s2 New battery

[Gavin944s2]

The s2 turn over notoriously heavy , I replaced the battery some months back with a Bosch 70Ah. Its still slow, but after a few days stood is flat & will not turn over, only slow.

Any ideas guys ?

Is the battery correct , i had a auto electrician look it over he said there is 'no drain' !

Thanks

 

[912UK]

Funny I just had fun and games today with the S2.. new battery last year.. been in for Service at Chris Turners.. he even charged it for me.. went to leave it did start ok.. then stopped for fuel went to start nope!!! nothing.. managed to get a guy to help start it with some leads just as Gary turned up to help.. and I thanked him said good bye, I climed in the car my knee knocked the wiper stork and that then totaly killed the battery and then the engine stopped.. tried to whistle to Gary as he was just driving off but too late.. anyway they came back and we managed to get her going.. I drove off managed about 2 mins.. red light dipped the clutch to brake and it died again.. lucky I quick thinking 2nd gear and jump started it.. revs up.. hand brake in full arm wrenching mode to stop for the red light being london I have no idea if red camera light thingy lucky only over the line by 1ft!!! reved it up and left foot braking though London town not the best place to be doing that.!! once on the M4 foot down charge the thing up.. seems ok now but I am 100% in the same boat as you.. dont use it often and that kills the battery going to invest in a trickle charger for storage.. seems to be the answer..

 

[Gavin944s2]

Hmmmmmmm odd , you would think with such a heavy duty battery been 70ah it would hold a charge well, top bosch 5yrs warrenty thing too here ! Never had any other car drain like this [] more ideas please.

 

[912UK]

do you not use it for a few weeks at any time??

having so many cars I am constantly plugging in solar panels between cars to keep them topped up in the storage unit.. no power in there. SO i use a suit case Solar panel

same as this but I only paided £49.99 at Maplins .. it's Brill!!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/13-WATT-Briefcase-Solar-Panel_W0QQitemZ310226847532QQcmdZViewItem?rvr_id=219966192673&rvr_id=219966192673&cguid=de6fc7e212e0a0aa14619751ff581635

 

[chrisg]

Dear S2 Owners x2

I realise that the S2 runs higher compression being Normally Aspirated, so I guess it requires more cranking power. However, it would strike me as odd that the car saps so much that the battery dies after a short period of time.

I can only suggest that for longer periods of time (> 2 weeks) you either add a slow trickle charger, or using a 13mm spanner drop the earth lead off the battery ?

Chris

 

[Alpine]

you must have a problem some where. For it to not start after a couple of days is not right. 1 to 2 weeks, ok, but not a few days.

 

[912UK]

I was told to remove the earth lead last night and clean the connections at the battery end so I am going to do that as well as my storage charger..currently sat out side soaking up the free Sun power with my solar panel suit case []

 

[david924s]

70Ah is not much bigger than the size recommended which I think is 63Ah, I changed the battery in my S2 for the biggest Bosch battery I could fit in the boot space a 100/12-Ah one I think and it still turns slowly as normal but always starts and did so even after standing outside covered in ice and snow for three weeks at in some cases -15C. I would check there is nothing draining the battery like the imobiliser/alarm or the glove box light, I would also check the output to the battery from the alternator to see if the alternator is charging correctly, I would not always believe the voltage indicated on the voltmeter in the dash.

 

[924nutter]

Initially the S2 might crank slowly but once the non firing cylinders start to "bounce" back on their 'power' stroke the starter-motor gets the assistance of that stored energy. A brand new batter in my turbo cab goes 2-3 weeks and will crank the engine, but mine had a quick disconnect in the earth lead so I do isolate it.

 

[Gavin944s2]

I had it checked by the auto electrician, & its spanking new battery, its done 30 miles, on the road, as it went back to him for another check over he had it over night.. It is stood up in the garage for winter, & will start once a week , 'just' ! After 2 weeks its a no no !! I have to charge the battery.

 

[Trevor68]

My S2 would always crank very slowly and was helped with a good clean of the grounds (those that I could find!) and battery terminals. It was still lethargic to crank though.

It was also suggested somewhere that the blinking door knobs did just enough to drain the battery but I didn't buy that at the time and still don't really. Might be worth disconnecting them, if fitted, and checking just in case.

Temperature plays a part too. If your garage is draughty or the car is kept outside it will heap extra power demands on the battery in cold weather when the battery itself is at it's weakest. Last week my girlfriends Focus wouldn't start on a slightly frosty morning and I had to give her a lift to work. Returning from work at 4pm the sun was out and it was considerably warmer and I thought I'd try the Focus before ripping the battery out for charging and it cranked into life first time.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

A common source of drain left unused for weeks is obviously the security system. Plenty of the cars have more than one system fitted; my Lux had three. Others have very dodgy aftermarket fitments, my S2 had the whole lot ripped out, returned to standard and a new insurance-approved system installed for about £300 a few years ago.

The lux used to drain the battery in a few days if I set the original alarm from the extra lock behind the driver's door. Without this it would still drain over a fortnight or so with just the tag-operated system, and that was on a new battery. I've left the S2 for weeks outside in the snow and it's been fine so far.

 

[Gavin944s2]

Thanks to all,

I was thinking of updating the battery to a 90ah , but seems it wont make much diffrence. I will disconect the flashing door knobs just to try, & clean all the earths & battery terminals. Its so anoying when everything else is so dang perfect on her []

I will admit tho the temp is cool uphere, N Yorks moors is only just warming up ,it never got above -2 until this week ! at its worse we get -16/18 [&o] When its nice its real niiiiiiiice, but Dec- April. [][&:][] keep away, especially if it rains, it can make you shake & shiver for 2 days ..uncontrollably !! []

 

[david924s]

If you have access to a decent amp meter you could switch everything off in the car as when it is parked and then connect the meter in series with the battery supply so between live cable and live connector on the battery, if there is a current drain it should show up on the meter, but make sure nothing heavy duty is left on or you might blow your meter. One area that can drain the battery other than security systems and glove box lights is the alternator if the diode pack has gone then current can leak back through this.