Allegro Club International

[Richard Howe]

Anyone tried one of these magical devices that claims it'll ensure your battery will never go flat again? Their adverts never say exactly how this is accomplished...

Gonzo has had battery problems since long before I got him, I thought we'd solved them when the condenser blew and was replaced but it seems they're back; he's just had an extended period of disuse awaiting repairs in my mechanic's yard, and after driving him home from my mechanic last week I didn't try to drive him again for another week on top. He started fine last week, presumably due to charging, but today the battery was so flat that I couldn't even raise a glow from the dashboard lights!

I've just jumped him and driven him around for half an hour and I'll do the same tomorrow before looking at a conditioning charger or a battery swap (the current one's under warranty). Obviously there's a slow discharge hiding somewhere, he's been checked over a few times by different people and while we've found and fixed a few odd shorts, somewhere another one keeps eluding us. I was just wondering if it may be worth trying one of these Brain things, alternatively I may just start disconnecting the battery when I park up!
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...that's why Allegro will look as good 5 years from now as it does today.

[M. Irvine]

Hi Richard,

I cannot say I have used such a device but if you cannot find the drain try disconnecting the alternator plug and than see if the battery stays up.

HOWEVER, ON NO ACCOUNT START THE ENGINE WITH THE ALTERNATOR DISCONNECTED.

Sometimes alternators drain at will.

Are you sure the boot light is going out?

Did the battery come from Halfords, by any chance?

Merv.
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[Laurence]

The battery could have a duff cell.

If you want to check battery performance yourself, a fully charged battery should be able to maintain 9volts for around 15 seconds when being discharged.

Connect your voltmeter (select 20volt or above) to the battery connectors then remove the ignition coil positive wire (+), then motor the engine over as if to start for about 15 seconds.

Watch the reading on the voltmeter, if it drops to 9volts or below then the battery is duff. If it can maintain around 10.5 to 11 volts it's OK.

You could always got to your local motor factors where they can use their discharge tester.

Whilst you've got the meter out, check the alternator output. It should be around 14 to 14.5 volts above tickover.

As you have said that you car has suffered 'battery' faults for some time now, maybe one of the battery terminal connectors is duff/split or corroded. Some of the BL battery post clamps were very fragile (cheap) so they split or fell apart easily.

Check the earth cable connections from engine to chassis & from the battery to the inner wing, making sure the earth cables haven't deteriorated too much.

I have known the choke cable to melt because the engine earth was duff, so the choke cable became the engine earth (on a Mini).

[Richard Howe]

Thanks both.

Seems it's likely to be an earthing issue, as once I got it started (jumpleads, not my usual booster pack) it ran fine twice yesterday and again today. And, as I discovered just now after today's run, the sidelights had been left on overnight! So I guess there's no shortage of life in the actual battery after all Presumably the act of attaching the jumper clamps disturbed something in just the right way and it's stuck like that... For now, at least.

It's not a Halfords battery, it's from a motor factor but I can't recall atm which brand it is even though I just looked. And best I can tell the boot light's going out - but looking at that is what alerted me to leaving the lights on - next project, a buzzer! (I hate buzzers...)
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...that's why Allegro will look as good 5 years from now as it does today.

[wayne slater]

personally as i seldom use the internal light i took the bulb out also in the rear of a saloon car where you cant see the light has gone out . i had terrible trouble with a p6 rovers battery this solved it for me although i have left the rear bulb in on my aggy estate as i can see its off with out entombing one of my kids in the boot? to check it.
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happy days

[Laurence]

A buzzer would have helped me a few weeks ago, I left the VP headlights on when I got home after driving one murky afternoon.

The poor battery was as flat as a Dab, I put the ignition on & there was just nothing, then I saw that the headlight switch was turned to 'on', embarrassing!

My van, which I drive almost everyday, has a headlight warning buzzer which obviously you get used to relying on. Well that's my excuse anyway.

Perhaps the 'battery' fault on your car is a duff/corroded battery post clamp. I have seen some with a split so the clamp always works loose. I have seen on the battery positive clamp, on a type which has a male Lucar connector (flat blade connector) integeral with the clamp, the Lucar connector was breaking away from the clamp & it was only the battery post plastic cover holding it in place.

So it may be worthwhile scrutenising the post clamps.

[Richard Howe]

The post clamps seem fine; the whole set of wires seems fine, nice and solid. It's only been on this last trip to the garage that the original earthlead protective cap has fallen off the terminal too! (Quite sad about that... Seems they just binned it ) Ah well, he's behaving again so I think it might just have been a disturbance from when he went os long without being run.
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...that's why Allegro will look as good 5 years from now as it does today.

[Austin Gannon]

Are there plastic covers on the clamps that go onto the battery.

Had problems with my battery a while back and after hours of testing etc etc, I noticed that the rubber cover was gone of the positive terminal.

Taped it up with insulating tape and never had a problem since.

The terminal wasn't actually touching the underside of the bonnet but perhaps there was some slow discharge in damp conditions etc

[Richard Howe]

The live terminal should always be shielded if at all possible for just such reasons. I did have the original factory covers on both the live and earth terminals, but sadly my earth one has given up and fallen off It's still behaving itself again though.
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...that's why Allegro will look as good 5 years from now as it does today.