MikeD Posted July 18, 2008 Share Posted July 18, 2008 I have a new (March08) Bessacarr E530 and twice in the last couple of months the cab battery has completly discharged- (insufficient power to turn the engine). The first instance I put down to leaving the SatNav on but now with this second occasion there is clearly a problem as nothing has been left switched on. The leisure battery remains charged- The control panel locked out- The unit is run for about 10 miles once every week- Having re-charged the battery- via the 'hook-up' switched to cab battery- I monitored the battery condition which dropped from 12.9v to 12.0v overnight. Obviously something is draining the cab battery- but what ? Any thoughts ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Cole Posted July 18, 2008 Share Posted July 18, 2008 Hi Mike D, The problem is that when you purchase a new vehicle unless you check the battery date code there is no way of knowing how old the battery is and whether it has been left in a discharged state allowing sulphating of the cells. Your problem suggests that this a possible cause of your problem. As this is a warrenty issue then your best bet is to contact your dealer or have the battery tested at an auto electrical centre where a discharge test will be carried out. If your battery is ok then it the other problem could be your vehicle immobiliser alarm system if you have had one retro fitted by the dealer. I had a Sigma 30 alarm installed on my Swift by the dealer when it was purchased and they wired it in incorrectly causing my battery to drain and also scramble the Fiat system so the vehicle would not start it left me stuck in France for a week while the local Fiat dealer sorted it out! Good luck getting it sorted. Regards Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
breakaleg Posted July 18, 2008 Share Posted July 18, 2008 My friend had a similar problem with his auto trail tracker, new shape. part the problem was, he had a face off radio, which he left in place, this apparently allows a battery drain, also something to do with the reversing camera moniter, which doubles as a digital tv? only a couple of clues, but it may help pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted July 18, 2008 Author Share Posted July 18, 2008 The alarm was factory fitted by Bessacarr- and thats another issue- you only get one 'remote' key- if you central lock with this and then unlock the door manually with the 'spare' key- the alarm activates and there is no way of stopping it unless you have the 'main' key... but as I say thats another issue. The battery age situation is an interesting one- although the van was on 4 week back order- theres no way of knowing how old the cab bit is- I'll get it checked but if the battery was 'duff' why has it been ok for 6 weeks since its last discharge ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Cole Posted July 18, 2008 Share Posted July 18, 2008 Hi MikeD, If your battery has held its charge for 6 weeks then gone flat again it still could be a faulty cell/ cells but it could to be a drain from some thing else eg: radio, ECU, alarm, light etc. the only way to find out is to put a clip on amp meter on the battery cables with everything off to see what is going on. Electrical problems like yours that are intermittant can be dificult to track down some times. If you get your battery checked then this is a good starting point. Hope this helps regards Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Cole Posted July 18, 2008 Share Posted July 18, 2008 Hi MikeD, If your battery has held its charge for 6 weeks then gone flat again it still could be a faulty cell/ cells but it could to be a drain from some thing else eg: radio, ECU, alarm, light etc. the only way to find out is to put a clip on amp meter on the battery cables with everything off to see what is going on. Electrical problems like yours that are intermittant can be dificult to track down some times. If you get your battery checked then this is a good starting point. Hope this helps regards Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted July 20, 2008 Author Share Posted July 20, 2008 Thanks everyone for your thoughts- do you think the fact that the control panal "froze" is significant- incidentally this unit can be reset by removing the main (40a) fuse for about 5 seconds. I have heard on the grapevine that Bessacerr have had a number of complaints of this is exact problem on the new Ducato- and are investigating Anyhoo..will re-post once I've had the battery checked over Thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted July 21, 2008 Author Share Posted July 21, 2008 The Cab battery checks out ok- I dont seem to be getting anywhere with this- the dealer is chasing various companies to find an answer- my feelings are that it is Fiat problem and they should sort it... I think its getting to the stage when I shall start to get ANGRY !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyishuk Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 Bear in mind that "Messers M/home builders" had the chassis delivered some months (years) ago and before that, the vehicle was sitting @ Fiats / Peugeots in a field, presumablibly with little or no charge in the battery I would surmise that there is a fair chance that any new vehicle could have battery problems. Time to vist the dealer after an independent test . (lol) Rgds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grub Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 hi mike i have the same problem on my 07 kontiki, left it standing for 2 weeks and it was flat. i also have a after market alarm cat 1 (expensive) but dont think this is the problem.The swift brochure states that it as a vehicle battery drain protection.As your bessy got this spec? because i have,nt got a clue how it supposed to work (does,nt). best of luck pusher/bumper/jumper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike 202 Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 Hi had a swift bolero delivered march 08, got it home and next day battery flat had to call out Fiat. Problem was that the battery had sulphated up i.e. useless. Found out that base vehicle was at swift in sept 07 and built by oct 07 and I presume left until march 08. Seems that this is a common problem and a new battery was fitted by dealer. Seems that manufacturers dont care about the customer or they would do " a high load voltage drop test on the battery before delivery before delivery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonyandsue Posted July 29, 2008 Share Posted July 29, 2008 Hi Mike, We had a flat battery on our last Autotrail, and two other owners one Autotrail & a Bessacarr, next too us in storage had flat batteries after leaving for two weeks, I have heard that it is possable the M/H manufacturer who might be at fault when they drop the body trapping one of the vehicle wires, to the chasis causing a drain, this came from Detriot Solar when I wanted to have a spliter put in to charge both leisure & vehicle battery, they would'nt do it even though it as one one occassion somone else had it done and this was blamed as the fault, when checked the solar panel wiring was ok. Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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