Having a few electrical gremlins and knowing how sensitive these cars can be I thought i'd have a look at the battery
seemed to be ok when checked with my multi meter however, it's a Duracell AGM getting on for 6 years old and it's an AGM which whilst I wouldn't normally have thought a problem I know they weren't fitted with so I thought sod it new battery time.
Exide EA1000 ordered from Tayna arrived a day later. for a pretty reasonable £84
Should be a 5 minute job right?
I dare say forum veterans will smile as they read that but I never expected to need 3 hours and an angle grinder to fit a battery!
So I go to change the battery and notice the top clamp is missing a bolt. Flapping about and allowing a little battery movement. Is this the cause of a noise I'm also trying to track down? could it be the cause of the electrical gremlins?
No problem, easy fix to put a new bolt in!
How can a battery of so many holding points and all of them be ****? Having installed the new battery I decide to replace the bolt holding down the front bracket with one that actually doesn't foul on the bracket and add a spring washer so it can't work loose! So far so good.
Side Bracket isn't the best design as its not really long enough to stop the battery sliding. No problem, fix that and again add a spring washer so the bolt can't come loose!
I then go to put new bolt in the top clamp, Oh there's no hole someone has snapped the bolt. No problem I'll get that out with mole grips. Que removing the battery again so I can get access.
Nope it's not a bolt it's a stud they snapped ffs. Now I have to remove the whole steel frame that contains the battery box and the main relay panel mounts to in order to fix the stud! Except someone's already rounded off one of those hex head bolts before me. Out come the mole grips again!
Out with the angle grinder, cut of the back of the stud, drill it out, sort the hole touch up paint to stop it rusting. Then realise the frame has been rubbing where it mounts on the car, q a little rust on both parts where the paint has come off. Fix that.
Put a little felt between the frame and body so it stops them rubbing and rusting again. Refit everything
Great I can refit the battery again.
Top mount still not a snug fit with the new battery. No problem a strip of 9mm rubber mat between clamp and battery and I finally have a snug fit and a battery that can't move Hurrah!
Always fun fixing other people's cock ups
On the plus point now it has a better battery with more CCA, and remarkably the new battery is 3kg lighter than the one I removed. I'll take that
What a pallaver for a battery swap!
I did wonder about this at the back of the battery? Obviously the tabs are for the battery lip to slide under but is the vertical bit with the round and oblong holes supposed to do anything? Is there a clamp missing?
seemed to be ok when checked with my multi meter however, it's a Duracell AGM getting on for 6 years old and it's an AGM which whilst I wouldn't normally have thought a problem I know they weren't fitted with so I thought sod it new battery time.
Exide EA1000 ordered from Tayna arrived a day later. for a pretty reasonable £84
Should be a 5 minute job right?
I dare say forum veterans will smile as they read that but I never expected to need 3 hours and an angle grinder to fit a battery!
So I go to change the battery and notice the top clamp is missing a bolt. Flapping about and allowing a little battery movement. Is this the cause of a noise I'm also trying to track down? could it be the cause of the electrical gremlins?
No problem, easy fix to put a new bolt in!
How can a battery of so many holding points and all of them be ****? Having installed the new battery I decide to replace the bolt holding down the front bracket with one that actually doesn't foul on the bracket and add a spring washer so it can't work loose! So far so good.
Side Bracket isn't the best design as its not really long enough to stop the battery sliding. No problem, fix that and again add a spring washer so the bolt can't come loose!
I then go to put new bolt in the top clamp, Oh there's no hole someone has snapped the bolt. No problem I'll get that out with mole grips. Que removing the battery again so I can get access.
Nope it's not a bolt it's a stud they snapped ffs. Now I have to remove the whole steel frame that contains the battery box and the main relay panel mounts to in order to fix the stud! Except someone's already rounded off one of those hex head bolts before me. Out come the mole grips again!
Out with the angle grinder, cut of the back of the stud, drill it out, sort the hole touch up paint to stop it rusting. Then realise the frame has been rubbing where it mounts on the car, q a little rust on both parts where the paint has come off. Fix that.
Put a little felt between the frame and body so it stops them rubbing and rusting again. Refit everything
Great I can refit the battery again.
Top mount still not a snug fit with the new battery. No problem a strip of 9mm rubber mat between clamp and battery and I finally have a snug fit and a battery that can't move Hurrah!
Always fun fixing other people's cock ups
On the plus point now it has a better battery with more CCA, and remarkably the new battery is 3kg lighter than the one I removed. I'll take that
What a pallaver for a battery swap!
I did wonder about this at the back of the battery? Obviously the tabs are for the battery lip to slide under but is the vertical bit with the round and oblong holes supposed to do anything? Is there a clamp missing?
