Battery flat ?

[westo3]

I left my car to go on holiday four 4weeks  and when I came back The car would not start. The message came up “Parking brake unavailable“ with a ticking noise coming from somewhere behind the glove box and the wing mirrors flashing. I assume it could be a flat Battery but I cannot open the boot to charge it up. I have tried the key fab and the dash switch but nothing happens. Anyone know how to get into the boot manually? Is it normal for a the car to have a flat Battery after standing for 4 weeks?

[stox]

You will need to open the boot with the mechanical key.

[johnatg]

To do that, slide the mechanical key out of the fob. The boot key slot is located on the downward facing part of the boot lid, just above the number plate, on the left hand side.

Have you got a dash cam 'always-on'? Or maybe your Battery is just getting tired after 7 years.

[johnatg]

BTW - have you got a suitable Battery charger? Your Battery is probably original and if so is an AGM type. Don't just use any old charger, even a trickle charger. It requires an intelligent charger, with Battery charge sensing and charge rate control.

If you haven't, better to jump start the car (with care) then take it for an hour's drive. And drive it quite a lot for the next few days

[westo3]

Many thanks for your prompt and helpful replies. I have a CETEK charger will that be intelligent enough?

[johnatg]

Yep - Cetek chargers are good - just the job.

[westo3]

Thanks John Car is now running but I have noticed that the wing mirrors do not fold in when I lock it! So assume four weeks is too long to leave the car without a trickle charge?

[johnatg]

The car must be thinking that you have disconnected/reconnected the Battery - that will have unset a few things.

Switch the car on then press the mirror 'auto' switch (top right quadrant around the mirror control switch) so that it shows green. You probably also need to reset the windows - if they don't go up and down with the window switches on the drivers door, drive each window up and down with its 'own' switch - the switch in each door. Hold the switch for a few moments when window fully down.

The Battery should last 4 weeks or longer, but if it's weak through age it may not, or if something is draining it.

You could get it tested - many accessory shops and garages will do that free of charge

[westo3]

Thanks again John. Wing mirrors now working. As the car is only three years old I would have thought the Battery should still be in good shape. Will get it checked out. 

[ColinBarber]

The 12v battery in a hybrid is smaller than a standard vehicle and therefore doesn't take as long to discharge if left for a long time.

There is a charging/jump terminal in the engine bay fusebox to avoid you having to open the boot.

[Steven Lockey]

In snaps of cold weather like we've just had, batteries can go really quickly if they aren't used now and again.

[johnatg]

If you are leaving the car untouched for more than 10 days or so, particularly in the winter, it's probably a good idea to hitch the Battery up to an intelligent charger such as the Cetek. You can leave it connected indefinitely as the charger will monitor the Battery state and cycle the charge a little to keep the Battery in good nick. You don't need to disconnect the Battery from the car.

I keep my MX-5 (now approaching its 29th birthday) in my garage all winter - it doesn't see the light of day for 6 months, more or less. I keep the Battery (installed in the car) connected to my CSI Airflow Battery Conditioner - I also have a Cetek one and there's not much to choose between them - the Cetek is much newer and more advanced tech - I've had the Airflow for 20 years or so.

But note - it must be an intelligent charger - you can't / mustn't leave a standard Battery charger (even a trickle charger) connected for long periods.

[subman]

I had problem with my GS450H where the Battery is old and last owner wired dash cam to the permanent on 12V....

Anyway, sorted that and posted a video on the net, I now have a Bluetooth Battery monitor wired to the Battery. It only draws 1mA and can sent voltage to my phone, it tracks Battery voltage all the time and plot it as a graph. I got it from amazon for £30 but I seen it much cheaper on the bay. 

Shouldn't need one if there is nothing draining the Battery or drive it at least 1 every few weeks, but car batteries suffers sulfation once voltage fall below 11V for a period of time. Our cars don't need the Battery to crank the engine hence the smaller Battery but it is an expensive Battery not to take proper care of. 

 

 

[westo3]

15 hours ago, subman said:

I had problem with my GS450H where the battery is old and last owner wired dash cam to the permanent on 12V....

Anyway, sorted that and posted a video on the net, I now have a bluetooth battery monitor wired to the battery. It only draws 1mA and can sent voltage to my phone, it tracks battery voltage all the time and plot it as a graph. I got it from Amazon for £30 but I seen it much cheaper on the bay. 

Shouldn't need one if there is nothing draining the battery or drive it at least 1 every few weeks, but car batteries suffers sulfation once voltage fall below 11V for a period of time. Our cars don't need the battery to crank the engine hence the smaller battery but it is an expensive battery not to take proper care of. 

 

Interesting do you have a link for the video?

 

[subman]

2 hours ago, westo3 said: