Dead battery

[Katarina77]

Hello. Every 1-2 weeks I need to charge the battery. It charges ok. This morning it was fully charged,.and when idling it showed 13,6v. After som driving and parked a few hours it showed 12,6 v engine off, and 13,25v at idle. When I turned on heater fan full and defrost, voltage dropped to 12,6, before climbing to 13,1v.

Believe there is a problem with the alternator/ charging system. Have no alarms in the dash indicating any faults. Does anyone know if it has an external voltage regulator, or can give any tips on how to dig deeper?

2010 1,6 diesel 95hp.

 

[Handy Andy]

This may be from age, on all parts in the system. Although a tough call. Lots of times the problem is in the wiring - as in, loose or corroded wiring.

Might need to take a day and take apart the battery connections - all of them from the post to junction block at the battery onto the cables from that junction block. It's the batteries breakout box for heavy current and power routing.

If you can't seem to fix it - at least you solved one major problem from reoccurring again once connections are redone and made solid so current can flow again. There's other areas too...

It may be that corrosion and the Oxides From March (read: Seasonal changes from winter to spring and water - moisture entry) have gained a foothold and are eating up any exposed metal - like copper - with acids from the battery posts leaking out onto them.



Other signs are loose or worn bearings in the alternator causing charging issues from belt slippage from seized bearings or belt slip - or even corroded terminals from seals breaking down due to age and heat. Might need to have your charging system inspected or even tested. Alternators can set you back about $150 + USD even rebuilt aren't cheap.