An ex work colleague has been medically refrained from driving.  She told me about it two days ago, silly plonker.

 

Her trusty '64 plate Nissan Juke hasn't been started since August 😳

 

I've just been round and it's dead as a dodo, not even LEDs coming on.

 

Looks like it might be the original battery:

 

 

And it's now in my garage, on charge, but at first sight taking bugger all amps:

 

 

So what do we think, will it pick up and be resuscitated, or has it departed this mortal coil?

 

I'll leave it on trickle for a good while, and check in on it from time to time.

 

A quid says it's dead.

 

Gaz

 

 

Edited 17 December, 20223 yr by Gaz

At 9 years old I'd not even bother; just replace it.  BTW there should be a date code in some form on the battery in case it's not as original as is thought ...

Edited 17 December, 20223 yr by MikeTheThinker

Can't find an obvious date code Mike 

 

But the perky little blighter's started to condensate on the outside (garage is dry but not heated - still 5°C outside) and is showing potential signs of life:

 

 

I like being an optimist, but I'd still say it's 50-50.

 

Gaz

 

Edited 17 December, 20223 yr by Gaz

1 hour ago, Gaz said:

Can't find an obvious date code Mike 

 

But the perky little blighter's started to condensate on the outside (garage is dry but not heated - still 5°C outside) and is showing potential signs of life:

 

 

I like being an optimist, but I'd still say it's 50-50.

 

Gaz

 

In case battery had actually frozen, give the case a careful check for any cracking or suspicious bulges. My money is on it being unrecoverable. 😢 

Edited 17 December, 20223 yr by Warrior193

2 hours ago, Gaz said:

showing potential signs of life

I hereby dub thee "Number Five".

 

Edited 17 December, 20223 yr by MikeTheThinker

She lives not far away from me, so would've seen minus 5 at times over the last few days, so freezing is quite likely/possible.  There was nothing untoward when I oiked it out of the Juke.  I'll check on it between eight and nine when it's been trickling for eight hours.

 

Just looked up the price of a new one - cheapy about £140, decent about £220. Stop/start seems to bump the price quite sharply, dunno why that should surprise me.  She won't be happy and has already said she can't afford anything 'til after Christmas, not that the car's going anywhere.

 

I forgot to let the handbrake off - sod it! 🙄

 

Gaz

Oooh a new game. Battery Bingo. Admittedly, there isn't much choice in the answers, but it's a start. 

2 minutes ago, Lady Elanore said:

Oooh a new game. Battery Bingo. Admittedly, there isn't much choice in the answers, but it's a start. 

Bored, Dear?

 

3 minutes ago, MikeTheThinker said:

Bored, Dear?

 

Well now that Olduns Pub Bingo may be about to disappear, I need a new, high stakes, gambling fix.

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

Keeping on a low rate of charge, (2, 3 4 amps) there's no rush but it might take a couple of days.  Switch it off after it's picked up a bit and let it rest for 30 minutes or thereabouts or how you feel and switch back on to charge.  You might try this again later or not depending on how you feel.

 

I give the battery about 75% chance (or more) but it depends on how you do, 😄 do you keep patience in stock.

 

If it's stop/start and EFB battery you're not supposed to go above 14.8v charge and not overcharge it, and some would say you need an appropriate charger but keep your eye on things and all will end well as you're going.

 

I've been charging my neighbours batteries for decades now but some have now got these stop/start things with the computer programs and EFB batteries.

 

I charged a very old battery that was being used for garage lighting for a neighbour as he just leaves it lying on the sub-zero garage floor.  It had a dry cell too but he had some of the right water.  I didn't use my 30+ year old 4 amp charger but my 20+ year old "smart" charger/maintainer, it got the battery to just about full charge but the cranking power was still low so we tried his 12 amp charger/analyser as I was using it to check the battery  I put the 12 amp charger to "Recondition mode", it killed the battery the charge decreased to below 12v.

