Being away for a while kills the battery?

unistork

New Member

Mar 26, 2004

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Apr 20, 2004

#1

• Apr 20, 2004

• #1

Well, I went on a trip for 2 weeks so my 'stang wasn't running for that long, when I come back I find that I can't open the door with my remote and the car doesn't start. Is this common? I jump started the car and left the car running for about 3 hours and I haven't had a problem since but is my battery bound to die again or am I all okay? Just wondering if I should buy a new battery or not.

 

S

saleen137

New Member

Nov 11, 2003

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Bellflower

Apr 20, 2004

#2

• Apr 20, 2004

• #2

This happens to me too. You're not the only one. From what i know you can get the optima battery and you can have your car stored for six months or longer and it will start right up. Now everytime you listen to your stereo while washing the car it will drain the battery i know it's happened to me twice.

 

mrvax

Stay thirsty my friends

Founding Member

Nov 29, 1999

5,225

3

79

SN Moderator: Orlando, Fl.

Apr 20, 2004

#3

• Apr 20, 2004

• #3

I had my car out of service for about 10 days. It had the alarm and the Dallas Speed Cal slowly drawing a bit af current. The car started, but the 1998 stock battery's eye was red. After a week of normal driving, the eye turned back to green. Seems to be OK now. If you don't have an alarm, might just as well disconnect the battery and it will probably last a bit longer.

 

DBMSTNG

I fantasize about it being BIG!

Founding Member

Apr 23, 2002

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56

not quite here

Apr 20, 2004

#4

• Apr 20, 2004

• #4

if it's an older battery, replace it. newer cars have a slight drain on the batteries. if you plan on being gone awhile, disconnect the battery.

 

E

el_kid_1

New Member

Oct 30, 2003

738

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Puerto Rico

Apr 20, 2004

#5

• Apr 20, 2004

• #5

yes, it can affect the battery. If your car is going to sit in your garage for a while you should disconnect the battery. Or you could get an Optima, which can be left without any use for very long periods. Good quality battery by the way.

 

tait_gt2002

New Member

Jan 24, 2002

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Apr 20, 2004

#6

• Apr 20, 2004

• #6

Optimas are good batteries, I prefer them, but like all batteries you can get a dud. Leaving a battery connected in any vehicle for long periods of time will drain it, some worse than others depending on the health of the battery and the health of all exposed connections as well as switches.

 

triggz

Founding Member

May 15, 2002

1,218

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Gadsden, AL

May 15, 2004

#7

• May 15, 2004

• #7

i have an optima redtop and it died after sitting for a week and ive yet to get it fully recharged with driving it for several months.
i was afraid it was going to totally drain the battery while i was installing my hypertech programmer- the voltmeter was bobbing down really bad.

while we're on the topic of optimas and such, should an optima battery be okay if it gets drained and then recharged? or will cells die in it as with wet batteries?

 

chevylover

Member

Sep 27, 2003

190

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Castro Valley, CA originally St. James Missouri

May 15, 2004

#8

• May 15, 2004

• #8

triggz said:

i have an optima redtop and it died after sitting for a week and ive yet to get it fully recharged with driving it for several months.
i was afraid it was going to totally drain the battery while i was installing my hypertech programmer- the voltmeter was bobbing down really bad.

while we're on the topic of optimas and such, should an optima battery be okay if it gets drained and then recharged? or will cells die in it as with wet batteries?

Click to expand...

I had one die in a pickup I had. Jumped it and everything was fine!!

 

Blakers01GT

Master of the Clubhead

Founding Member

Sep 21, 2001

2,110

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Brown Deer, WI

May 15, 2004

#9

• May 15, 2004

• #9

I have a yellow top, couldn't be happier, I had the same problem with my stock battery, i had car audio systems, i have a speed cal, the optima has never shown a sign of weakness so far.

 

99greenstang

New Member

Mar 1, 2004

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Chicago Area

May 15, 2004

#10

• May 15, 2004

• #10

There are so many things that can affect when a battery will die, just telling them to get a certain kind of battery is not the answer. Be sure to use the battery as per directed by the manufacturer. Keep the battery clean as even small amounts of dust ont he battery can cause a surface discharge that will drain a battery very quickly (ironically, it is easy to test for this condition).. also every car has a certain amount of parasitic drain on the battery just for the memory of the ecm and other components (lots of aftermarket components such as alarms or head units add to this original amount) of the car, some can be quite high, unfortunately, Ford has a reputation of being the company with the most parasitic drain. You can do some simply at home tests that will help you determine what actually happened, I would guess that after two weeks the parasitic drain just got to the car, but you may want to check and see if you have too much of it.

 

J

jersey 00 GT

New Member

Jun 6, 2004

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Jun 7, 2004

#11

• Jun 7, 2004

• #11

After installing steeda pullys, my car drains the battery if i stuck in traffic or idle too long w/ my radio on....
Is it normal??

 

twogts4us

15 Year Member

Apr 1, 2004

4,188

12

79

Dunedin, FL

Jun 7, 2004

#12

• Jun 7, 2004

• #12

Being a resident of FL, I know 1st hand that heat will also kill a battery.