Guest Fast Frog Posted November 19, 2001 Share Posted November 19, 2001 Since my V8 conversion 6 yrs ago, I've been going thru a battery a yr!! I started with a 725 cranking amp batt and now have a 1025 ca batt purchased Feb this yr! About this time each yr the batt starts to get weak. 1). I don't drive the car that much-2 or 3 times a wk for 5 or 6 miles each time. 2). The only continuous drain is the Kenwood sound sys memory which retains the car radio settings. 3). Comp ratio is only 9.5 to 1. 4). Do have a mini-starter. I used to blame the early death of these batts on the Paxton SC due to its tighness and lack of free spinning. But I sold the Paxton a yr ago before buying this current batt. So it has to be something else!! Also factor this! All these batts have been purchased from Walmart?? ?? These batts are supposed to last 5-6 yrs. They do on our other cars. Anyone have any ideas or suggestions?? Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted November 19, 2001 Share Posted November 19, 2001 Do they die completely and not allow you to recharge them? Have you been recharging during the course of that one year? There's no way that radio could drain your battery so quickly. You mentioned this time of year but I'm sure you've bought batteries that stand up to the cold in your location. Hopefully your batteries are under warranty. Have you done hydrometer tests, etc? Possibly your charging system is not working correctly or something else is draining the battery overnite, etc. The only thing I can think of now is to buy a battery elsewhere (get the heaviest one, they have more plating inside which provides greater surface area for sulfation) and maybe changing your starter. Owen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pparaska Posted November 19, 2001 Share Posted November 19, 2001 If a lead acid battery is allowed to get too low on voltage, it shortens it's life considerably. This is even worse with low to no maintenance batteries. How much voltage do you get at the battery when the alternator is charging it? I've you've relocated the battery and the wire is too long and not of a sufficient gage for the length, it won't get a full recharge from the alternator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin_Jason Posted November 19, 2001 Share Posted November 19, 2001 Greetings Rick, Sorry to hear about your battery drain woes. These gremlins can be tricky to track down..but arent impossible. Well from the sound of it you are either.. a: Using alittle more current per drive than you are recharging from your alternator. This would be from a low output alternator, to much resistance in the line between the alternator + and the battery such as a poor connection like corroded contacts (pay close attention to your ground wires also..they are just as suspect as the positives)..or possibly (but not probably) you arent spinning the alternator fast enough. Its also possible to drive a car to little to recharge the current you use at start up. If you crank the thing a bit to get it started..and only drive around the block...its not gonna charge much. b: You have something within the circuit that is drawing current steadily that is slowly draining your battery. If nothing stands out as obvious to you, here's what i would do.. Take a close look at the connector on your alternator and make sure the connections are all making good,clean contact. Next, take a good look at your ground wire from the battery to the chassis. Verify that you arent corroded at the terminal and you have a good,clean connection at the chassis (the chassis ground sounds suspect to me). Just make sure you have good contact between the alternator and the battery and you have a solid ground. With the car running (might need to be above 1500-2000rpm) you should see over 14 volts at the battery from the alternators charge (on the battery post...not the terminal. This will prove that its making it to the battery). If you arent..backtrack the wire to the alternator. If the output of the alternator is well under 14 volts..alternators bad or isnt spinning fast enough. If it has a good output but it isnt making it to the battery post..its in the wires between the two. If your alternator checks out ok then you probably have something thats draining your battery ever so slightly. This can be alittle tedious to find..but it sounds like you have the initiative. Get a multimeter and put it on the DC CURRENT setting. Now, while the car is sitting idle with nothing on, remove a battery terminal and put the meter in series between the terminal and the battery post. You might see a small current draw register on the meter. If you do..you can play sherlock holmes now. Start by removing fuses from suspect circuits. When you remove the fuse from the circuit thats draining your battery, youll see the current on the meter go away. Now you know which circuit its in. Then its just a matter of tracing through the circuit and finding the issue. I would remove power from any aftermarket gear such as stereo equipment first. Hope this gets ya started off in the right direction. Good luck finding your gremlin. Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Fast Frog Posted November 19, 2001 Share Posted November 19, 2001 Owen, Pete: When the batt starts to act up, I usually don't try to bench charge it. I just take it back to WM and a brand new one. Pete, I've the batt in the back in the spare tire well. I've got it connected with either #2 or #4 cable. The volt guage registers 14-15 volts when driving. ??????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted November 19, 2001 Share Posted November 19, 2001 When driving that's the alternator voltage I think....that means that there very well could be something discharging your battery. As mentioned above, a short drive isn't going to charge your battery, guy at a gas station once told me to drive at least 10 miles? Owen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pparaska Posted November 19, 2001 Share Posted November 19, 2001 Rick, make sure you have 14volts at 2000+ rpm AT THE BATTERY. No sure where you're voltage gage is hooked up. 4 gage is plenty for charging, but what size is the wire from the alternator to the 4 gage? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Fast Frog Posted November 20, 2001 Share Posted November 20, 2001 Jason, Pete ,Owen!! Thanx for the tips!! I do NEED to get a voltmeter thingy to do simple elect tests. So that's in the works real soon. And yes, I seldom drive more than the 6-7 miles around the neighborhood As a matter of fact, i've not even put 400 miles since I changed out the batt in Feb!!! I may just need to drive it for longer distances??!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted November 20, 2001 Share Posted November 20, 2001 What about an Optima battery? Mine's been sitting on my garage floor for two months and when I last checked, it was 12.4V. Owen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted November 20, 2001 Share Posted November 20, 2001 I have had an Optima red top for over 3 years now and it works great. I seldom drive the car but that battery is rock solid. I will replace every battery I have with Optima from now on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pparaska Posted November 20, 2001 Share Posted November 20, 2001 I'd think if you didn't have to crank it forever, but only a few revolutions to get it started, AND it was getting good voltage from the alternator, even 6 miles would be enough. But if you have a slow draw on the battery, it may be bringing it down low enough that 6 miles isn't enough to keep it charged up. Do that drain test and see exactly how much is being drawn from the battery when the car is off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Fast Frog Posted December 7, 2001 Share Posted December 7, 2001 Hey guys! I think I've solved the dying battery prob! I've taken the advise of a couple of you and have been driving the car more often and for longer distances. Eventho it's getting colder, the car is starting quicker and without the laboring that it was undergoing a few wks ago. Thanks again for the tips!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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