 

I get the **** taken out of me (which is fine, sometimes good) for putting it's best to do a long low slow charge and off the car in my stable (and warm at the moment) conditions.

 

IIRC batteries like +5c to +20c and for charging they don't like 30c and even more 40c so that extreme summer weather would have weaken batteries that now fall over in the cold weather. 

 

My wife's Fabia Mk3 had a new AGM battery about 18 months ago and although she does a lot of short journeys last few weeks she's been getting in 2 or three longer shopping runs.  No signs or inclination that the battery needed charging but I wanted prevention and not cure and to try out my new (£23.49) smart charger as it does AGM and operates down to -20C.

 

Only -2c but the 18 month old AGM battery on the car with no signs of at all of battery being a bit low - took 17 hours in total to fully recharge.

 

I'm changing to 95% you can do it, I've had two failures so nothing's a 100% but you might be better than me, I'm no expert. 😄

 

Edited 17 December, 20223 yr by nta16
speeling and stuff

The big problem is that lead-acid batteries really hate deep discharge.

8:30pm sitrep.....

 

Well it's still drawing circa 3 amps from my trusty old style battery charger (possibly mid 1980's vintage).

 

No leaks, cracks, or bulges 👍

 

I dried it late afternoon, but there was some more (albeit less) condensation just now. The battery's not warm.  

 

Decided to not leave it on charge overnight, so have switched it off and will put it back on charge in the morning. A bit slow compared to Pub Bingo, but I'm quite looking forward to finding out how it fares.

 

Until tomorrow.....

 

Gaz

 

PS: Yes, it's an EFB

 

PPS: Stanley (the stool - first pic) is older than the battery charger.  Been with me, man and boy, and has even been with me to car meets for chums to meet 😁 

 

Edited 17 December, 20223 yr by Gaz
Introducing Stanley

2 hours ago, Lady Elanore said:

but it's a start. 

...or not  

I'll go with a 3rd option....it may charge...but will it hold and keep re-charging in general use? 🤔 

16 minutes ago, Gaz said:

the stool ... is older than the battery charger.  Been with me, man and boy

You know, there's something vaguely unsettling about a man being that attached to his stool ...

 

18 minutes ago, Gaz said:

No leaks, cracks, or bulges

I just wish I could say the same about me ...

 

3 minutes ago, olduns said:

...or not  

 

Oooh fightin' talk 💪 😎

 

So, if I get the Juke to start, with this battery....? 

 

Money where your mouth is - I want at least a four bar Kit-Kat, or even a double Snickers if I do.  And I'll obviously reciprocate if I fail.

 

G

 

 

 

 

34 minutes ago, Gaz said:

 

Oooh fightin' talk 💪 😎

 

So, if I get the Juke to start, with this battery....? 

 

Money where your mouth is - I want at least a four bar Kit-Kat, or even a double Snickers if I do.  And I'll obviously reciprocate if I fail.

 

G

 

 

 

 

Deal, with one condition - battery sits off-charge for minimum of 12 hours after full charging cycle.

Can I ask for a report of standing voltage reading before charger is switched back on in the morning?  

1 hour ago, Gaz said:

8:30pm sitrep.....

 

Well it's still drawing circa 3 amps from my trusty old style battery charger (possibly mid 1980's vintage).

 

No leaks, cracks, or bulges 👍

 

I dried it late afternoon, but there was some more (albeit less) condensation just now. The battery's not warm.  

 

Decided to not leave it on charge overnight, so have switched it off and will put it back on charge in the morning. A bit slow compared to Pub Bingo, but I'm quite looking forward to finding out how it fares.

 

Until tomorrow.....

 

Gaz

 

PS: Yes, it's an EFB

 

PPS: Stanley (the stool - first pic) is older than the battery charger.  Been with me, man and boy, and has even been with me to car meets for chums to meet 😁 

 

Chippendale? 😄 Looks like someone's been using it as a sawhorse too.

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

Garages can be colder and damper inside than the outside, that no way to treat an old friend like Stanley!

