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Battery keeps dying!!

Old Mar 23, 2004 | 03:10 PM
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Default Battery keeps dying!!

When I first got the battery it was dead. Well i dont have a volt meter to confirm this but i didnt turn over the started.. So i jumped it with my original battery and it started fine.. I drove it for a few weeks with no problems.

My car was hit about a week ago. It was still drivable just bumper and exhaust are messed up.. So I didnt drive my car for like 5 days. Went to move it and it died.. I was like ok this sucks. So i jumped it again and all was fine. The next day went to start it again and it was dead again.. WTF!!! Do I have to trickle charge the battery?!?!?!? If so what is the proper procedure? Any other thoughts? I think it is not properly chargeing by the alt so the reserve is nothing but im not sure..

By the way it is a yellow top optima battery...
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Old Mar 23, 2004 | 03:16 PM
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.....if you got the battery and it was dead why didn't you get another battery?

Well...if the battery was too dead when you got it...it's never going to be charged enough again to just let it sit for more than a day. You can take it to an Auto Zone or Advance Auto, or places like that and they will test it for free to confirm or deny if this is the case with your battery.

My reccomendation: Get a new battery.

Hope this helps.
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Old Mar 23, 2004 | 05:27 PM
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Second opinion...I agree with the above. Hit Auto Zone for a test. Then return the battery regardless of the test results. This battery smells of a bad one.
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Old Mar 23, 2004 | 07:06 PM
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Yes but this is not a normal battery. It is a deep cycle battery that can be recharged and keep its charge over a year..

Im not sure what to do ill just have to talk to where i got it from..

Jason@Performance Nissan can you please chime in as this product came from U!!!!
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Old Mar 23, 2004 | 08:17 PM
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ok I just went to start the car for the first time since yesterday and it started right up.....
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Old Mar 23, 2004 | 08:46 PM
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If you get a battery from anyone and it is dead on arrival, the first thing to do is to call the place of purchase and tell them about it. They will say one of two things:

1. We will issue a return authorization and ship you a new battery because it is not supposed to be dead.

2. You have to fully charge the battery on a battery charger before initial installation in your vehicle.

The battery must not have been totally dead when you got it because you indicated that you jump started the car and then it was okay for a few weeks. I assume you were driving it every day during this time.

It seems the problem is when the car sits for several days, so once again one of two things is happening.

1. The battery is defective and is not holding a charge

2. Something in the car is draining the battery. An electrical device of some sort may be "always on" and therefore using current from the battery while the car is not running. Have you installed anything that may be doing this? Radar detector perhaps?



At any rate, I would give Jason a call and not rely on his running across your request for a response from him in this thread. He will be happy to help you out.

Good luck in getting a solution to this issue. There is nothing worse than having to worry about whether your car will start when you need it.
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Old Mar 23, 2004 | 08:48 PM
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hmmm.......got a double post there for some reason

Last edited by Wedge; Mar 23, 2004 at 08:51 PM.
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Old Mar 26, 2004 | 12:52 PM
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I have the same problem. however my battery is stock. If I dont drive the car for over 48 hrs next time I try to start the car I have to jump start it. Also if I turn up my stereo pas 1/3 on the vol. the sound stops (think the amp turns off) then about 5-10 secs later I get sound again. I'm running Alpine MRV450 (5 ch amp) . Do you guys think the amp is what's wearing down my battery or i have a bad battery. I've thought about getting a cap (for the amp) and a better battery.
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Old Mar 26, 2004 | 01:51 PM
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Default Re: Battery keeps dying!!

Originally posted by infidsg35
When I first got the battery it was dead. Well i dont have a volt meter to confirm this but i didnt turn over the started.. So i jumped it with my original battery and it started fine.. I drove it for a few weeks with no problems.

My car was hit about a week ago. It was still drivable just bumper and exhaust are messed up.. So I didnt drive my car for like 5 days. Went to move it and it died.. I was like ok this sucks. So i jumped it again and all was fine. The next day went to start it again and it was dead again.. WTF!!! Do I have to trickle charge the battery?!?!?!? If so what is the proper procedure? Any other thoughts? I think it is not properly chargeing by the alt so the reserve is nothing but im not sure..

By the way it is a yellow top optima battery...
Most likely it is a bad battery, its not totaly uncommon to get one that is intermittent.

The guys at Performance Nissan are great about customer service, give them a call, tell them whats up.

EDIT: First make sure your battery connections are clean and tight, you want to make sure you have a good ground connection.

Good Luck!

Last edited by Zrated; Mar 26, 2004 at 01:54 PM.
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Old Mar 26, 2004 | 02:25 PM
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I posted information on the Optima Batteries before, I use to be a Engineer at the Optima plant. One of the common returns that Optima has is when the battery does not get a full charge during normal driving. This may result in short drives and not letting the alternator spin at it's maximum output rpm for a long enough duration.

Right when the batteries leave the plant they get a final boost. If you bought your battery and it was sitting at the store it might require a full charge before you put it in your car, especially with deep cycle.

The ideal situations for a deep cycle (yellow top) are a full charge, full drain, full charge, etc. The red tops are made for the starting the car and being maintained by the alternator’s charge. So if your battery is good you might be in the situation where you need a full charge again. Use a battery charger to get to this point or go on a long drive. I assume that the Z’s alternator has it’s optimal output at around 2500 rpm, 6th gear about 75 mph. But I don’t know for sure.

If you have a bad battery Optima batteries have the three year warranty, so you're not out money just time. Like I said, I used to be an engineer at Optima, so now the batteries aren’t as good, just kidding. The manufacturing process and product is pretty robust, but surprisingly there are a lot of returns.

Let me know if you have any questions.
DK
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