Hey Guys,

Went to work this morning car got there sweet no issues, then when i went to leave for the day the car wouldnt crank it looked like it didnt have much power head lights wouldnt work etc... and the gauges reading where jumping all over the place like the defi ones do but way crazier then got my mate to jump it and the car started however the DSC light was flashing then after a while it went away, but as soon as i pulled off the ABS light came on then disappear so i drove it home carefully but when i got home i switched it off and again it wouldnt start, got a mulitmeter and ran it over the terminals found it was only giving off 10.2V, decicded to take the terminals off then measure the battery and got 12.8V which is enough to start most cars, so something seems to be draining the battery evem when the car is switched off, anyone got any ideas?

Cheers

 

Okay....

A couple of thoughts.

1. The No Load voltage on a good car battery should be in the order of +13 1/2 volts. I think your battery is not fully charged.

Load test the battery (any large auto parts stores - often a 'free' test, or independent garages in your area?). This will show the most important part of the equation - the AMPS that your battery is capable of delivering. AMPS are what turns the starter, not volts....

2. Check all the cables, especially connections. Remember our DC systems flow power from the negative side to the positive side. Check from the negative terminal to the chassis ground back to the engine grounding, etc. Then, check from the starter to the positive terminal. When I say 'check', I really mean that the best practice is to remove each connection, clean to bare metal, and re-tighten with some di-electric grease or battery terminal spraypaint on each connection.

3. Charging system. Check cables and connections from the alternator, as above. Get an ammeter (or go to good garage) to test that the alternator that it is indeed charging; and then not overcharging. (this will make sure that you don't kill your new battery) .

By the way, the power steering / DSC will need to be reset everytime you remove a battery terminal lead. Simply turn the key on and turn the steering wheel fully from lock-to-lock.


I don't see your year in your profile, so the above assumes you are out of basic warranty.

My bet is the battery is toast. Unless it has been changed, they were really undersized on the '04 's, even the upgraded battery is marginal. The battery lives in a very warm place, and will be lucky to last over three years.


g'luck.


ps. after the jump start (on a dead battery) the alternator will take over 1/2 hour of driving to recharge a dead battery. A short trip won't do it.

 

Hey dude you where bang on the battery is toast i change it 8 months ago but forgot to keep an eye on the water (my bad), couldnt jump it so i borrow my dads one out of his Mazda 6 and first turn the beast fired up, once it got up to operation temp i flicked it off and tried it again and of course it started like it should did notice the battery light came of for a sec but the Mazda 6 is battery is almost half the size so im not surprise haha, but all the light went away dsc and the sideways light, thanks again for the help im glad it wasnt the starter motor i wasnt too keen to change that just yet considering i have the factory item which arent the best aparently they have release a revised part with a high crank speed.

Kudos to people like you

 

Just a note for anyone who has a similar problem your idle mite play up like mind did, it will drop to around 700 then 300 and die, take the car for a good kane and it will sort it self out.