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By rikur_
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1570218
I've got a 2 year old Ford Mondeo
I noticed the other morning that the "Quick Clear" front windscreen wasn't clearing (it has separate fuses/connections for driver and passenger side - neither working)
I noticed a few months ago that the auto-stop-start had stopped stopping (but quite content about that !!)
It has remote telemetry and has reported 'low battery voltage' a couple of weeks ago, albeit subsequently cleared.

The garage - based on a phone call - think that all three are related - i.e. it contains electronics to inhibit the front screen and stop/start when the battery voltage is low.

A multi-meter on the battery reads 12.03v

Garage have advised to put it on trickle charge for 12 hours - which is now in progress.

My typical driving pattern is 15 - 20 minutes to the station in the morning, and the same in reverse in the evening - then every other weekend will probably do 2 - 5 hours on the motorway to/from the other house, or visiting people.

I'm surprised that on a two year old car that sort of use is leading to a problem maintaining battery charge - but the garage seem to think it's a common problem with new models because of the amount of electronics.

Anyone had similar experience?
By cockney steve
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#1570221
I'd guess that you bought the petrol- version! Modern diesels are totally unsuited to this snort-commute profile. Starting takes a lot out, which the alternator *should* replace.....however, lead-acid batteries self-discharge, as the surface-charge leaks away and is drained by radio and electronic memories, the deep-charge in the plates will move out to replace it. The car's charging -system cannot deep-charge the battery, as the voltage required would boil away the electrolyte. It pumps in a surface-charge. trickle -charging is the way forward....you can get solar-panel types, that, i believe, plug into the "cigar-lighter" socket.
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By johnm
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1570224
With that usage pattern a trickle charge is the likely answer.
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By rikur_
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#1570240
PeteSpencer wrote:Do you keep it in a garage or outside?

Peter

outside

Now I seem to have all the disadvantages of a diesel, and I have to plug it in at night to charge ;-)

I suspect this will be my final diesel .... also fed up of EGVs, turbos, DPFs, etc going wrong .... thinking about reshaping the fleet.

We need one car for the weekends, wherre we've regularly got 125 mile motorway drive between the two houses, and most visits to relatives are 80 - 100 mile each way.

We need at least one car with 6 or 7 seats for locally ferrying around of kids - but I don't like long distance trips in a people carrier.

I need a skip on wheels for gardening/DIY work/getting to bike rides/etc

Both me & Mrs R need a small car for the daily commute.

I suspect the compromise will be 1 x small electric for one commute; 1 x petrol saloon for long distance & one of our commutes; 1 x ageing Discovery (pre-DPF age) for ferrying large numbers of kids / skip on wheels /etc
By GAFlyer4Fun
#1570301
I know of people with similar issues with modern sports motorcycles.

So many electronic gizmos for things like ABS, TRC, slide control, anti-wheelie, electronically controlled suspension, wifi, plus things like always-on lights have a big drain on the tiny battery that they almost live on a trickle charger.

My bike in comparison is much more basic... throttle position sensor and none of the above enhancements. Not only does this mean the battery could go a month without charging... (or running the engine for 10 mins every 3 weeks over winter would be enough to not need a trickle charger and keeps the internals lubed) it means I can start it without the lights on to give it an easier chance of starting.

My bike is surprisingly more fuel efficient (with carb and not fuel injected) compared to its equivalent modern sports bike that are higher powered.
It must be saving me a small fortune in domestic electricity costs not needing to be on trickle charge all the time. (My electricity bill went up 32% compared to same period previous year.... scratching my head why as I spent less time at home and all it could have been was replacing an old landline phone with a digital cordless phone! Ouch).

I get more satisfaction from my bike than a more modern bike because how it is ridden is entirely down to me and not dependent on a whole bunch of computers and electronics that flatter some riders. So much of modern life is getting automated gradually that one day there will nothing left to do manually in every day life and we will gradually lose our manual dexterity. Assumes we have built a few more power stations by then to power all the electronics.... and the electric cars that are coming.

What will see off my bike eventually for road use will be the tightening of emission control laws as it is Euro1.

Modern vehicles might appear to give their battery/charging system a harder time with all the modern electronics.
By Spooky
#1570335
With our last two cars I found that we had to change the batteries at about two years. I saw it as a good opportunity to put something decent in there.
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By rikur_
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1570341
Has anyone any experience of the solar trickle chargers? I suspect the cigar lighter type won't work in the Mondeo, as the cigar lighters seem to be isolated 30 mins after locking the car
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By rikur_
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#1570344
Charles Hunt wrote:Buy something around an 04 plate. Anything newer and the electronics failures will drive you barmy.

Don't rub it in. I had a MK5 Golf 04 plate from new until a couple of years ago, lovely to drive and the only fault i recall having was the rear brake light switch.

If it hadn't been for the kids legs getting too big for the back, I'd still be driving it now. Mondeo might be a very rational car to buy, but I won't be rational again.
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By Charles Hunt
#1570360
Ditch the Mondeo, buy a used 3 series or 5 series touring typically 04 or earlier and find a local specialist to look after it. Job done and loads of room..
By GAFlyer4Fun
#1570369
Problem with older cars generally is the stealth tax congestion charging.
London is introducing its T charge in addition to its usual congestion charge obviously trying to make it uneconomic for some drivers to stick with their old cars.
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By Sooty25
#1570373
Cigar sockets vary from car to car. Some remain live when ignition off and car locked, others don't. You'll just need to test it. Plug something in with an LED, eg phone charger, and lock it. Check if LED stays lit. If it does, try a solar charger but at least 5 or 10 watts, not one of the small 2 watt ones.

I use one in my BMW Z3 in the summer months.