often. But only putting on 40 miles/week will kill a battery. Get a battery tender. It attaches to the battery and plugs into power and keeps a steady 1.5A of power running through the battery. Alternatively you can get a battery charger and just charge the battery once every month BEFORE you need it charged. The chargers run usually around 6A/10A/30A options and often have an auto setting. Hook it up for a few hours on 6A once a month and you'll get much better life from the battery.

I see this every day in St. Petersburg, FL where I work. Elderly people will only drive to church and to the grocery store once a week and put very few miles on the car. They eat through batteries much more quickly than people who drive a lot.

What kills batteries: lack of use, overheating, vibration, age.
 
#10 ·
Frozen battery won't effect it too much- unless it's frozen for long periods or often.
A battery that has *actually* frozen, as in the electrolyte became solid, is usually screwed. The expanding water damages internal plates. This usually doesn't happen except in extreme cold (like, minus 60) -- unless the battery is discharged, just like the OP's has been. An uncharged battery can freeze almost as easily as regular water.

https://www.cars.com/articles/2014/02/can-a-car-battery-freeze/
 
#11 ·
The shop told my wife the battery is on the low amperage side. This is what happens when the car does short trips all week. Better to replace the battery every 3 years than to have it put too much stress on the charging system. I'm so guilty of not using my trickle charger. Actually I'm out on the road so its my wife's fault. LOL
 
#16 ·
Thanks for the replies, yes I have changed battery brand names. The Last 2 winters both brands froze almost but not solid. Was thinking the same, a low battery will freeze. I'm going to leave it on trickle charge from now on, which seems to work.

Cheers
 
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