Battery health?

daveyjp

Some batteries aren't sealed and fluid levels can be checked.  If yours is like this check before splashing out.  It only needs one cell to be low for problems to occur.

pallyman

I had my car refusing to start and only do low mileage and in winter keep leaving the lights on when i have gone in the supermarket etc,so bought a 12v-24v smart charger and pulse charged it overnight and its been fine since,But i did think at the time i might need a new battery but the charger would be handy anyway .

almillar

Cap2019 said:

almillar said:

Sorry, didn't realise I was being miserable, I just didn't want you getting stuck. I think one battery is past it, the one that struggled to start a car. You may get a few months out of it if it survives the winter, or it may not start your car tomorrow. You're taking a gamble (and yes, so have I!).

Sorry about my rudeness, I’m really not trying to cheap out on a new battery if that’s what is needed I just want to make sure I’m not replacing it if I don’t need to! I also didn’t realise what a faff it was to change the battery of a modern car with all their computers and such. It won’t be long before we can’t even top up the windscreen wash.  

No problem. In my opinion, you do need to. It's already only just started once. How much of a chance do you want to take. I think the risks about batteries and computers are overblown. Disconnect and reconnect properly (as advised in this thread) and it's fine. A computer that can't be 'powered down' isn't very good! Access is what has got more difficult over the years.