my 2014 SE had an almost flat battery this morning , it wouldn't crank , came up with lots of warnings about brakes , fluids etc and helpfully put the hazards on by itself.

 

Managed to bump start it and took it for a run , I last used it on Friday when I'd done about 300 miles that day so it would have been fully charged on Friday all being well , it's done over 100 k so I think it may be out of warranty

If it's on the original battery then you're probably doing pretty well anyway. The Superb works the battery hard as the battery is small for the size of the car and the amount of electronics on board. Another thread recommended this battery as a replacement: http://www.justcarbatteries.co.uk/varta-silver-dynamic-096-battery-e44.html

 

If there's been no slow cranking previous times and this is out of the blue it might be worth checking whether something is drawing current when the car is off. 

On my mondeos I've  found the batteries  will start giving trouble when they turn 5 , especially if it's chilly, then I get a new one, but 2 years seems premature . I've ordered a new one just in case and will park on a hill until it arrives, "good job it's manual "

Edited 19 December, 20169 yr by peterposh

I find that if I leave the key in the ignition for any length of time even with the key in the off position it will flatten the battery. Which means that some systems are still live even with the engine turned off

2 years is premature but is common enough with Skoda - the factory battery is not great. Your symptoms sounds like classic failing battery stuff to me, especially with cold weather, unless you did something that discharged the batter fairly deeply.

 

If you've ordered something like the Varta suggested by pscholist then you are on the right track.

Varta E44 all the way.

I clicked on that link , battery arrived in the post yesterday , it's a bosch though

I clicked on that link , battery arrived in the post yesterday , it's a bosch though

Its the same battery underneath  but the Bosch is about £15 dearer :nerd:

It's been ok for the last few days, however wouldn't crank this morning so I put on the new battery , now virtually every warning light it has is up . put on my machine and it states voltage low , so I'm hoping a 30 mile run should pump up the new battery and clear the codes

Edited 28 December, 20169 yr by peterposh

It's been ok for the last few days, however wouldn't crank this morning so I put on the new battery , now virtually every warning light it has is up . put on my machine and it states voltage low , so I'm hoping a 30 mile run should pump up the new battery and clear the codes

If you have a multimeter and connect to the battery terminals, what voltage do you get with the engine running?

30 miles later and the lights have all cleared , phew

It's been ok for the last few days, however wouldn't crank this morning so I put on the new battery , now virtually every warning light it has is up . put on my machine and it states voltage low , so I'm hoping a 30 mile run should pump up the new battery and clear the codes

Take for a drive and all the lights will go off.

Also look at this  post about recoding on VCDS.

Still not tried mine in vcds to see if its recodeable on changing battery will look in a couple of days

I'm thinking there might be something draining it, i'll have to see how long this new one lasts

Due to the stop-start issues with my MY16 Octavia earlier this year, my ex-dealer fitted a new alternator - and supposedly a new battery (both under warranty) although I have my doubts about the battery being replaced, as it still looked to be the original. They didn't even bother to wipe the dust off the top!

Putting a DMM on the battery today showed dead on 12 volts with the engine stopped, rising to 14.85 volts with the engine running at idle. This suggests two things to me; 1 - the alternator and charging module are OK;  2 -  that this battery is still not holding charge - so, either the ex-dealer was telling me untruths about having replaced it, or I have been really unlucky in getting two duff batteries in a row - the decision, dear readers, is yours. If the second case, not exactly a glowing recommendation for AGM batteries! 

For those of a non-technical persuasion, a six-cell lead-acid battery is almost fully discharged at 12 volts. I guess I am going to have take it in to another dealer for another attempt at a fix. Can anyone recommend a trustworthy dealer in the SW London area who carries out warranty work?

Edited 1 January, 20179 yr by Warrior193

Due to the stop-start issues with my MY16 Octavia earlier this year, my ex-dealer fitted a new alternator - and supposedly a new battery (under warranty) although I have my doubts about the battery being replaced, as it still looked to be the original. They didn't even bother to wipe the dust off the top!

