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Battery Dead

49K views 39 replies 13 participants last post by  Mortain 
#1 ·
I have owned my Evoque for 6 months, has 2850 miles on it and I have a dead battery. I am going to take it to the dealership tomorrow for replacement. I had the alternator tested and it is charging the battery correctly. I can only think of a couple of reasons why this would happen.1. Bad battery2. So many electronics sucking the power out and not driving the car more than 30 minutes a day?What are your thoughts?
 
#2 ·
Short trips less than 5 miles around town will not recharge the battery according to the service writer at my LR dealership. Additionally the power options including the 825 watt Meridian system use lots of juice. I had a low battery message flash on the infotainment center on two different occasions so each time I put a trickle charge on the battery and end of problem. My dealership ran two different tests on the battery and stated it was in excellent condition. I had the same issue with my previous car, a BMW 335is Convertible with greater frequency. Are you able to put a charge on the battery to get the car started?
 
#4 ·
The service writer and mechanic told me that I would have to go at least 15 miles/day to keep the battery totally recharged. My battery was in good conditions, so they recharged it to its full potential. The problem for me is that I am retired and I only go , on average two to four miles a day. The service writer informs me that the next time this happens, they will pu a " trickler"on the battery and all I would have to do is plug it in without raising the hood and taking the cover off. WHO NEW!
 
#5 · (Edited)
Two things keep coming up on this in the forum. One is that some people think the car has to be locked to keep it from draining. The other which I've been told by my service people personally is if the fob is anywhere near the car when it is parked it will continue to communicate with the car and keep it in a slightly more powered-up condition and it will drain the battery overnight. They said they've seen that where customers hung their keys with the fob on a hook at the garage door inside the house. I guess with strong batteries in the fob it can possibly talk further than the few feet the manual suggests as the range.

I keep my fobs on the other side of the house from my garage even though I know that's overkill.

I've let my car sit parked in my garage for two weeks at a time several times in the recent months. It was a little sluggish to start once but worked just fine.
 
#6 ·
Curious, though this post is a bit old, if others are experiencing battery issues. On the UK forums it's all over the place. In a CANBUS car, a weak battery can also cause the system to throw off random error codes. And, possibly, set off the alarm. A week after I took delivery my dealer ran a load test on my battery and gave me a new one. And, of course, there was the software update to correct the alternator's insufficient charging (which mine already had). Wondering why it does not seem to be a big deal here.
 
#7 ·
Batteries start to charge the minute the car is running. Put a multimeter on it and you see upon startup that it is over 12 volts. Should be about 13.8 to 14.2. Rev it up and it should jump. If not its your charging system. Amazing how many know nothing's work in dealerships
 
#10 · (Edited)
If the battery fails a load test it really doesn't matter how "good" the alternator is. Eventually the battery is going to let you down. You cannot "revive" a battery that fails a load test. What dealers -- especially it seems, in the UK -- have been doing, is applying the software fix and then sending customers out onto the street without checking to see if the batteries are any good.
 
#11 ·
I started this thread and just had my 16k service. I have not experienced another incident on the battery since I first reported. Over the last four months I have taken two trips that covered 700 miles each. When I am home I am still taking 5 to 10 mile trips daily. The technician informed me that my battery was fully charged. Also, he knew nothing of the software fix that the other forum discussed.
 
#13 ·
They preformed several load tests, battery OK. Did an update on Central Junction Box, CJB, to increase charge rate of alternator. Was told car takes a 5 mile drive to recoup charge used to start engine. Also, to lock car to put it totally to sleep. Some vehicles are going to start installing two batteries, one for computers, a second small one dedicated to just starting. I've never had a car do this before simply because it is used for mostly short trips.
 
#14 · (Edited)
I am skeptical that your battery is OK. Are you getting the 3 min warning or the ten? If you are getting the 3 min then it is history. Soon as I told my dealer I was getting 3 min they replaced it. But first they checked to be sure I had the charging fix. How can your battery be good if it keeps going flat? Where are you located?

BTW -- I call BS on the "locking the car to put it to sleep", tale. I never lock my car unless out in the world. So, 99% of the time it is unlocked and I have never had a flat battery. In fact, logic would dictate it requires MORE power to lock the car as the alarm and locking systems have to be armed. (And, I dirive my car one or twice a week.)
 
