Power Problem!

[eyedee]

Im confused...  :confused:   About 8 months ago I had a niggling problem in which my battery was flat each time I came to start the car if I hadnt driven it for about three days, or if I had set the Clifford Alarm the day before trying to start it.  Sextons (who fitted the alarm) checked over the alarm wiring in case that was at fault and said it was all a-ok.  I had recently fitted a new battery from Halfords which after removal, turned out to be leaking.  So I got my money back and fitted a battery I knew worked perfectly which I  took from my Calibra which sorted the problem.  I hadnt driven the car for more than 200 miles from that point until the engine rebuild of last week.

However, I\'ve just got my car back from it\'s rebuild and the exact same problem has returned!  I have covered 292 miles in the past 5 days so its had plenty time for the battery to charge.  I have set the alarm for just one night (its locked up in my garage) after which the car went dead as soon as I turned the key.  I jumped it off my Calibra and took it for a 10 mile drive and everything works fine - until tomorrow when the battery will be flat again.  Had anyone got any ideas what it could be?

So far I can only think it is either the alarm draining the power (I know Sextons said it wasnt, but they have proved themselves to be incompetant and liars on more than one occassion - I shan\'t get started on that topic), a problem with the battery holding charge and its just a huge coincidence, or a problem with the cars electrics somewhere.

All help would be much appreciated.

cheers  :wave

[AndyGen3]

U havent relocated the battery have u? When i stuck a front mount on my old scooby turbo the lads who were makin the pipes and sticken it on moved the battery and it was earthing off the chassis leg so it kept dying,,,,,?!?!

Andy

[Brett]

Do you have any non standard ice etc in the car?

[eyedee]

The cars electrics are pretty much standard.  The battery is in its original location and I have no extra I.C.E. (yet!).  The only thing Ive noticed is my ground cable isnt tight to the battery.  Its screwed in as much as it can go, but you can still pull it off the negative terminal.

[andrewrx7]

2 suggestions:
 - was the battery that was good before the car went away for the rebuild looked after during the rebuild time? i.e. did it ever go flat and stay flat? Perhaps the battery was not as good as you had thought (you say it was taken off another car anyway)? I think batteries needed to spin the rotary need to deliver quite high currents (if thats the right terminolgy) - is the Calibra rated to, or above, that required for the RX? You might just simply have another poor battery.
 - you say the terminal does not tighten up. This was a known "problem" with earlier RXs - the terminal connectors were for large diameter battery terminals. Lots of batteries in the UK seem to have thinner terminals, and as such, the connectors do not tighten up properly. I got caught out with this exact problem! I thought the car was dead on several occasions. I eventually traced it to this terminal issue. The connector had worked loose, not fallen off, just loose, and the whole car was dead. It was very easy to overlook this! I eventually got some tin foil (high tech, hey!) and wrapped it around the terminal to space it out some more, and it fired on the button every time!

Hope it isn\'t a more serious grounding problem!

On that line of thinking - I also found that one of the ground wires was a little corroded, and this also stopped the car from spinning. Could hear ignition coming on and various valves clicking away, but not enough juice to spin the car. Cleaned the ground wire, and perfect ever since.

[BlitzBoy]

The negative wire is almost certainly your problem, if there is not a good contact or solid stiff contact on that terminal the battery wont charge properly when you drive effectively draining as you go along.

[eyedee]

Cheers guys, I\'ll look into that tonight.  Ive got an operation on my knee tomorrow, so I wont be driving for a few weeks.  Not the best timing but never mind.  Out of interest. what replacement battery would everyone recommed?  One that fits preferably! - Ive bought 2 suppossedly for the Rex only to find that they were too tall and too wide.  :rolleyes:

cheers for your help.

[andrewrx7]

To be honest, I\'ve just bought batteries from Halfords. Pay a few quid more and got the 5 year guarentee ones. As long as the rating on it is as good as the recommended spec in your handbook, then it won\'t really matter. I just measured the battery box up, and looked for a battery of the right size and power, with the terminals in the correct positions. The Halfords battery on my last FD is about 4 years old now, and it starts first time and sounds good as new.

Good luck with the op, by the way.

[eyedee]

Thanks for the help guys and the kind words mate.  I think I may go for a Bosch battery as Ive been told great things about them.  I\'ll let you know how it goes.

Cheers again!  :wave

[nikp]

It it\'s not the negative terminal (Mine too is loose, but fortunately, I have not had problems with it) then it could be a short somewhere. To confirm, turn all eletrics off, turn the ignition off, and put a multimeter in line with the positive terminal of the battery and the positive cable (Therefore so that the postive cable is not actually connected to the battery directly, only through the multi meter). Set the multimeter to read amps, and see if there is a reading. If there is - there\'s a short somewhere. To find out which circuit, take each and every fuse out one by one, until there is no reading any longer (If the alarm is suspected and there is no fuse, disconnect the permanent live that goes to it)

[eyedee]

Hi all, just got back online after recovering from the op which seemed to go well.  I\'m going to attempt to have a look into this problem tomorrow armed with the advice youve kindly given.  

Andrew, I don\'t think its a problem with a loose connection if you mean there was no current to your electrics at all before you fixed it will tin foil.  My rex always gives electrics on the first turn of the key but as soon as you turn the key the full way, the starter motor makes a single clunk and then...nothing.  Dead as a dodo.  Could it be that the loose connection would mean that not enough current is passed to fire the engine?

The battery from the Calibra was the one which came with the RX7 when I bought it.  I purchased a new Halfords battery after a few weeks just for peace of mind and put the original RX7 battery in the Calibra.  It performed perfectly in the Vauxhall until its removal upon finding the RX7\'s new Halfords battery was leaking and due to lack of funds I decided to put the original battery back in the RX7 having removed it from the Calibra.  I really dont know if its suitable for the RX7 but surely it wouldnt go dead after just 3 days of non-use?  Even if it was designed for a 1 litre hatchback, it would still attempt to work the starter motor wouldnt it?  I think the battery is left with close to no power at all making me think it\'s a drain somewhere.

NikP, I\'ll have a go at that and let you know what I find.

[andrewrx7]

Originally posted by eyedee


Andrew, I don\'t think its a problem with a loose connection if you mean there was no current to your electrics at all before you fixed it will tin foil.  My rex always gives electrics on the first turn of the key but as soon as you turn the key the full way, the starter motor makes a single clunk and then...nothing.  Dead as a dodo.  Could it be that the loose connection would mean that not enough current is passed to fire the engine?
 

Loose battery connector meant no power to anything. The other corroded ground lead was different - electrics were fine (dash lights etc), but the car would not spin. Presumably it was a ground lead going to the starter motor that was giving an intermittant connection. Can\'t say which one exactly, \'cos I gave it a garage to trace the fault.

Have fun under the car!!