Car battery suddenly died.

[earthman]

Wife went to start her car this morning, no lights came up on the dash etc,..I were expecting to find a problem with the ignition switch or fuse box maybe.
The car had had a long run out yesterday and the battery were still reading above 12 volts, stick on the hazards and aside from them not really working, voltage dropped to around 8.

Anyway, easy fix, bought a new battery,...I've just never experienced this myself, I've had batteries give out a sign before they pack up a few days/weeks later, sluggish turn over etc.
The car/battery is 5 years old.

 

[brightspark]

Wife went to start her car this morning, no lights came up on the dash etc,..I were expecting to find a problem with the ignition switch or fuse box maybe.
The car had had a long run out yesterday and the battery were still reading above 12 volts, stick on the hazards and aside from them not really working, voltage dropped to around 8.

Anyway, easy fix, bought a new battery,...I've just never experienced this myself, I've had batteries give out a sign before they pack up a few days/weeks later, sluggish turn over etc.
The car/battery is 5 years old.

that's about all you will get out of a battery whether its been used daily on long runs or short

 

[optima21]

depends on how much above 12v the voltage is, 12v is flat, 12.3v is half flat and 12.7v is fully charged. It could be the alternator thats gone, I had one that had an output of 13v so was not charging the battery, but was enough to run the electrics on the car. with the engine running the voltage should be reading about 14.4v if the alternator is charging corrrectly

 

[130]

I usually get a decade or more out of a car battery, but have had it just the same good one day, bad the next.

 

[Ashley Burton]

Had it happen myself, Its not the cold that kills batteries, But heat. Typically the battery was just out of warranty. I have this funny suspicion that batteries are only manufactured to cover their warranty period!

 

[earthman]

depends on how much above 12v the voltage is, 12v is flat, 12.3v is half flat and 12.7v is fully charged. It could be the alternator thats gone, I had one that had an output of 13v so was not charging the battery, but was enough to run the electrics on the car. with the engine running the voltage should be reading about 14.4v if the alternator is charging corrrectly

Aye, after fitting the new battery and getting the engine started I did check the voltage, the alternator is charging OK. I'm not sure what type of charging system is on her car to be honest, a previous one of mine had the type that varies dependent on load etc, I had a ScanGauge on the dash, when I first saw it read 12v whilst going down the motorway, I were alarmed. Lol

 

[mechman]

I've also had the same problem Twice (different cars) OK one day dead the next, and after a good run Birmingham to hull battery showed 3 volts.

 

[earthman]

Had it happen myself, Its not the cold that kills batteries, But heat. Typically the battery was just out of warranty. I have this funny suspicion that batteries are only manufactured to cover their warranty period!

Good point, most people would think that it's only during the coldest winter months.

 

[daleyd]

I had a Nissan qashqai (company car) with the auto stop/start thing.

It was about 2 years 9 months old and one morning I noticed it was ever so slightly sluggish to start, but it was otherwise running ok. That afternoon it turned over once and that was it - dead as a doornail!

A new battery cured it, but there was almost no warning before it failed completely.

 

[voipio]

Had that a few years back. The car started fine at home, parked it up at a marina, when it came to coming home, wouldn't start. Came down to a dodgy connection inside a cell. New battery was all that was needed.

 

[keithski122]

Same thing happened to me this week.Parked up my car tuesday lunchtime, went to use it yesterday morning and starter just clicked.Battery looks original so probably 9 years old.Measured the battery up and its the same as my laid up beetle so swapped it over and started fine.Charged up battery and did a drop test and power just dropped out.

 

[wristpin]

When cars had dynamos the batteries seemed to fail gradually and give notice. The sudden death syndrome seemed to coincide with the introduction of alternators.

 

[pedrobedro]

still reading above 12 volts

Needs to be over 12.6 volts to be any good, below 12.5v is borderline and any lower than 12.3v is flat.

 

[james butler]

its the loading that kills them when flat too, as a battery runs down you increase the likely hood of sulphate building up in the bottom of a battery causing the plates to short and thus the battery wont give full amperage.
this is commenly why the charge can appear ok at 12v untill you put a load on it and then the voltage plummets.
http://batteryuniversity.com/index.php/learn/article/charging_the_lead_acid_battery

 

[Paul.]

Same thing happened to my wifes car a couple of months ago, she started it normally, drove to the supermarket a couple of miles away and parked up, realised that the window was open, turned on the ignition to wind it up and the battery was completely dead, not even enough in it to light up the dash.
Tha AA attended and jump started it and followed her home, patrolman said its quite a common problem, I fitted a new battery its been fine ever since, nothing wrong with the charging circuit .

 

[Ton-up]

Its the earth, man...............




If its an aftermarket battery, 5 years is about right.

 

[Ashley Burton]

Same thing happened to my wifes car a couple of months ago, she started it normally, drove to the supermarket a couple of miles away and parked up, realised that the window was open, turned on the ignition to wind it up and the battery was completely dead, not even enough in it to light up the dash.
Tha AA attended and jump started it and followed her home, patrolman said its quite a common problem, I fitted a new battery its been fine ever since, nothing wrong with the charging circuit .

Suprised they didn't try offering to fit a new battery!

 

[Paul.]

Suprised they didn't try offering to fit a new battery!

He did, but to be fair he wasn't pushy and did say that if we could fit it ourselves then we could get a much better deal,

 

[Ashley Burton]

He did, but to be fair he wasn't pushy and did say that if we could fit it ourselves then we could get a much better deal,

The thing is if their prices were reasonable, Then people would be happy for them to supply & fit. Last time I heard the men in orange were doing an 063 battery for £130 fitted!

 

[Paul.]

This was on a Ford KA (I Know, I know, no need to say anything ) cost me 45 quid, fitted it myself
Got 3 or 4 pounds back on the old one as well when I weighed some scrap in