#17 ·
If you need to do this your battery is shot. If you're in the states, you have a gas motor and the fix is to get the software update and then -- probably -- replace the battery. Obviously if you drive a car every day the battery will get a charge... until the day it fails. In other words, you should not have to do this if your battery is good. I drive mine about twice a week. Have no problems. But my dealer tossed my battery after it was determined I had the fix and qa load test showed the battery as bad.
 
#22 ·
There is a seeming catch 22 in the battery testing business: a dealer does not want to give you a free battery (under warranty they should) and a battery outlet wants to sell you one. If you have a car (any car) that needs to be charged or really needs to be driven a lot to maintain charge, you need to get someone you trust to run a load test.
 
#19 ·
I'm not saying it's bad, but if you NEED to constantly charge the battery, it sounds like it is. Also, your dealer saying you need to drive the car around the block to keep it charged -- which is BS if your battery is good -- doesn't mean the battery IS bad, just his advice IMHO.

The big telltale sign of a battery on the way out is getting the 3 minute warning every time you turn on the ignition w/o actually starting the car. You should get a 10 minute warning to shut down. If you get the 3 minute warning and you've been out driving just before, it sounds like the battery is not holding a charge.

I had a C6 Corvette (which has a CANBUS system like the Evoque). First day I drove it home (a very long drive, BTW) I wanted to clean it up, turned on the stereo (no engine) and in 20 minutes it shut down -- no warning. The Evoque does the same, just you get a warning. But if the car is fully charging that warning should be 10 minutes. Not 3.
 
#21 ·
My Evoke is 15 months old. It is not driven daily. Some times it is 10 days between times it is driven. I have never had an issue with the battery. You should not have to drive 15 miles a day to keep the battery charged. I just do not buy it. It should be able to sit a month in the car and hold a charge. The alarm and such should not drain a good battery.
 
#23 ·
All, let's step back. I had one occurrence of my battery being dead, when I had approx 2800 miles on the car. I brought it to the dealer who did the load test and recharged the battery. I HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED THIS PROBLEM SINCE. Now I have 9000 miles on the car and it is 11 months old. Saying this we are all covered for four years/50000miles. If the battery goes dead again, I guarantee you I will get a new battery from the dealer.These Evoques have many, many electrical items...I have a dynamic with all the options, motors are working when I back the car out of the garage lowering the mirrors for example. Personally, I do believe that if you don't drive this vehicle daily and charge this battery, it will eventually go dead. THAT IS ONLY MY PERSONAL opinion. If everyone on this forum disagrees then their entitled to their opinion.I will tell you that the many suggestions that are made by fellow Evoque owners on this forum, including the folks on this thread are very informative. Thank you for all of your suggestions/ comments.
 
#24 ·
Cool. Many people on the UK forum have been getting the 3min warning and driven without issue. There are also people who go away for extended trips to come back and find their Evoque starts just fine. I had a C6 Corvette with CANBUS with a fault in the '05, manual trans car only. If the car sat for seven days the battery was dead. Those who were not having this issue used their car as a daily driver. So forum members and dealers were saying "Ah-ha! If you drive it enough you won't have an issue!" GM, however, didn't back this "fix" (which was pretty lame). Instead, they did what LR has apparently done, applied a software update to sort. Should be the end of it. However, if you read the UK forums, you will find dealer after dealer doing the software fix and not replacing suspect batteries with the results being many drivers getting stranded. You should not have to keep your car on a charger; you should not have to drive around town to charge the battery. If you MUST, there is something wrong with your battery. That is an absolute.

The battery on my Big Range Rover lasted 9 years. The battery on my Evoque lasted 5 days. But, it runs fine now. I hope yours continues to run fine. But, you asked...
 
#25 ·
2012 with 52,800 on the odometer. The battery died with no warning! Parked in the garage a couple of nights ago. Went out the next day and all it did was click and the dashboard lit up. I hooked up the battery charger set to 6 amps. Maybe 2 hours later it started. I went ahead & replaced the battery just to be safe.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Unfortunately, that is not the case with 21st century electro dependent cars. Alarms drain batteries. Just opening the door periodically to get something in or out brings everything to life.... I am actually surprised how long it takes my Deltran to top up the car whenever I plug it in. Jags notoriously kill batteries as well (newer XK's for example). Don't buy it but it is what it is. My rule of thumb is if being left for a week or more, trickle charger time. I had my connections installed on the Evoque the first week I owned her. BTW keeping batteries healthy also makes them last longer. My 2004 XJ battery lasted 8 years and was still going strong but I decided it was time.
Many high end dealers are selling Deltrans (Lotus for example) with the vehicle.
 
