It's kinda hard for me to put faith in a charging device that is connected with 14ga wire. I'll stick with jumper cables for real work.
The best set of jumper cables I have seen was a homemade set. I worked part-time in a heavy equipment shop during college. The old mechanic would always make a nice set of cables for jumping 24v equipment with heavy scrap wiring from construction sites. 25' long and the wires don't heat up during a jump like some of the newer sets.
I have a heavy duty set with a control box in the center of the cables. It's got a "right" and "wrong" light and a big switch that activates or deactivates the cables.
I recently bought a 99' 540 sport and the battery died. It was in a heated garage until I brought up to -10degree weather up here in Boston. I called the dealer and they wanted $240.00 to put in a new battery. The OEM battery has 850 cranking amps. I called sears and theirs didnt fit into the trunk. I called Autozone and they had one in stock with 1000 cranking amps for 59.99 dollars. I removed the old battery myself and put in this one without keeping the circuit charged. Everything was fine and the car starts strong everytime. Also, my DSC light wouldnt go out when the battery was becoming weak. The dealer had no idea and wanted 100bucs to diagnose. I put the new one in and everything works great. Don't forget, these batteries are drained everytime you turn on and off the car because of all the electrical components. Luxury cars are full of electronic and electrical gizmos that require amperage even when the car is not running. ie...steering wheel manuever, lights etc... I hope this helps for all those who encounter the same problem.
...a head pops over the cubicle wall asking me to give his car a jump. Almost spooky, I'd say.
Seems his '80s BMW convertible doesn't have a chime for the lights and he left them on. Anybody any feedback how these aftermarket devices that have a voltage threshold, cutting off the battery before it's drained completely ?
2. Most people get a jump start and expect the alternator to recharge the totally dead battery, thereby wiping out the alternator as well (if they do this too often).
... who didn't really know much about cars. (That's okay, there are probably more important things in life.) He left his dome light on a couple of times and drained the battery.
His Saturn dealership sold him a new battery each and every time. They never even suggested charging it. That on the other hand sounds a little too convenient for the dealer to me.
this is a dealer doing the same with a customer's money. it's like the king-Hell crooks that robbed our company blind and forced almost 30,000 employees into the street in "readjustments."
I don't much like that.
if it's your own money and your own time, it's your own business what you do with it. there is a wee little suspicion that every single poster has a little money hole they water every day here.... don't ask me how I suspect that, LOL
"if it's your own money and your own time, it's your own business what you do with it. there is a wee little suspicion that every single poster has a little money hole they water every day here...."
which, again, is our own darned business... but Joe is not going to agree that Bill should collect radiator caps, because the best thing to hang on the walls is scuffed jerseys from football teams.
so with our own money, doing out own thing, cool. no problems. high-five, but it clashes with my junk
for a dealer to be selling new batteries every time a stuck light switch runs down a customer's battery is purely evil in the nth degree. maybe 80-100 bucks? they could recharge that battery for perhaps $20-25 and have made the same money for the shop, left the customer happier, and not wasted all that lead and acid that goes to some 3rd-world country to be "recycled" in an open furnace and drip into the river ahead of the water-intake. haspelbein's friend was pure and simple victimized, and it is not right.
and anybody who doesn't think so can admire my exquisite collection of dust bunnies to gain True Wisdom..........
// late edit // I detect an unasked question here... on reflection, will answer anyway against my first judgement, because clarity counts and I missed the mark. no offense or harm meant to anybody on the board, funning around about comparing what certainly appears to have been a dealer victimization of this customer to hobbies that are a voluntary excess expense, and sincerely apologize in case anybody thought differently. in particular, alcan, you have built an exquisite reputation on this board and in your own site for experience, service and patience, and you have my respect and thanks for lots of good info and tips.
it's a big deal to me if I think somebody feels stepped on when it wasn't meant. hope you didn't.
"haspelbein's friend was pure and simple victimized, and it is not right."
Victimized may be too strong of a word. He was definitely taken advantage of. (Until he switched dealers.)
It's very regrettable, but at least my friend was able to afford it. He just doesn't care that much about cars. In contrast, his wife drives a BMW 540i. He just doesn't care about cars at all.
I'd save a lot of money if I could develop the same attitude. *laughs*
I purchased a new 1991 Nissan Sentra and when I sold it in April 2002 the original battery was still in it. This is my best personal experience to date. I have a little over six years on a replacement battery in a pickup.
i have a '98 mercury villager. last night, we're at the local fair, late at night, and can't get the car started. AAA comes out, checks the cable connections, and one of the metal connectors was so badly corroded that it was preventing a start. the guy cleaned it up but advised that we get new metal connectors. it started okay after the clean up.
question...for peace of mind, would it be wise to get a new battery at the same time? we live in a hot/cold climate, the car is garaged year round, but batteries aren't that expensive, and maybe this was a sign that "it's time". it seems like previous battery issues that i've had occur at the 5-6 year mark. thoughts?
I don't like those add-on connectors. I'd prefer you replaced the entire cable if you have signs of corrosion. And sure, it might be a great time to replace the battery, clean the tray, replace the cables. The battery corrodes from leakage so it's less than perfect now.
another question...for this same car, mercury villager '98, i had it into the ford/mercury dealer for some maintenance in march, and the service advisor said to schedule a time to replace the timing belt, since i'm at about ~62K miles. the villager was a joint venture with nissan, and has a 3.0 V6 nissan engine. i do not believe the mercury owners manual says anything about timing belt replace. what board can i go to, to determine if this engine has a timing belt that needs to be replaced?
meaning if the timing belt breaks, you have serious, major, expensive engine damage.
schedule that appointment. I don't know when the nissan-designed engines usually go for belts, but gates recommends 60,000 miles, and ford engines in 1990 recommended 50,000.
