Went to start the car this morning, and nothing. Completely dead. I think it's a simple case of the battery being flat, however I just wanted to run this past the BBS before I fork out £100 for a new battery. On my old car, when the battery was flat, the speedo and rev counter needles would flicker when I turned the key. I haven't been driving my car much, but I took it on a reasonable drive on Wednesday night. The key didn't remotely unlock the car, and when I tried to start it, no life whatsoever. Does this sound like a simple case of a dead battery? Or could it be something more sinister? If it makes a difference, it's a 5 year old Suzuki Swift, which has done around 35,000 miles. Cheers.
If the key didn't work it may well be the battery. I'm a member of the RAC so they'd come out and check it for me. Any neighbours with jump leads?
It could be the alternative. I don't know much about cars so I can't give much advice but what we do at work is jump or bump start the vehicle and leave it running. If it keeps running on its own then the battery could have been flat. If it does on its own after running then the battery isn't charging so could be alternator.
I know very little about cars but had a similar experience a few weeks ago that could help you maybe. Drove to morrisons for shopping and when I got back in my car, it wouldn’t turn over at all. Not even try to. I could turn the lights on and the dash was lit up but the car just wouldn’t do anything. It ended up being something to do with the fuse/fuse box.
Get a jump start or buy a cheap trickle charger...less than £20 from Screwfix, if you can run it for ten or 15 mins and it starts again it may not be the battery....if you're started up you can run it to a tyres and battery shop who should be able to test it on the vehicle...the guys on Cobcar Street at Elsecar are good. 5 years is disappointing for a modern battery, but it does happen, I had to have one on mine at about the same time.
Where are you based? I've got a tester which will tell you if the battery needs replacing. This is the tester I have: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01NACKGJU
Thanks everyone for the replies. My Mrs has some jump leads, not had time today to jump start it. I'll give it a go over the weekend and see if it carries on running on its own. If it does, I'll presume its a battery issue. Cheers all.
Have you checked if the battery terminals are tight and still connected? There’s a chance one of them maybe loose? If there’s no power at all it could be that you’ve had or got a power drain. This could be a control unit that’s not closed down properly causing it to drain the battery.
I'm dropping somone of at Doni around 9 30, I can call into Sheffield on my way back to Tarn with some jump leads pal
See if you can jump start it. If it starts then it's the battery or alternator. If the battery is completely dead or the alternator is dead, the engine will probably stall when you take the jump leads off. If it continues running, measure the voltage across the battery, it should be 14V or more if it's much less then' the alternator's probably gone.
Thanks for the offer mate. I've got some jump leads, just not had the chance to try jump starting the car yet.
Alternator should charge at around 14 to 14.5v The reason for this is when the vehicle is using more electrical items the battery still maintains its charge
Have you left something on by mistake that's drained the battery. My glove box light was faulty and stayed on and flattered the battery over time
