Monaro VXR Battery issues

[BO55HOD]

Hi all, been having a few problems with the 'ro, battery keeps going flat after about a week of none use, now ive left it for a few weeks without trying to start, its totally dead and wont respond to a jump start either? its a fairly new battery from the fish but its the standard one and i believe you can get a bigger, more powerfull battery for the car, but will it fit in the gap without any mods? cheers

[snowwolf]

Hi Boss, when you say it does not respond to a jump start, do you mean it turns over but does not start or the engine will not turn over?

If the battery is quite new, fitting a new bigger one will not really help much, there must be something draining the battery? is it possible to have a battery conditioner plugged in all time the car is not being used?

Edited by snowwolf on Saturday 30th January 11:57

[BO55HOD]

the lights come on on the dash but theres nothing else, no clicking, no turning over, just silence!

[snowwolf]

BO55HOD said:

the lights come on on the dash but theres nothing else, no clicking, no turning over, just silence!

Is it possible to see if the headlights work ok, that way you can tell if the battery has got a good charge still in it.

[snowwolf]

I know it sounds silly but is it like the VXR8 and have to put the clutch in before it will start? and you are pushing the clutch down?

Edited by snowwolf on Saturday 30th January 12:14

[BO55HOD]

hi snowy, yes the headlights are working with the jump leads on, but theres no rsponse whatsoever when i turn the key to start?

[snowwolf]

H Mark, have you got another key you can try, perhaps the immobilizer is stopping it?

[BO55HOD]

hi snowy, omg im a knob! its been so long i forgot to drop the clutch to start! its running now, but i think the batterys still on the way out. any ideas about the bigger battery, type no, fit etc? thanks for your help

[snowwolf]

LOL glad that was a cheap fix, I did mention that in the post above how long has the battery been on the car? is it a good make? if you got it from MF I would have thought it be a good one, is the car parked near a power supply so you can fit a Ctek conditioner, they are a must if you leave the car for periods of no usage.

[BO55HOD]

its a genuine GM battery, been on the car for about 6 months. cant really leave connected to a power source as is out on the front drive quite a way from the house. ill charge it up again and take it from here. thanks again.

[Paul v8]

Had recent similar issue but had battery for 4 ish yrs after calling RAC 3 times was stuff this just fit new battery no no issues as don't daily drive don't keep lights on auto mode any longer not sure if makes a difference or not

[kd123]

Bringing up this thread again.

I have acquired a Monaro VXR 2005 which has been sitting on driveway unused for last 3 years.
It had a suspected battery drain issue back then. Now, understandably I was told battery needed changing.

Temporarily borrowed a battery (not proper one but with enough power to work) to check. Charged battery at home for 8hours.

Car had to be towed to garage and mechanic had only started car to move onto ramps. He was complaining about battery going flat after a few days.

Now this could be due to car not being driven and I will only know for sure, once I get the car back.

However, I noticed that after turning ignition off and central locking car, the Time LCD display on Car Radio and Odometer display on LCD panel on instrument cluster remain on. I waited for 10mins and they still did not go off.

On instrument cluster the immobiliser read light flashes indicating car is off.


This doesn't seem right to me. I know they don't drain a lot of current but over time could drain a battery flat?

I have set the Option for Accessories to switch off after ignition is turned off (as opposed to on driver's door as my door switch is intermittment).

Any ideas if Clock and Odometer display should stay on.

[mfp4073]

kd123 said:

Bringing up this thread again.

I have acquired a Monaro VXR 2005 which has been sitting on driveway unused for last 3 years.
It had a suspected battery drain issue back then. Now, understandably I was told battery needed changing.

Temporarily borrowed a battery (not proper one but with enough power to work) to check. Charged battery at home for 8hours.

Car had to be towed to garage and mechanic had only started car to move onto ramps. He was complaining about battery going flat after a few days.

Now this could be due to car not being driven and I will only know for sure, once I get the car back.

