Hello all,

I have a 54 plate Fabia, no probs till recently. I didn't drive it for a couple of weeks and the battery went flat (think I left something on and it was cold).

Recharged it no problem except the green 'magic eye' had gone in the battery (the original Akuma one). The manual suggests topping up with distilled water but doesn't tell me how.

I can unscrew two plastic caps under a sticker on top of the battery, I assume the distilled water goes in there. But how much should I put in? Looks like the electrolyte level is about 1.5 to 2 inches below the cap holes.

cheers,

fs

How long you leave it on charge? If the battery was very flat it could take 2 days to charge that's how long it took a friends battery last week to charge.

Hi, thanks for the reply.

About 24 hours on slow charge. The charger indicator went green so not sure it continued charging longer.

Guess I'll try charging again to see if the magic eye changes.

cheers,

fs

I've heard that you can't rely on the magic eye. Get it load tested.

The Magic Eye ® functions based on the specific gravity of the aicd. It is one of the most accurate methods for determining the state of charge of a battery. Try gently rocking the battery to mix the electrolyte and allow the green ball inside the Magic Eye ® to float up (if the battery is truly charged).

If the Magic Eye ® is showing green, that means that the fluid level is good and that the battery is at least 75% state of charge (the 75% figure can vary by battery company, but it should be close to this) Here are the 3 stages of indication for the Magic Eye ®:

1. Green: Battery is at least 75% state of charge and the fluid level is good.

2. Dark: Fluid level is good, but the battery is dis-charged. Re-charge the battery.

3. Clear and bright: Fluid level is low. Add distilled water if possible, otherwise change out the battery. Be careful with a battery that is low on water!!! Do not charge or jump start!!!

Top up level will be just to cover the plates with distilled water. If you can't see the lead plates then there will be plastic pointer somewhere down there. Magic eye batts. are covered in the handbook as Martune describes above.

Another type off battery has a Magic Eye but are filled with a gel electrolyte and are not to be topped up with Dist. water, make sure it's not one of these.

Edited 28 May, 200917 yr by Soot1e

I wouldn't rely on the 'magic eye' for battery condition.I have had batteries where the eye is not showing,yet the battery lasted another 3 years. It is better to listen to the starter motor when you start the car for the first time that day. The High Current being taken ,is an ideal way of findind out the batteries capacity, and condition.

I am not sure what AndyPandy means by the Magic Eye®is not showing. If it is showing clear/bright, be careful as the battery is low on water. Add distilled water if possible. If not, the battery should be replaced. If you don't mind being stranded at some point, you can use the "don't relace it till it don't start" method.

I'm afraid I feel that I need to support AndyPandy on this one, in an ideal world the magic eye is useful, but, in my experience, two things happen, first as mentioned already is the problem that there are bubbles of gas/air gripping the ball and it is not always possible to thump the battery enough to break it free to be where it "wants" to be, second is the situation where the dreaded grey gungle is in the battery and darkens the magic eye system so a useful battery looks duff! Yes its like playing Russian roulette when the visual indicator says "dump me" but the starter sounds okay - but in general modern batteries still tend to "die" suddenly and not conveniently slowly - so you are still playing Russian roulette with any battery with or without the magic eye. Its not the "be all" that it was intended to be - but might still give some useful indication though.

Thanks for the replies folks - this thread was quite old!

I replaced the battery in the end after ongoing problems.

Good Briskodian, coming back with a conclusion! Now do your bit and start another thread (joke!).

Edit, whoops sorry you have already taken care of that!!