car is new, battery died...

[vblanche]

Hello,

my GT is 4 months old, I'm using it mainly in w/ends, and sometimes in weekdays, but there are periods of no-use of 4-5 days. yesterday, car could not start. assistance came, re-started in 1 min w/o problem. the guy said battery was died, not enough energy. 2 weeks ago, I got a problem with the window controls, only the driver side windows could be controlled, not the passenger's side ones. it happens again today. so I went to my mazda dealer, the guy told when the battery is low, it shut down the windows controls...so, I don't understand why the battery (4 months old) would suddenly died...any idea?

thanks
vincent

[Skarbro]

It happens more often than you think - in all makes of cars.

[SonicBoy]

Batteries are weird beasts. They can last you years or days. Perhaps the power window switch is shorting and draining your battery. Being 4 months old, should be under warranty so get dealership to look at it.

[Flagrum_3]

Hello,

my GT is 4 months old, I'm using it mainly in w/ends, and sometimes in weekdays, but there are periods of no-use of 4-5 days. yesterday, car could not start. assistance came, re-started in 1 min w/o problem. the guy said battery was died, not enough energy. 2 weeks ago, I got a problem with the window controls, only the driver side windows could be controlled, not the passenger's side ones. it happens again today. so I went to my mazda dealer, the guy told when the battery is low, it shut down the windows controls...so, I don't understand why the battery (4 months old) would suddenly died...any idea?

thanks
vincent

You have to understand, Cold temps DRAIN batteries.Right away I would say that 4-5 days sitting in -0C temps, between starts will definitely weaken the battery, it might start, but if you don't drive it long enough for the alternator to replenish the battery it will just get weaker, next time you go to start it, it will be so drained that there is no cranking amps....In your case, why not purchase a trickle charger? Anyways it might also be related to the problem you had a couple of weeks ago, as they were diagnosing the power windows they might have drained the battery pretty good and with you not using it much it drained all the way....Being that the vehicle is almost new I would take it in to the dealer, have them do a LOAD TEST on the battery, if it is weak they should replace it no charge under warranty.Best bet is get a trickle charger if you have an a/c outlet near the vehicle, if not when you do drive it, make sure you leave it running long enough to charge the battery back up, but relying on this method will no doubt tax your charging system quite hard limiting the life of your alternator.


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[EvilEric]

I would have thought even when driving it during weekends it wouldn't die on you. If the dealer didn't find anything wrong then it might be that?

However I've gone on trips for 2-3 weeks, no one drives my car. No problem with battery when i get back.

Supposedly they can check to see if there is a drain or something on your battery from something. Also might be alternator not charging it properly?

Your sig says you don't have any mods, that's still correct right?

[Skarbro]

I would have thought even when driving it during weekends it wouldn't die on you.
It wouldn't if it is a newer, healthy battery - even in the cold weather we've been having. It takes a lot more to kill a battery.

[vblanche]

Your sig says you don't have any mods, that's still correct right?
only an AudioLink Ipod adaptor...:blush

Also, I'm in Holland...we don't have -zero temps here, we are between 5 and 10oC...

[FLIPDADY]

Car could have been sitting for a long time in a cold environment. We get these cars all the time when they come back from the compound.

[Flagrum_3]

only an AudioLink Ipod adaptor...:blush

Also, I'm in Holland...we don't have -zero temps here, we are between 5 and 10oC...

Nice temps, Lucky guy! But that is still cold enough...So when you had it in at the shop; Did they check the battery? or Did they check for any electrical draw?...otherwise people are just guessing here, better to have it fully checked, but I'd still suggest you get a battery trickle-charger with your style of vehicle use.


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[Flagrum_3]

I would have thought even when driving it during weekends it wouldn't die on you. If the dealer didn't find anything wrong then it might be that?

However I've gone on trips for 2-3 weeks, no one drives my car. No problem with battery when i get back.

Supposedly they can check to see if there is a drain or something on your battery from something. Also might be alternator not charging it properly?

Your sig says you don't have any mods, that's still correct right?

These 2-3 week trips during the cold winter months? After you come back do you use the car daily or occasionally? ...small points make a difference!!.I've left my car for long periods and it always started but this guy is saying that continuosly he is starting the car with an obviously drained battery, and if not run long enough to charge it back fully, it would be just that much weaker the next time and yes this can happen even to brand new batteries.

Flippy may be right on in that this guys car may have come new with an already low battery! We get that at the garage with new buses, batteries are practically dead.



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[RX9]

that happens when you didnt fully charge the battery then let it sit there for a long time, next time, drive on HW for couple hours, or just use charger to fully charge it. that will help longer the battery life too.

[McGuyver_3]

batterys should still start the car after 4 days if not used eventhough it is a colder temperature. i would deffinaty have the dealer run a load test on the battery. at my work they have a fancy battery tester that does this all electronically and can also tell us if the battery has a bad cell in it. i had a very similar problem with my car and it ended up being the battery having a bad cell. We at work have pdi'd new cars and they have had bad batterys so it is nothing out of the ordinary

[MZ3_GS]

Push start your car.