Battery issues
#1
Battery issues
Hi...I'm new to the forum, but not new to Minis. I own an '05 Cooper with 20K miles, and I have an '09 S I bought 6 months ago. I tried starting the '09 yesterday morning and the battery was dead. I jumped it and took it down to Momentum Mini. After having it all day they called to tell me the battery was completely dead....but Mini would not warrant it because I only have 1910 miles on it! They say that you must drive 800 miles a month on the Mini to keep the battery charged. I will never drive that many miles but I do drive my car everyday. 7.5 miles each way to work and back. I also drive it on the weekends. This is easily the most ludicrous thing I've ever encountered in 35 years of buying and driving cars.
Has anyone heard of such a thing?
Has anyone heard of such a thing?
#2
It's in My '08 Owner's Manual about short trips not keeping battery charged.
Mine wouldn't start on it's second week and then again after 17 months, might have been a third instance, but I caught my Parking Lights on.
Sometimes hard to notice inside a well lit Garage or Hangar.
I have the ScanGauge (link in sig below) that reads voltage and for many months before the second 'no-start' it had read 11.6 Volts in the mornings.
I now use a two amp 'trickle-charger' if I see it below 12.4 Volts, (I average less than 300 miles a month).
The new MINI Sealed Battery can be damaged by normal 'high-voltage' (14+) Chargers and it needs a special charger that controls it to 13.8 Volts, or it will 'vent' too much.
Trickle charging should be stopped before it gets above 14 Volts.
__________________________________________________ ________
I would think you should be given a warranty replacement, perhaps it's time for you to contact MINI-USA for that.
Mine wouldn't start on it's second week and then again after 17 months, might have been a third instance, but I caught my Parking Lights on.
Sometimes hard to notice inside a well lit Garage or Hangar.
I have the ScanGauge (link in sig below) that reads voltage and for many months before the second 'no-start' it had read 11.6 Volts in the mornings.
I now use a two amp 'trickle-charger' if I see it below 12.4 Volts, (I average less than 300 miles a month).
The new MINI Sealed Battery can be damaged by normal 'high-voltage' (14+) Chargers and it needs a special charger that controls it to 13.8 Volts, or it will 'vent' too much.
Trickle charging should be stopped before it gets above 14 Volts.
__________________________________________________ ________
I would think you should be given a warranty replacement, perhaps it's time for you to contact MINI-USA for that.
Last edited by pilotart; 09-16-2009 at 01:24 PM.
#3
#4
Battery issues
Thanks for the responses, very helpful. I hope I'm responding correctly...not sure of these "threads" and all.
I did contact Mini USA and was assured that they would contact my dealer to authorize replacement of my battery. However, my dealership took it upon themselves to replace my battery at no cost before Mini USA even made the call. So they did the right thing and I'm happy. (although in my opinion they should've done it from the get go before things got so sideways.
Thanks again...happy motoring.
I did contact Mini USA and was assured that they would contact my dealer to authorize replacement of my battery. However, my dealership took it upon themselves to replace my battery at no cost before Mini USA even made the call. So they did the right thing and I'm happy. (although in my opinion they should've done it from the get go before things got so sideways.
Thanks again...happy motoring.
#5
Had the same thing happen to me this week. I left my car sitting in my garage for about 7 days and then when I went to start it up last night, the starter tried to turn the engine over and then said to me, "Are you serious Shane!?" All lights turned off in the interior, then flickered back on. No battery warning light either.
After I called up MINI roadside service the operator told me what I experienced was normal
So after this occurance, I know this is one of the MINI's little quirks that I definitely do not like.
After I called up MINI roadside service the operator told me what I experienced was normal
So after this occurance, I know this is one of the MINI's little quirks that I definitely do not like.
#6
http://batterytender.com/resources/w...terytender.htm
#7
Battery needs more than driving
I'm glad you've made this post. I've mentioned this before, and now I have a better story to tell about your Mini's battery.
I have an 07 MCS. It has less than 16k miles on it. I bought it new (ordered, not off the lot) in May of 07, and it's been trouble free.
That said...let me admit that I am a bit of a nut about battery maintenance. I've previously stated on this forum that these batteries do NOT get a good enough charge EVER for long term maintenance. (When I have posted this "information", I've had no real response from other forum members). Once a month I put my full size charger on the Mini battery, set at 12v 10a... and I top off the battery to bring it to absolute full charge. I've been doing this since the first month I got the car.
I just came back from a one week 1800 mile road trip through Vegas, then southern Utah and more back roads of Nevada. The car ran perfect and was a joy to drive btw.
But as to the battery: BEFORE I left on the trip, I made sure the battery was FULLY CHARGED. I then proceeded (with my co-pilot) to drive the car for many big mile days. When I got home, I put the charger on the battery. It took a full HALF HOUR to bring the battery to full charge, using the 12v 10a setting. I'm not going to bore you with my driving during the trip. I'd call it NORMAL USE.
What I'm telling you ALL is...IF you want your battery to go for it's optimum life, go spend the money on a quality full size charger, and the first of every month, bring it to full charge. Batteries have memory. IF you leave them discharged to a certain level for a period of time, the battery will NOT charge beyond that level when you put a charger on it.
My battery will be 3 years old this coming May, and it's still doing well.
Just tryin' to help.
I have an 07 MCS. It has less than 16k miles on it. I bought it new (ordered, not off the lot) in May of 07, and it's been trouble free.
