How to stop your car battery from going flat - MSE Team Blog discussion

Percy1983

mmulligan said:

Buy an AA recommended solar booster, round £24.95 from Amazon Tried my car this a.m. and it's working - connect to the EU-mandated EOBD socket by your right foot. Yipee. 

Didn't know such a thing existed, as it is my car gets occasional use anyway so will help generally.

[Deleted User]

Dakota_2 said:

I suggest buying a float battery charger if your car is on your own property and within reach of power. You can get one for around £20. I don't recommend running your engine for 15 minutes, when diagnosing a battery problem with test equipment I discovered the engine RPM had to be 2000 for a decent alternator output. Lastly this rocking the car backwards and forwards is complete nonsense, cars are designed to be driven. I reccomend taking your car for a twenty minute drive every 3 weeks. After all I don't see the government offering to pay hefty repair bills. Just my 2p.

Well, I'm glad my summer is going to be one long shutdown at varying degrees thanks to the opinions of my fellow Brits who believe that the rules don't apply to them. What the hell is wrong with us as a country that we have become so self-entitled and arrogant, as well as dismissive of any serious argument or expert opinion that doesn't fit with one's vision of how life should treat them? 

Solstice

If you have a newish car it's also an idea to check your key fob. If you have a proximity fob it can drain your battery if the keys are kept too close to the car. I found this on my 2015 Skoda Fabia. The chip in the fob was periodically communicating with the car because the key rack was too close to the car on the drive. For a few quid I bought a Faraday bag (available both on and offline) to keep the keys in. This blocked the electronic signals and stopped the draining.

daivid

Robertoegg_2 said:

Dakota_2 said:

I suggest buying a float battery charger if your car is on your own property and within reach of power. You can get one for around £20. I don't recommend running your engine for 15 minutes, when diagnosing a battery problem with test equipment I discovered the engine RPM had to be 2000 for a decent alternator output. Lastly this rocking the car backwards and forwards is complete nonsense, cars are designed to be driven. I reccomend taking your car for a twenty minute drive every 3 weeks. After all I don't see the government offering to pay hefty repair bills. Just my 2p.

Well, I'm glad my summer is going to be one long shutdown at varying degrees thanks to the opinions of my fellow Brits who believe that the rules don't apply to them. What the hell is wrong with us as a country that we have become so self-entitled and arrogant, as well as dismissive of any serious argument or expert opinion that doesn't fit with one's vision of how life should treat them? 

Something of an over-reaction don't you think? Every car owner in the country taking a 20minute drive every 3 weeks would not in it's self have any impact on the lockdown. The majority if not all, with some thought, could make sure their 20 minute journey is necessary and 'essential' too.

liversb

I am sure there will be many people forking out a whole lot of money to replace their car batteries this winter with the lock-downs/reduced travel. General advise to drive your car for 20 minutes every 2 weeks is okay, but you can save yourself several hundred pounds by doing the right thing ! Modern Intelligent Battery chargers that can be connected whilst the car battery is still in the car will prevent deterioration and can extend the life of the battery for years(desulfator). I have spent £23 on a new charger and using it every 2-3 weeks for about 4 hours has definitely meant that I don't have to spend £350 on a new battery for a couple of years, and don't need to drive for 20 minutes every 2 weeks. Perhaps won't work for everyone and if your battery is too far gone, it won't help, but if you catch it early enough, you can save several hundred pounds. 

fred246

£350 is pretty expensive for a battery. Never spent much more than £100 and that's for a very large car. My Ctek battery charger has been one of my best 'investments' I would say.

gwapenut

liversb said:

I am sure there will be many people forking out a whole lot of money to replace their car batteries this winter with the lock-downs/reduced travel. General advise to drive your car for 20 minutes every 2 weeks is okay, but you can save yourself several hundred pounds by doing the right thing ! Modern Intelligent Battery chargers that can be connected whilst the car battery is still in the car will prevent deterioration and can extend the life of the battery for years(desulfator). I have spent £23 on a new charger and using it every 2-3 weeks for about 4 hours has definitely meant that I don't have to spend £350 on a new battery for a couple of years, and don't need to drive for 20 minutes every 2 weeks. Perhaps won't work for everyone and if your battery is too far gone, it won't help, but if you catch it early enough, you can save several hundred pounds. 

Which one did you get?

fred246

I think driving it for a few minutes is probably useful for other components though.

TheShape

gwapenut said:

liversb said:

I am sure there will be many people forking out a whole lot of money to replace their car batteries this winter with the lock-downs/reduced travel. General advise to drive your car for 20 minutes every 2 weeks is okay, but you can save yourself several hundred pounds by doing the right thing ! Modern Intelligent Battery chargers that can be connected whilst the car battery is still in the car will prevent deterioration and can extend the life of the battery for years(desulfator). I have spent £23 on a new charger and using it every 2-3 weeks for about 4 hours has definitely meant that I don't have to spend £350 on a new battery for a couple of years, and don't need to drive for 20 minutes every 2 weeks. Perhaps won't work for everyone and if your battery is too far gone, it won't help, but if you catch it early enough, you can save several hundred pounds. 

Which one did you get?

I'm interested in a recommendation too.

Semple

fred246 said:

I think driving it for a few minutes is probably useful for other components though.

On the contrary, it's unlikely an engine will get upto optimum temperature after only driving for a few minutes. Even worse for diesel cars that require a hot engine in order to burn off the soot. Too many short journeys and the dpf starts to become blocked and past the point where a forced regen would normally burn off the soot.