I replaced the original LR battery in Moneypit as we were getting the special programs off message on cold start, although there was always plenty of juice for cranking to get her going on a cold morning with no functioning glow plugs.
The Exide battery was purchased in October 2016 so it's 2yrs, 5mths old. We have started to notice the special programs off message appearing again unless the lights are turned to off etc. Moneypit doesn't travel far each week, maybe 30 miles in total, so there isn't a great opportunity to charge the battery. Even after a longer 60 mile round trip we got the message the following day during a cold start.
Questions is, should I consider a CTek to keep the battery conditioned as she just doesn't do the mileage to keep the battery in prime condition or does the battery need replacing already? I've read that some members are finding the Exide batteries aren't all they were cracked up to be & the battery of favour these days is the Yuasa
Given the Yuasa is £105.60 & a CTek MXS 5 is about the same or less, not sure what to do.
Cheers n Gone Nick MY16 D4 Landmark SDV6 (The Ice Maiden)
Uncle Ray's spare wheel protector
MY08 D3 HSE Stornoway (Miss Moneypit) The money tree withered......
26th Mar 2019 9:16 pm
lynalldiscovery
Member Since: 22 Dec 2009
Location: Maidstone
Posts: 7274
Very dissapointed with my Exide, even more dissapointed with Tayna batteries and its put me off buying anything thats hassle to returne via a courier.
I think mine did 18 months and I could tell by how it cranked it was starting to fail, so Yuasa from Halfords went on, only been on a few months but good so far.
The ctek will keep the battery going, but a weak battery is still a weak battery so I would replace the battery first.
You could of course get it tested, but as theres so many different methods of testing and different styles of doing the same, the fact you think it needs replacing says to me just replace it for piece of mind.
26th Mar 2019 10:06 pm
Disco_Mikey
Member Since: 29 May 2007
Location: Dundee, Scotland
Posts: 20731
Mine lasted 4.5 years, and was still fine after an alternator failure
It was replaced because of said alternator failure and winter loomingMy D3 Build Thread
Member Since: 15 Jan 2016
Location: GL
Posts: 10363
Cteks are £70 ish. If you don’t do many miles you need one anyway.
I avoided exide.
Maybe get a
New battery before
Winter.
26th Mar 2019 10:26 pm
ostosix
Member Since: 19 Mar 2017
Location: Lincoln
Posts: 305
I'm going down 2nd battery route. After reading the traxide page this is ideal 2nd battery stomping ground.
26th Mar 2019 11:00 pm
knwatkins
Member Since: 19 Sep 2018
Location: Poole, Dorset
Posts: 716
As I have a battery that I suspect is on it's way out, I added battery cover onto my RAC policy. It was an extra £20 which covers a replacement with a 5 year warranty. Sometime soon, I anticipate my battery will be fully discharged and unable to start the vehicle
If you have breakdown cover, you may want to consider adding it to your policy as £20 is considerably cheaper than a new battery.Kev
MY2014 L405 RR Vogue SE 4.4 SDV8 in Corris Grey
MY2010 L320 RRS HSE 3.0 TDV6 in Stornoway Grey
26th Mar 2019 11:18 pm
Pete K
Member Since: 15 Jan 2016
Location: GL
Posts: 10363
How many cars does £20 cover.
26th Mar 2019 11:21 pm
knwatkins
Member Since: 19 Sep 2018
Location: Poole, Dorset
Posts: 716
Only the one I think Pete. If I remember right, I had to give the registration of the vehicle when adding it on to the policy, despite the breakdown policy being one that covers me no matter what vehicle I am driving.Kev
MY2014 L405 RR Vogue SE 4.4 SDV8 in Corris Grey
MY2010 L320 RRS HSE 3.0 TDV6 in Stornoway Grey
26th Mar 2019 11:23 pm
SteveNorman
Member Since: 14 Oct 2005
Location: Somerset
Posts: 1144
Battery premature failure is usually due to low state of charge over a period of time causing sulphation of the plates.
The ones that do the best are the ones that have been fully charged all their life, ideally with a charger.
We sell about 3 EA1000's a month & I have replaced one under warranty within the last year.
Most seem to last about 5 or 6 years or more.
We test every service with a Midtronics tester, so have a record of most of the batteries degradation.
Most Yuasa I have tested are are under spec from new. Actually most other batteries are under spec from new
This is just my own experience, others will have other experiences which may be of differing opinion.... (so don't bother to tell me I'm wrong! )
27th Mar 2019 8:53 pm
Disco_Mikey
Member Since: 29 May 2007
Location: Dundee, Scotland
Posts: 20731
The majority of Exide's I have tested have been over spec. My own one was testing at 950A My D3 Build Thread
It looks as though the battery is suffering from lack of use & short runs & isn't getting a full charge. As it's only a couple of years old it's probably worth trying to recondition it.
I don't have a Ctek & not sure i need one yet...
I have an older Ring RESC516 smart charge+16, I've never really used it & when i have didn't seem to get much success with recovering batteries.
Does anyone have experience of this Ring charger to give me some confidence in it? It's a 7 stage smart charger with float option
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