1999 Ford Contour 2.5L V6 vin=L , local autoparts do NOT have a battery for this car , motorcraft # BXT-40R , AC- Delco # 41-7YR . What I was wondering , if another series battery would fit this car ? This type battery also fits a lot of the Ford Focus models , even Sears did not stock this battery ? The battery is approx. 10.5" long x 6.75" wide x 7.25" high , with the + terminal on the rear left , - terminal rear right , cca 590 . Any help finding an alternate battery or website to explore , appreciated .
and you can find dealers nearby who stock or could order what you need in a couple days at those websites, and also at
www.motorcraft.com
www.acdelco.com
generally, dealers stock the most common batteries, and order in the rest. around here in the twin cities, worst case, and that's ordering an old 6-volt battery for a classic or a tractor, is about a week.
Comments
It's kinda hard for me to put faith in a charging device that is connected with 14ga wire. I'll stick with jumper cables for real work.
The best set of jumper cables I have seen was a homemade set. I worked part-time in a heavy equipment shop during college. The old mechanic would always make a nice set of cables for jumping 24v equipment with heavy scrap wiring from construction sites. 25' long and the wires don't heat up during a jump like some of the newer sets.
I called the dealer and they wanted $240.00 to put in a new battery. The OEM battery has 850 cranking amps. I called sears and theirs didnt fit into the trunk. I called Autozone and they had one in stock with 1000 cranking amps for 59.99 dollars. I removed the old battery myself and put in this one without keeping the circuit charged. Everything was fine and the car starts strong everytime.
Also, my DSC light wouldnt go out when the battery was becoming weak. The dealer had no idea and wanted 100bucs to diagnose. I put the new one in and everything works great.
Don't forget, these batteries are drained everytime you turn on and off the car because of all the electrical components. Luxury cars are full of electronic and electrical gizmos that require amperage even when the car is not running. ie...steering wheel manuever, lights etc...
I hope this helps for all those who encounter the same problem.
Seems his '80s BMW convertible doesn't have a chime for the lights and he left them on. Anybody any feedback how these aftermarket devices that have a voltage threshold, cutting off the battery before it's drained completely ?
Consider the scenario of a totally dead battery:
1. Total discharge is very bad for any battery
2. Most people get a jump start and expect the alternator to recharge the totally dead battery, thereby wiping out the alternator as well (if they do this too often).
it's better if they short, because then you only have one out, and you can probably limp over to your favorite parts house for a new tub 'o' acid.
His Saturn dealership sold him a new battery each and every time. They never even suggested charging it. That on the other hand sounds a little too convenient for the dealer to me.
I don't much like that.
if it's your own money and your own time, it's your own business what you do with it. there is a wee little suspicion that every single poster has a little money hole they water every day here.... don't ask me how I suspect that, LOL
Please clarify.
so with our own money, doing out own thing, cool. no problems. high-five, but it clashes with my junk
for a dealer to be selling new batteries every time a stuck light switch runs down a customer's battery is purely evil in the nth degree. maybe 80-100 bucks? they could recharge that battery for perhaps $20-25 and have made the same money for the shop, left the customer happier, and not wasted all that lead and acid that goes to some 3rd-world country to be "recycled" in an open furnace and drip into the river ahead of the water-intake. haspelbein's friend was pure and simple victimized, and it is not right.
and anybody who doesn't think so can admire my exquisite collection of dust bunnies to gain True Wisdom..........
// late edit // I detect an unasked question here... on reflection, will answer anyway against my first judgement, because clarity counts and I missed the mark. no offense or harm meant to anybody on the board, funning around about comparing what certainly appears to have been a dealer victimization of this customer to hobbies that are a voluntary excess expense, and sincerely apologize in case anybody thought differently. in particular, alcan, you have built an exquisite reputation on this board and in your own site for experience, service and patience, and you have my respect and thanks for lots of good info and tips.
it's a big deal to me if I think somebody feels stepped on when it wasn't meant. hope you didn't.
that ought to be enough edits......
Victimized may be too strong of a word. He was definitely taken advantage of. (Until he switched dealers.)
It's very regrettable, but at least my friend was able to afford it. He just doesn't care that much about cars. In contrast, his wife drives a BMW 540i. He just doesn't care about cars at all.
I'd save a lot of money if I could develop the same attitude. *laughs*
question...for peace of mind, would it be wise to get a new battery at the same time? we live in a hot/cold climate, the car is garaged year round, but batteries aren't that expensive, and maybe this was a sign that "it's time". it seems like previous battery issues that i've had occur at the 5-6 year mark. thoughts?
another question...for this same car, mercury villager '98, i had it into the ford/mercury dealer for some maintenance in march, and the service advisor said to schedule a time to replace the timing belt, since i'm at about ~62K miles. the villager was a joint venture with nissan, and has a 3.0 V6 nissan engine. i do not believe the mercury owners manual says anything about timing belt replace. what board can i go to, to determine if this engine has a timing belt that needs to be replaced?
schedule that appointment. I don't know when the nissan-designed engines usually go for belts, but gates recommends 60,000 miles, and ford engines in 1990 recommended 50,000.
get it done.
www.interstatebattery.com
and so does napa
www.napaonline.com
and you can find dealers nearby who stock or could order what you need in a couple days at those websites, and also at
www.motorcraft.com
www.acdelco.com
generally, dealers stock the most common batteries, and order in the rest. around here in the twin cities, worst case, and that's ordering an old 6-volt battery for a classic or a tractor, is about a week.