Putting a DMM on the battery today showed dead on 12 volts with the engine stopped, rising to 14.85 volts with the engine running at idle. This suggests two things to me; 1 - the alternator and charging module are OK;  2 -  that this battery is still not holding charge - so, either the ex-dealer was telling me untruths about having replaced it, or I have been really unlucky in getting two duff batteries in a row - the decision, dear readers, is yours. If the second case, not exactly a glowing recommendation for AGM batteries! 

For those of a non-technical persuasion, a six-cell lead-acid battery is almost fully discharged at 12 volts. I guess I am going to have take it in to another dealer for another attempt at a fix. Can anyone recommend a trustworthy dealer in the SW London area who carries out warranty work?

14.85v seems a bit high (I think more like 14.4v), so the alternator may be gently cooking the battery by over-charging it.

14.85v seems a bit high (I think more like 14.4v), so the alternator may be gently cooking the battery by over-charging it.

Or it could possibly be that the low battery voltage is misleading the charging module into ramping up the voltage. Either way, it looks like another trip to a dealer - but to one I can trust this time. When I get the opportunity, I will check my DMM against a calibration unit, but I'm pretty sure that it is close enough to correct now.

14.85v seems a bit high (I think more like 14.4v), so the alternator may be gently cooking the battery by over-charging it.

Agm need a slightly higher charge voltage. 14.7v is the usual.

I'm thinking there might be something draining it, i'll have to see how long this new one lasts

I thought that when ours was on the way out but, alas no, it was the battery that had had it....

Agm need a slightly higher charge voltage. 14.7v is the usual.

Hi Rover, do you have the max. permitted charging voltage for AGMs to hand? 

Or it could possibly be that the low battery voltage is misleading the charging module into ramping up the voltage. Either way, it looks like another trip to a dealer - but to one I can trust this time. When I get the opportunity, I will check my DMM against a calibration unit, but I'm pretty sure that it is close enough to correct now.

Around 14.4v is the normal charging voltage to top up the battery after starting, with modern alternators they detect once the battery is sufficiently charged and drop the voltage to a float voltage of around 13.6volts so not to damage the battery, they increase and decrease the output to react to electric demand, If after a long drive the alternator is still kicking out around 14.4 it might point to the battery not getting up to full charge properly,

Around 14.4v is the normal charging voltage to top up the battery after starting, with modern alternators they detect once the battery is sufficiently charged and drop the voltage to a float voltage of around 13.6volts so not to damage the battery, they increase and decrease the output to react to electric demand, If after a long drive the alternator is still kicking out around 14.4 it might point to the battery not getting up to full charge properly,

Hi YM, agree with your thinking - but the charging voltage is a little higher for the AGM batteries fitted to Stop / Start vehicles - around 14.7 - 14.8 VDC. This is why Smart chargers have different settings for flooded lead-acid / AGM. 

The battery on my "S" was flat this morning grrr, the car is a 2014 so just gone 3 years old and I fitted a new battery for it in December 2016, wtf is going on ? It's the "S" so has just the basic radio and no sat nav , managed to bump start it and drove it for about 200 miles and now it's ok again, only rely on a skoda starting if you live on a hill

What battery did you fit last year? Skoda are known for fitting low spec batteries as standard, did you fit the same as the one you took out?

 

Batteries are a wear and tear item, much like brakes and tyres etc. so they very much depend on how the car is driven / used.

 

All it takes is leaving the parking lights on overnight by mistake, lots of stop/start driving during the winter months with coming/leaving home headlights.

 

Some owners turn the headlights on before starting the engine and only turn them off after the engine. This puts quite a bit of load through the battery.

 

Most batteries come with a decent warranty these days, might be worth contacting the seller?

I bought it online , had it delivered to house  ,  Varta Silver Dynamic 096 Battery , it's been ok since it was bump started  . I think  something in the car doesn't power down or switch off and there you are stranded.

 

It also  happened the other month with my 64 plate SE ( which had a new battery at 2 years old) , luckily the bloke who was driving that lives on a hill

Edited 3 June, 20179 yr by peterposh