I know its winter because.....

[KeithS]

My Griff's battery didn't have enough poke to turn the engine over. What worries me is that the car is in a garage, the alarm isn't on and I used the car for a few hours last Sunday, so what is draining the battery that could practically flatten it in a week?

I'm sure that the previous owner had a new battery on it just before I bought the car 3 months ago, but I will need to check as he didn't give me the receipt for it. I fully expect to hear "they all do that sir"

[plipton]

I Had a similar problem on my Chimp last week (look at other threads for details) when my battery went sooooooooooo flat I couldn't even get into the car !!! (wasn't used for about a month.)

I think the reason for this was the dashboard clock was drawing a few milli-amps over an extended period which eventually flattened the battery.

I suspect this may not be the case with your car, though, as it should hold charge much longer than a week.

If you have an AVO or digital multi meter, try measuring the current drain from the battery with everything switched off (AND doors closed). If there's a current drain more than a few milli-amps remove a fuse at a time to find which circuit is causing the drain.

If there's no significant current drain I'm affraid your battery could be the most likely culprit. Not expensive to replace but an absolute ba$7ard to get out unfortunately.

Good luck

Plipton

[KeithS]

Thanks for the advice m8. The problem has got worse over the last week or so, the previous weekend it just about started, that was after a 2 week gap, so maybe the strain on the battery was too much and it's decided to die.

I'll get my mate next door to run a few tests (he is an electrician), as I am absolutely hopeless with anything more complicated than a 13amp plug .

[neilmac]

Keith,

Sounds like you need an Accumate charger to leave plugged into the cigarette lighter when the car is sitting in your garage doing nothing.

I got mine from Leven and it keeps battery fully charged, ready for when you want to use the car.

[KeithS]

neilmac said: Keith,

Sounds like you need an Accumate charger to leave plugged into the cigarette lighter when the car is sitting in your garage doing nothing.

I got mine from Leven and it keeps battery fully charged, ready for when you want to use the car.

If you are not already in business as a mind reader then you should be! I've just been looking at one of those, and will order one tomorrow. That should get round the battery problem for now, as I don't tend to leave the car parked unattended anywhere for more than half an hour I don't think the battery will flatten that quickly when I am out and about.

I assume that the charger works on all Griff fag lighter sockets (mine is a 96) and not just some model years or certain colour combinations ? My car has a socket on one of the front chassis cross members under the bonnet where I can plug in a set of jump leads (I was thanking God for that earlier today!!), will it plug in there as an alternative?

All I need to do now is knock down the partition wall in my garage, so I can get the car in there! Where's that sledgehammer gone.......

[neilmac]

My Griff is a 96 and it works in my lighter - socket so yours should be OK, but who knows with TVRs?

[manek]

Alternatively, you could use an ordinary charger in conjunction with a timer. Set it to charge for an hour a day -- no harm done and you've probably got all the bits anyway.

[Griff2be]

KeithS said:

neilmac said: My car has a socket on one of the front chassis cross members under the bonnet where I can plug in a set of jump leads (I was thanking God for that earlier today!!), will it plug in there as an alternative?

Yes - the Accumate charger will plug into that socket. Can't remember if you need to order a specific lead, but Leven will tell you.

[simpo one]

'My car has a socket on one of the front chassis cross members under the bonnet where I can plug in a set of jump leads (I was thanking God for that earlier today!!), will it plug in there as an alternative?'

But then you've got to open the bonnet to connect/disconnect it.... Fag socket is much easier. I have an Airflow conditioner and it worked on both 92 and 97 Griffs. Marvellous.

Of course if your battery can't keep a charge for a week then it may be daffied anyway. You might find that a conditioner will give it enough to get you started at home, then it will let you down the *second* time - ie away from home! I speak from experience!

[KeithS]

simpo one said:
Of course if your battery can't keep a charge for a week then it may be daffied anyway. You might find that a conditioner will give it enough to get you started at home, then it will let you down the *second* time - ie away from home! I speak from experience!

Sounds like a new battery is going to be a wise investment then, I was hoping to avoid the experience though!

[simpo one]

Then again, if you wait until you break down somewhere, you might be able to bribe the AA to jump start it, then follow you to the nearest Halfords and change the battery for you. As I said to the nice man, 'if you just jump it and go away, I'll just break down again somewhere else and have to call you out again...'

[Edt]

BTW all - recently joined 'Costco' who flog all manner of Kirkland branded things.. shampoo, meat, cashew nuts, jeans ... and car batteries. In the catalogue they list all modernish TVRs, prices are good & the batteries are guaranteed for 5 years (though I expect from fault, not from being emptied by TVR electrics!)

Ed

[tonybav]

Since the battery powers the cigarette lighter, and plugging a charger in will then charge the battery, but in any closed loop you sill lose energy, not sure how charge is greater than the power drain.

I bought a charger with a trickle charger option leave it on the car all the time and should be no problems, until I forgot for 2 weeks then nothing, so dead the charger would not even charge it, and battery only 6 months old.

Garaged got it charged but cost me £35, AA home start is another wothwhile investment.

[KeithS]

I ordered an Optimate today, so should be with me tomorrow. I'll probably leave the Griff until Friday or so before trying to start it, to see if the battery has gone flat again. Then I'll get my mate to check for current drain etc.. before changing the battery.

[mel]

tonybav said: Since the battery powers the cigarette lighter, and plugging a charger in will then charge the battery, but in any closed loop you sill lose energy, not sure how charge is greater than the power drain.

I bought a charger with a trickle charger option leave it on the car all the time and should be no problems, until I forgot for 2 weeks then nothing, so dead the charger would not even charge it, and battery only 6 months old.

The Optimates aren't just a "trickle" charger they are actually conditioners and monitor the levels being given out by the battery and adjust their charging to suit. Even using a trickle charger it is possible to kill a good battery by simply leaving it having ooooomph pushed into it all the time at a low level. The optimate is a plug in and forget solution which switches itself on and off as required. It is possible your trickle charger solution was actually the cause of the battery failing and being unable to hold a charge.

I've got 2 Optimates attached to my garage ceiling with the leads hanging down, I rotate them between 4 bikes which all have the permanent fly leads attached to the batteries and so just plug in and the Griff which plugs in the lighter. One of the Optimates has been in "constant" use for over 5 years and has never missed a beat, it has meant that on the Race ZX7RR I have run the same battery for 3 years which on a closed circuit system (no alternator with spark being driven directly from battery) is almost unheard of but has been achieved by keeping it "conditioned". If I wasn't such a tight git I'd buy 5 and leave everything wired up all the time, top kit and well worth it.