However, I noticed that after turning ignition off and central locking car, the Time LCD display on Car Radio and Odometer display on LCD panel on instrument cluster remain on. I waited for 10mins and they still did not go off.

On instrument cluster the immobiliser read light flashes indicating car is off.


This doesn't seem right to me. I know they don't drain a lot of current but over time could drain a battery flat?

I have set the Option for Accessories to switch off after ignition is turned off (as opposed to on driver's door as my door switch is intermittment).

Any ideas if Clock and Odometer display should stay on.

The clock and Odometer should stay on when you switch everything off and lock the doors. The only flashing red light I have is the Led on the radio. If the car is unlocked but everything is still switched off there is a flashing Led in the instrument panel.
My decent battery usually goes flat after 10 days or so of inactivity, if not flat it certainly struggles to fire up.
Monaro’s are a bit sensitive to batteries in poor condition, and even the best battery will be drained over a short period of time.

[L2VXR]

The radio ect turn off when you open the door rather than ignition switch. The switch on the a post tends to stick when you open the door and the bcm doesn't get the signal to turn off the radio/lights.
Fix or replace the plunger switch

[kd123]

Thanks mpf4073, good to know clock and Odometer should stay on after car is locked.

@L2VXR, there is an option in the menu to switch radio off with ignition which works for me. But yes fixing door switch is on my increasing long list of things to do!

If a good battery discharges after 10days of inactivity what is the recommendation is only driving car a few times a month? Do you guys disconnect battery?

Trickle charge all the time seems an annoyance and logistically difficult for me considering car location and plug in house.

[mfp4073]

Since I bought my Monaro, other than the first year I had it, I take the car off the road for the winter.
I kept the battery in the house and put it on a basic battery charger every few months.
However the past few years I’ve left the battery on the car and used a battery conditioner/ charger to keep it in good condition, mind you the car is garaged.
If you disconnect the battery you need to give the car time to relearn its ability to idle properly. Not a problem really.

Edited by mfp4073 on Sunday 15th September 17:23

[SturdyHSV]

I've left mine for decently long periods without it going flat, the Ute as well and it'll still start, 10 days is I suspect not a 'good' battery, or there's something else going on.

As above, radio clock / odometer stay on permanently.

If I'm leaving it a very long time (i.e. it's in the garage) I'll put a trickle charger on it. If it's been sat a very long time without one on, I'll put it on a day or so before using it.

Has worked fine for many years.

[throwyourbike]

Mine is hooked up to a ctek charger 90% of the time.

Every now and again I’ll switch it off for a few days just because

I’ve replaced the battery once in 12 years.

[Super Sonic]

kd123 said:

Thanks mpf4073, good to know clock and Odometer should stay on after car is locked.

@L2VXR, there is an option in the menu to switch radio off with ignition which works for me. But yes fixing door switch is on my increasing long list of things to do!

If a good battery discharges after 10days of inactivity what is the recommendation is only driving car a few times a month? Do you guys disconnect battery?

Trickle charge all the time seems an annoyance and logistically difficult for me considering car location and plug in house.

Solar powered trickle charger?

[vxr2010]

My cd player light was staying on , which was not related to the door switch , I ended up by putting a more modern unit it plus steering wheel controls , mines on a trickle charger around 7 hours every day as it's on a timer, the battery has lasted a long time , as soon as the battery drops below 12.5 or so it starts to break down Internally , if I can keep it at 12 I'm happy , solar charger I bought a couple on ebay the 60 watt ones , they do work very well the battery is staying around 12 volts but this will drop off winter time , solar chargers tend to prolong the time before a battery has an issue v a charger that stops a battery having an issue , they are still a good idea around 10 to 12 pounds on ebay , i have a bit more battery drain than normal as all the cars including the monaro have had a cat 2 to cat 1 alarm upgrade or fitted a new cat 1 alarm and they all have trackers fitted so again a bit more drain , I don't see the point of having a battery trickle charger on all the time which is why the charger is on a timer , and I have not had an issue with the battery or chargers