 

If it's +5c in the garage that's reasonable for the battery and charger, keep going slow and steady.

 

I think it could take and hold the full charge, as much as it would be for a 9 year old battery that's been left to discharge anyway and even if it's lost a lot of it's cranking ability it could continue to start the Juke.  It's surprising how much abuse some batteries seem to be able to take.  Sure if it left as it was at some stage you might be charging it again but if you get to it before it gets too low you might see year(s) rather weeks or months out of John the battery.

 

Just get it fully charged and not overcharged rather than just partially charge, judgement call with old standard charger as the new "smart" ones with drop to a maintenance once the battery is fully charged meaning you don't need to worry about leaving it and it overcharging.

 

As you've show yours I'll show my old charger, well from the 1990s (or perhaps late 80s I forget), and well it's not mine but a photo from the almost world wide intraweb, it's still going strong and used very recently, well it might not be as strong as it was but it's still going..

 

Prove the doubters wrong, make Stanley and John proud.

 

12 hours ago, Warrior193 said:

Can I ask for a report of standing voltage reading before charger is switched back on in the morning?  

Yes, you can ask 😜

 

G

15 hours ago, Warrior193 said:

Deal, with one condition - battery sits off-charge for minimum of 12 hours after full charging cycle.

 

Agreed, I think it's reasonable to look for more than simply taking it off charge and starting (see my confidence growing!) the Juke straight away.  Even if this is moving the goal post a smidge.

 

15 hours ago, Warrior193 said:

Can I ask for a report of standing voltage reading before charger is switched back on in the morning?  

 

This request depended on my finding a working multimeter, but I see what you're after.  I think I'm starting to smell a Kit-kat 😁

 

 

I'd just like to point out the efforts I'm going to here. Holding multimeter leads on both battery terminals, while taking a photo at the same time is no mean feat with only one arm that works! 

 

15 hours ago, Warrior193 said:

Chippendale? 😄 Looks like someone's been using it as a sawhorse too.

 

More like Triggers Broom-endale.  Yes I miscalculated sawing some flooring a couple of decades ago   It was very upsetting.  I blame the people we purchased the house from.  If they didn't have the CH pump under the floor at the top of the stairs, I wouldn't have felt the need to move it to the airing cupboard, and wouldn't have discovered the hash someone had made of the square (ish) of floor that had been cut out.  It looked like they'd done it with a blunt road drill, from outside, on the end of a JCB arm 😡

 

It's now back on charge and drawing fairly nicely:

 

 

Slow to update today as having a lazy (easy like) Sunday morning.  Then Mrs Gaz tempted me with an intermission of:

 

 

😎

 

G

 

6 minutes ago, Gaz said:

 

Agreed, I think it's reasonable to look for more than simply taking it off charge and starting (see my confidence growing!) the Juke straight away.  Even if this is moving the goal post a smidge.

 

 

This request depended on my finding a working multimeter, but I see what you're after.  I think I'm starting to smell a Kit-kat 😁

 

 

I'd just like to point out the efforts I'm going to here. Holding multimeter leads on both battery terminals, while taking a photo at the same time is no mean feat with only one arm that works! 

 

 

More like Triggers Broom-endale.  Yes I miscalculated sawing some flooring a couple of decades ago   It was very upsetting.  I blame the people we purchased the house from.  If they didn't have the CH pump under the floor at the top of the stairs, I wouldn't have felt the need to move it to the airing cupboard, and wouldn't have discovered the hash someone had made of the square (ish) of floor that had been cut out.  It looked like they'd done it with a blunt road drill, from outside, on the end of a JCB arm 😡

 

It's now back on charge and drawing fairly nicely:

 

 

Slow to update today as having a lazy (easy like) Sunday morning.  Then Mrs Gaz tempted me with an intermission of:

 

 

😎

 

G

 

Lazarus, come forth. 😆

1 hour ago, Gaz said:

Mrs Gaz tempted me with an intermission

Does she do takeaway?