Battery and Charging System Check

• Original and OEM batteries used to suit your vehicle and budget
• High capacity vehicle batteries
• Battary charge / discharge testing
• Alternator / charge system diagnostics
• Smart electrical system diagnostics
• Dual live / ancilliary battery and multi charge systems (motorhomes)

Your car battery serves two important functions;

• Starting the vehicle
• Keeping electrical items functioning when the ignition is switched off

Most people are only aware of a problem with the battery when their car does not start or the vehicle charging indicator illuminates. However symptoms of a poor battery / charging systems may be;

• Car fails to start
• Battery / Charging fault light
• Dim / dimming lights
• Frequent manual recharging of the battery
• Poor starting
• Intermittent electrical items failing
• Frequent failing blubs on older vehicles
• Frequent shutting down / activation of 'smart' electrical systems

Each time your car is started the battery will lose some charge depending on how much effort was required to start the vehicle. This charge should be relatively negligable under normal conditions and is replaced by the electrical and charging system of the car as the vehicle is driven. During cold weather the effort required, and therefore charge required, to start the engine will be considerably more than in wam weather and this is why many people suffer difficulty starting their vehicle during the winter months.

Continued starting and stopping of the vehicle, perhaps with only short journeys in between (nipping to the shops or short local trips etc.) do not sufficiently allow the battery to regain it's normal level of charge.

Combinations of these factors often lead to most difficulty during the winter months, and to a damaged battery. With repeated stop/start cycles that maybe fine during most of the year, however the impact on the battery becoming apparant when the temperature drops.

If you frequently undertake short journeys (less than 30 minutes) or insufficient for the car to fully warm up you may avoid battery problems by frequently undertaking a longer journey (1 hour+) or manually charging your vehicle battery.

Continued cycling (running low and recharging) of your battery can shorten the life of an otherwise healthy battery.

Battery not charging at all

All vehicles have a built in charging system that will provide electrical power to the car once it is started, along with charging the battery. Problems with this system can lead to the vehicle battery not being charged and will result in frequent need to manually charge the battery.

Faults in the charging system would usually be indicated by the electrical system warning light on your dashboard.

Smart Electrical Management Systems; Many new vehicles include a smart electrical management system. This manages the use of electrical items in the car, load on the system and battery charge condition to ensure the battery does not "run flat", is not over charged and maintains its lifespan. These systems may also reduce the load on the electrical system by switching electrical items off in the car including radios, air conditioning and other ancilliary systems. Continued activation of the smart management systems and turning components off to conserve charge would indicate a problem and should be checked.

Your battery charge and general condition is checked during the routine servicing and in addition any faults logged in the management computer would be identified, where applicable.

Approximate cost for a battery test and replacement

A replacement battery for an average vehicle would range from £40. However larger vehicles (V6/V8, Luxury etc.) often require higher capacity batteries and these would be more expensive; please call us on 0161 723 1111 and we would be happy to discuss your requirements !