Mr2 Dead, Me Thinks Battery, Help!

[Andy Christou]

Hi guys

tried starting my car last night, and she was having none of it

the first time it made a half attempt to turn the engine, and the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th time it was just making a weird ticking electrical noise after trying to start it up.

Windows don't work, lights just about do, so me thinks is a flat Battery instead of a starter motor.

funny was, when i tried jump start the car, still nothing, not even a spark.

so am off to buy a new Battery, cause i aint got the car or any manual with me,

any idea what size or capacity should i go for????

Thanks guys.

[jaxx]

batterys out of puff

the clicking noise is the starter solenoid/relays

get it off and give it a charge while its still half decent, if you leave it too long itll die a death and you wont be able to recharge it

[Andy Christou]

oh forgot to mention.

it's a 1993 N/A Rev 2

[Flat Pack]

Yeap Battery is pancaked. Question is why?

Try giving it a good charge first, should get at least 12.5V across it once it's charged, if you don't it's dead. Otherwise the Battery is ok and something is either draining it while its at rest or its not getting charged properly. Has the car been stood for a long time? Or did you manage to do what I did to JJ's the other week and not shut the door properly... Interior lights drained the Battery (oops).

Bit odd that you still couldn't start the car when you were jumping it off something else... Was the car you were jumping off running at the time? Could be a stuck starter now I suppose, that starter on my Mini used to stick if it failed to turn over cos the battery was dead.

[boundsw]

Just tell the garage what car its for, they should be able to give you the correct Battery.

When the Battery is completely dead, no power can even pass through it, so thats why using jump leads would have been no use.

[Flat Pack]

Power doesn't need to pass through the dead Battery when you're jump starting though, you're just connecting another power source in parallel. The dead Battery could have infinite resistance (or just not be there) and it'd still work.

In fact I think dead batteries have quite low internal resistance and quite a lot of current will be passing through them to charge it. That's why you need the other car running, as the output from just its Battery won't be sufficient to charge the dead battery and start the car.

[Andy Christou]

yeah, the car i was trying to start it from was running.

i think the reason it died is cause i had the door issue mentioned above with the interior lights. Plus checking the receipts and service history i got, the Battery hasnt been changed since 1998.

[clarky]

Had exactly the same thing a month or so ago - took the old one off - charged it for a day and it was fine - for a week then same again.

Replaced it with a new one - been fine since. Interestingly the new Battery is about a third shallower than the original. Suppose technology moves on ...

[jerry phipps]

Just brought a new Battery for the mr2 as i was having the same trouble. I could see that the cells where low and i had to keep topping it up all the while. Now that i have got a new Battery you wont believe the way now it starts :)

Just go out and get a new Battery mate. My new battery set me back £40 for a lucas battery.

jerry!!

[jaxx]

done sililar myself, my cars been stood so the Battery ate itslef but it wont charge for love nor money, so i dropped a spare one on, half the size but with the same amp/hour rating!

also the car fires alot quicker with the new Battery so it MUST have been shagged