That said...let me admit that I am a bit of a nut about battery maintenance. I've previously stated on this forum that these batteries do NOT get a good enough charge EVER for long term maintenance. (When I have posted this "information", I've had no real response from other forum members). Once a month I put my full size charger on the Mini battery, set at 12v 10a... and I top off the battery to bring it to absolute full charge. I've been doing this since the first month I got the car.
I just came back from a one week 1800 mile road trip through Vegas, then southern Utah and more back roads of Nevada. The car ran perfect and was a joy to drive btw.
But as to the battery: BEFORE I left on the trip, I made sure the battery was FULLY CHARGED. I then proceeded (with my co-pilot) to drive the car for many big mile days. When I got home, I put the charger on the battery. It took a full HALF HOUR to bring the battery to full charge, using the 12v 10a setting. I'm not going to bore you with my driving during the trip. I'd call it NORMAL USE.
What I'm telling you ALL is...IF you want your battery to go for it's optimum life, go spend the money on a quality full size charger, and the first of every month, bring it to full charge. Batteries have memory. IF you leave them discharged to a certain level for a period of time, the battery will NOT charge beyond that level when you put a charger on it.
My battery will be 3 years old this coming May, and it's still doing well.
Just tryin' to help.
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#9
I'm glad you've made this post. I've mentioned this before, and now I have a better story to tell about your Mini's battery.
I have an 07 MCS. It has less than 16k miles on it. I bought it new (ordered, not off the lot) in May of 07, and it's been trouble free.
That said...let me admit that I am a bit of a nut about battery maintenance. I've previously stated on this forum that these batteries do NOT get a good enough charge EVER for long term maintenance. (When I have posted this "information", I've had no real response from other forum members). Once a month I put my full size charger on the Mini battery, set at 12v 10a... and I top off the battery to bring it to absolute full charge. I've been doing this since the first month I got the car.
I just came back from a one week 1800 mile road trip through Vegas, then southern Utah and more back roads of Nevada. The car ran perfect and was a joy to drive btw.
But as to the battery: BEFORE I left on the trip, I made sure the battery was FULLY CHARGED. I then proceeded (with my co-pilot) to drive the car for many big mile days. When I got home, I put the charger on the battery. It took a full HALF HOUR to bring the battery to full charge, using the 12v 10a setting. I'm not going to bore you with my driving during the trip. I'd call it NORMAL USE.
What I'm telling you ALL is...IF you want your battery to go for it's optimum life, go spend the money on a quality full size charger, and the first of every month, bring it to full charge. Batteries have memory. IF you leave them discharged to a certain level for a period of time, the battery will NOT charge beyond that level when you put a charger on it.
My battery will be 3 years old this coming May, and it's still doing well.
Just tryin' to help.
I have an 07 MCS. It has less than 16k miles on it. I bought it new (ordered, not off the lot) in May of 07, and it's been trouble free.
That said...let me admit that I am a bit of a nut about battery maintenance. I've previously stated on this forum that these batteries do NOT get a good enough charge EVER for long term maintenance. (When I have posted this "information", I've had no real response from other forum members). Once a month I put my full size charger on the Mini battery, set at 12v 10a... and I top off the battery to bring it to absolute full charge. I've been doing this since the first month I got the car.
I just came back from a one week 1800 mile road trip through Vegas, then southern Utah and more back roads of Nevada. The car ran perfect and was a joy to drive btw.
But as to the battery: BEFORE I left on the trip, I made sure the battery was FULLY CHARGED. I then proceeded (with my co-pilot) to drive the car for many big mile days. When I got home, I put the charger on the battery. It took a full HALF HOUR to bring the battery to full charge, using the 12v 10a setting. I'm not going to bore you with my driving during the trip. I'd call it NORMAL USE.
What I'm telling you ALL is...IF you want your battery to go for it's optimum life, go spend the money on a quality full size charger, and the first of every month, bring it to full charge. Batteries have memory. IF you leave them discharged to a certain level for a period of time, the battery will NOT charge beyond that level when you put a charger on it.
My battery will be 3 years old this coming May, and it's still doing well.
Just tryin' to help.
#10
#11
I wouldn't suggest using a "trickle charger" to maintain a battery. You need to bring the battery to FULL CHARGE, then put the trickle charger on. The trickle charger won't finish the charge job. It doesn't have the amps to do it.
I can't speak for the modern little battery tenders. But I'd guess that UNLESS you start with your battery at full charge, it's NOT going to be able to run a hot enough charge to bring it to full charge. I could be wrong on this in regard to the modern "battery tender" type. Me, I'd want the battery FULLY CHARGED with a full size charger prior to putting any "tender" or "trickler" on it. And again, IF you put the full size charger on every 30 days, your battery should have a fairly optimum life.
Everyone should own a full bore charger. They're not that much money. Oh, and one like I have also has a START feature, so you can just hook it to a DEAD battery in a car and it has all the kick to just start the car right up.
Just tryin' to help.
Last edited by surfblue; 11-29-2009 at 12:46 PM.
#12
Raise your hood in a toast to the MINI!!
Surfblue replies: Yeah, it's a FIDDLY modern car, for sure. I'm always going to have one, just the same. :-) I have never had the cold start issue, but I'm a battery charging, hood raising Mini S owner...AND PROUD OF IT!!!
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