Is it normal for my battery to run out in 2-3 weeks?

[WD Pro]

Just to finish off the info I was adding to this thread :

I ended up leaving the car for 25 days (before I got a dry salt free road ... lol).

Battery was still on green / 78% / 12.53v (at 3°C).

It unlocked and started fine, no messages, absolutely nothing out of the normal

What is interesting, is that starting it and running it did not fully restore the battery and after its short run (20 miles ish), the rate of decline was notably steeper than after the battery had been sat at 100% for a while before I started to test how long it would sit for :

WD

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[GR11M]

FYI it'll reset your Sync unit settings inc. sat nav destinations

 

[TimG]

Late 2016 model, is it normal for the battery of the car to run out after being parked for 2-3 weeks?

I try get someone to turn it on and leave it at idle for 5-10 minutes or so every couple weeks when I’m on holiday but i always come back to a dead car.

Others told me their germans don’t give them those issues. Wondering if the battery might be faulty, as this is majorly inconvenient, specially in today’s day and age.

5 - 10 minutes is probably not long enough, it may not have replaced the starting hit. Can you hook it up to a battery tender then it would be good after a several weeks?

My 2016 car did seem that the battery was not holding a charge as well as when new. After a 40 mile run last Thursday & moving it out to wash on Saturday on Tuesday it was totally dead. I knew how to remove the cover over the lock barrel in the door handle & use the key blade in the fob to get into the car. If you dont know check in the manual before its too late & for any other cars you drive before you disconnect or suffer a failed battery. Check the warning in the manual about changing the battery, you need to switch everything off & wait 2 minutes before disconnecting
I opened the bonnet & hooked up my smart charger, there was lots of relay clicking & DRLs flashing. My mistake I should have disconnected the battery first. After 1 hour charge at 6amp it went from an indicated 0 to 100% charge. Not on a good battery, after 5 hr charge & left overnight it was at 80%. New battery needed.

If you check for batteries online with your Reg number They will say you need a type 027 battery. This is too tall, you need a type 075 that will fit. A local place had one for £75, I took old one & compared. I tried a local Ford dealer for price, parts dont take phone calls you need to email, I'm still waiting a response.

On fitting the new battery I got a warning "Steering lock malfunction check manual" & a yellow spanner warning & car would not start. As with all computers if working strange unplug it wait a while & try again. Disconnected battery & waited 5 mins reconnected, warning gone & car started. Everything seems to be fine, radio tune & nav routes retained. It lost fuel recent history, average speed, heater settings & preferred temp & pressure units, soon reset.

 

[Monty]

solar powered trickle charger, that through the OBD port as i presume the accessories ports are all powered down when the car is off

The one I have, just has cigar lighter and croc clips, no OBD. As you say, I'd assume you can't just charge through the lighter socket on a modern car, so I'd connect straight to the battery and just run the (thin) wires through the gap in the 'hood'. This is just enough inconvenience to stop me ever doing it.

I have the Oxford Solariser but there's an AA one on ebay/amazon for less than £25 with an OBD port, which is a neater solution.

 

[VaasL]

Yeah it’s safe, but can you got run power to the car and leave it on a maintenance charger ?

WD

No unfortunately its in a building parking garage, so no power outlets.

 

[WD Pro]

No unfortunately its in a building parking garage, so no power outlets.

If power (or solar) isn’t an option I would makes sure the battery is fully charged before storage (from a charger, not just by driving it) and I would drop a charger cable down the side of the battery and leave the end under the car on the floor.

That’s not to bump start the car, it’s just so you can give it some juice to unlock it and drop the window etc to get in it without having to lever the door handle cover off.

On a RHD and once you know where to drop it, it’s reasonably simple to get the cable to come out under the car near the back of the K member, you can see the general direction it’s heading here :

Just over the top of the sound tube and then down between the inner fender and the exhaust fanifold

If you can’t leave it unlocked and AC power is absolutely out of the question, I think you might have to accept factoring in frequent battery replacement - they don’t take kindly to being completely flattened

Based on my experience with a good battery, I would be reasonably confident in leaving it fully connected for four weeks - I don’t know how much longer you would get after that …

WD

 

[wenklaw]

I've not driven mine since the 27TH December

 

[VaasL]

FYI it'll reset your Sync unit settings inc. sat nav destinations

If power (or solar) isn’t an option I would makes sure the battery is fully charged before storage (from a charger, not just by driving it) and I would drop a charger cable down the side of the battery and leave the end under the car on the floor.

That’s not to bump start the car, it’s just so you can give it some juice to unlock it and drop the window etc to get in it without having to lever the door handle cover off.

On a RHD and once you know where to drop it, it’s reasonably simple to get the cable to come out under the car near the back of the K member, you can see the general direction it’s heading here :

Just over the top of the sound tube and then down between the inner fender and the exhaust fanifold

If you can’t leave it unlocked and AC power is absolutely out of the question, I think you might have to accept factoring in frequent battery replacement - they don’t take kindly to being completely flattened

Based on my experience with a good battery, I would be reasonably confident in leaving it fully connected for four weeks - I don’t know how much longer you would get after that …

WD

Thanks for taking your time to explain me this method.
Its just impossible for me to access a power outlet, on every scenario possible.

Can i not simply unattach the battery connector from the car when leaving?
Then reattaching the connector back on to the battery once back?

I am aware it will reset the satnav, drive mode, dashcam and alarm will be off and everything but its not a huge deal, with the car being safely parked and under CCTV
I use carplay with an independent satnav anyway as well so.

Many thanks

 

[TimG]

You could disconnect the battery, If possible take the battery out to leave it on a battery tender else where. Ensure you know how to open the car with the key blade in the fob before you disconnect. It would be less hassle to get a new type 075 battery.

 

[WD Pro]

If security / leaving the car unlocked etc isn’t an issue then for sure you could just disconnect the battery

WD

 

[Gregs24]

If power (or solar) isn’t an option I would makes sure the battery is fully charged before storage (from a charger, not just by driving it) and I would drop a charger cable down the side of the battery and leave the end under the car on the floor.

That’s not to bump start the car, it’s just so you can give it some juice to unlock it and drop the window etc to get in it without having to lever the door handle cover off.

On a RHD and once you know where to drop it, it’s reasonably simple to get the cable to come out under the car near the back of the K member, you can see the general direction it’s heading here :

Just over the top of the sound tube and then down between the inner fender and the exhaust fanifold

If you can’t leave it unlocked and AC power is absolutely out of the question, I think you might have to accept factoring in frequent battery replacement - they don’t take kindly to being completely flattened

Based on my experience with a good battery, I would be reasonably confident in leaving it fully connected for four weeks - I don’t know how much longer you would get after that …

WD

You could also run it the other way as I have and have it come out under the back of the bonnet (under the plastic cover)

 

[WD Pro]

You could also run it the other way as I have and have it come out under the back of the bonnet (under the plastic cover)

Your right, but then I can’t hide my charger under the car without wires running over the bodywork

WD

 

[VaasL]

If security / leaving the car unlocked etc isn’t an issue then for sure you could just disconnect the battery

WD

The car wouldn’t be unlocked if it was locked before it lost power.

i leave the bonnet open, lock the car, disconnect then close bonnet.

When back i open manually with the key, open bonnet reattach and done.

Good so i can just do that then, thank you for everything.

 

[GR11M]

You could always lock the car with the physical key hidden inside the fob, using the hidden key hole in the door handle.

They'll also be the issue of the window not going up and down when opening the doors.

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