#27 ·
Unfortunately, that is not the case with 21st century electro dependent cars. Many high end dealers are selling Deltrans (Lotus for example) with the vehicle.
As the late, great automotive writer, Henry Manny, once said upon seeing a Chevy being towed: "Look, it's assuming the Lotus position!" Sorry to disagree. My son has a 2015 Grand Cherokee (had it for a year) which also has the CANbus electrical system and he can sit it in for a couple hours -- engine off -- listening to music, etc (like we did in the old days?) without his battery dropping dead. Yeah, there are "high end" batteries out there, if you can find a fit for your application. The first week I had my Evoque the dealer tested the battery, declared it crap, gave me a new one.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Varta batteries are notoriously poor. BUT, if everyone here would heed my advice and buy a Deltran Battery Tender and faithfully use it whenever car is going to be left for more than a week, 90% of these problems would go away. These are typically the same folks that don't even have a tire gauge , let alone check everything every couple of weeks (takes ~1 minute). tpms SENSORS ARE NOT A SUBSTITUTE AS THERE ACCURACY IS IN MEASURING CHANGE, NOT ACTUAL PRESSURE. BTW let him test that battery after a couple hours of usage, hopefully nice and loud so the amps actually draw some current, it will definitely be partly drained. Stereos are actually minor offenders (transistors) v all the electrical motors, heaters esp in the vehicle. Of course there is always the one bad battery guy, but overall it just local running around (esp with seat heaters, defrosters up north or AC fans blazing down south) that drain these batteries. Batteries don't charge up in 5-10 minutes! AS SOMEONE ELSE CORRECTLY POSTED, IT TAKES 5-10 MINUTES TO REPLENISH ENERGY USED TO START VEHICLE.
 
#29 · (Edited)
When the C6 Corvette came out, manual tranny cars ONLY had an issue with batteries crashing. All the modern "stuff" that a battery has to run is supposed to shut down when the car is turned off -- the CANBus system actually goes through a check list and then turns everything off. Even the alarm is 99% latent. Something was not getting shut down in that model and year C6 and it took nearly a year for GM to sort. However, 99% of all automatic versions had zero issues and could be left sitting with little or no drain.

With the software update in the USA version of the Evoque this should not be a problem -- IF -- the battery passes a simple load test. If it fails a load test, no other test is needed, throw it away. The issue is getting dealers to do the test. As I said, when I took delivery of my car in Jan 2013, one of the first things my dealer did was replace the battery. No issues since. (When I was in college, I was the "battery mechanic" for a major auto store chain).

PS I have a battery tender that I needed for my C6. Never needed it for the Evoque.
 
#30 ·
Wanted to bring this thread back because of something that just happened and to partially vindicate DDSSKI for his point of view. This is the deal:

1. Stupidly turned car over to valet without implementing "Valet Mode".
2. Got car back and "check engine light" is on. (Had this once before for unrelated issue).
3. Immediately suspected moron attendant used my sound system paying no attention to battery warning.
4. After day of use "check engine light" went out. But next day (city driving) came back on.
5. Assumed all was result of not full charged battery (because low battery can throw off ANY error it wants).
6. Put tender on battery overnight. And, BTW, was happily surprised to find I have an Interstate Battery (put in by dealer when they threw away the OEM first week of ownership).
7. Morning "check engine light" is out. Supporting idea of low battery as cause.
8. Drove around all day with headlights on just to test, all good. Had appointment at dealer but have to leave for San Jose tonight, from Los Angeles.
9. So... IF the battery is still good (will recover and hold a charge) the long drive to San Jose should prove that. Which I think is the case.

BUT... and here's the real issue. IF indeed the battery is OK, it's clear the alternator is incapable of recharging the battery. I have a 2013 with the "charging" software update and all, which was supposed to sort that issue. Putting the tender on it (as DDSSKI suggested) for one night MAY have saved the battery because apparently once the battery is charged, the alternator can maintain its charge. Will report back.
 
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