Leisure battery losing charge

[adydye]

I know there are plenty of posts on the topic of leisure batteries, but I thought needed to start a new one.
I bought my 2010 California TDi 2l in April, a conversion using genuine VW parts and electrical loom and wiring. I soon found that the leisure battery was duff, which the seller duly paid for to be replaced.
Now, July, I find that the replacement now loses it's charge in a few minutes when unplugged or the engine is off, according to the control unit. This started 2 days ago when I noticed the fridge turned itself off.
Could this be something to do with the way the inboard charger is operating, eg. Is there a charge controller that might be missing or not working properly and frying the battery?
Btw, I've been travelling in Spain since mid-May and haven't free-camped without plugging in yet (I know!).
Any ideas?

 

[snowy55]

Hi there
There are 2 leisure batteries on a Cali SE and 1on a Cali Beach.If it's a cobbled together Cali anything could be going on.I know that doesn't sound very helpful,ask the people that built it.

Before we got our Cali and were looking around we saw some appalling examples of workmanship from so called professional converters with not much hope of any backup if anything goes wrong.

 

[adydye]

Hi, I didn't know if the one under the seat was back up starter, or back up leisure.
I wish now I'd bought that battery tester I saw but didn't think I needed....

 

[calikev]

The battery under the seat is back up leisure battery or should be. Have you got a decent earth :?:

 

[Andy]

If a battery looses it's charge after a few minutes I would say the battery is either not being charged, ie charger not working, or the battery or batteries are duff & not accepting charge.
Were the replacement batteries charged properly before they were fitted ?
Have you tried plugging into hookup & turning everything off & just let the batteries charge ?
Did both the leisure batteries get changed ? If not the other one could be dead & pulling the new one down.

 

[adydye]

Were the replacement batteries charged properly before they were fitted ?
only replaced the one in the rear and no it wasn't charged up fully
Have you tried plugging into hookup & turning everything off & just let the batteries charge ?
I've been on hookup many times just with the fridge ticking over while I'm out sightseeing and drinking
Did both the leisure batteries get changed ? If not the other one could be dead & pulling the new one down.
interesting - no, the one under the seat wasn't changed, however the problem was resolved when I changed the rear battery so I didn't worry about the other. I guess a battery place could easily test them both, n'est pas?

 

[Andy]

Yes battery stockist / sellers ought to be able to test them both. One under the passenger seat is not easy to get to in-order to test though.
I would switch everything off & let them charge overnight (at least 12 hours) & see what happens.

 

[GrannyJen]

is the hook-up actually charging?

I had a situation, hook-up connected but not charging. Fridge on and using whatever battery charge was left.

Fridge no longer works, cuts out if not enough battery charge. Blame the fridge! Defective fridge!

Then disconnect the hook-up, hey-ho, batteries flat.

Found out, after a lot of trial and testing, the hook up would charge to a point, then the charger would say "no more" and disconnect itself leaving all the "on" devices, in this weather mostly the fridge, to discharge the batteries whilst I thought all was well with hook-up connected.

 

[adydye]

Yes, Jen, the hookup is behaving nicely. I did wonder about the charge controller though, if it is actually restricting the charge, or if it's rogered the battery/ies....

 

[adydye]

Now the battery is holding the charge better (suggests a short or a poor earth, perhaps?), but even with 100% or 90% charge, the fridge is switching itself off.
As soon as it stops raining for long enough I'll unpack the back and check the connections as best I can...then I'll take it to a dealership and get them to look at it!

 

[adydye]

Re: Leisure battery losing charge - UPDATE

I went to a small garage in Caraballo, Galicia, Spain, and they ran a test on the vehicle, finding no faults.
They then tested the leisure batteries. The one under the seat was duff and replaced, and the strange fuse on the rear one had blown. I told them to solder it (I know!) to get me by, and I have ordered a replacement from VW in Santiago De Compostela, which I will collect in a day or so. Meanwhile, I'm off wild camping on the Costa de la Muerte. If you don't hear from me again it's because my dodgy fix caught fire, but I am monitoring the battery connection for heat etc.

 

[snowy55]

Let's hope it's a bad earth and not a short

 

[adydye]

I know, Snowy, but I've done what I can, "short" of moving into a hotel.

 

[snowy55]

Yes l know keep a careful eye on it, we don't want it to end in disaster.

We camped on the Isle De Arousa Just off the west coast of Galicia. I'm sure there was free camping just over the bridge on the left hand side.
Hope your troubles are soon sorted, have good time.
Let us know how it goes.

 

[adydye]

Well, I was free camping at Praia de Traba and after a day the power was at 80% so I guess there is no short or the batteries would be flat.
I'm on my way to Santiago to pick up the fuse so that will be sorted.
Now, however, the orange heating coil light is flashing and I'm losing power. I turn off the motor for a bit and it stops. It seems to be when the motor has to work harder - uphill for example. Does the coil need replacing?

 

[calikev]

Sounds like your van is going into limp mode and resetting itself after turning the ignition
Off

 

[adydye]

Really? Please tell me more!
My manual is in German, the van being an import

 

[calikev]

Not being an expert but the vans have a built in failsafe that when a problem develops
Say with a sensor or valve on the engine the van will go into limp mode this prevents
Any damage to the engine allowing you to get it to a garage by limiting rev's & speed
Sometimes by turning of the ignition it will reset the ECU and behave normally again
I would get it checked to see if the ECU has stored any faults

 

[adydye]

Interesting. It was checked on Tuesday and showed there has been a horn fault, which was when I replaced it last month.
The van's been behaving well today though, new fuse fitted...

 

[Derry]

Interesting subject having the same problem with my T4 I fitted a new leisure battery last year I'm now noticing that its losing its charge! I know the T4 isn't as sophisticated as the T5 but would I be right in saying no such thing as a ECU plug in :?

Was thinking could it be a bad earth?

Also noticed battery light flickering on the dash board when it's running could this be related?

I'm fairly hands on until it comes to electrics!

Any advice appreciated

 

[teeboy]

I had the limp home problem a couple of times in France about a year ago.

Stopping the van - turning it off - taking the key out and then starting again always fixed it.

We mentioned it at the next service and the upgraded the ECU and we haven't had it since (including a mammoth lap of France) - ours is a 2012 180 DSG

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