Xantia - dash lights gone nuts - normal for duff battery?

[Jaf]

Hello. Car had been starting, running well. Had a full load, people and shopping, stopped for 2 mins to get the post. Car wouldn't start and with ignition on the dash lights were flashing and the speedo and rev counter madly bouncing up and down. Disconnecting the battery didn't help. Got recovered home, new battery, all is well. Got to poke the speedo as it's stuck on full!

Is this a normal response to a low battery? The thing is the old battery shows as 12.81v, which is good, have 14v when charging. Am wondering if one or other of the clamps has had it, I had to replace the earth last year when it disintegrated! The car shop tested the battery amps as 443, when it should be 640. Odd with the good volts.

What do you think?

Thanks!

[RichardW]

Yes, it's usual for the dials to go mad if the voltage is a bit low - this is usually caused by a poor connection on the battery - check whether the +ve clamp is hot after a cold start. 12.8 under no load is all well and good - but you need to know what it is under cranking load.

[Jaf]

Thanks Richard. Had a lot of duff batteries but never seen this. Fancy modern cars!

I have a cheapo clock/ temp gauge/ volt meter plugged into the cigarette lighter. Showed under cranking less than 7volts. Normally around 11volts with glow plugs on and cranking.

I had a very quick look at the clamps, the pos is a bit worn so not as snug as it could be, though not wiggly. Will have a better look tomorrow.

First time I've had the recovery people out in 8 years. It's compulsory with insurance. Don't know if the Spanish system is different, but he didn't try to fix the car.

[Hell Razor5543]

There is definitely a known issue with the battery leads breaking down over time. This link explains the issue better;

http://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/v ... =3&t=38273

[GiveMeABreak]

The same happened on a friend's 2000 Xsara Hatchback Diesel. She went to a meeting for 5 hours, came back to the car and went to start it - and all the speedo, rev counter dials were going up and down, all the lights were flashing on and off as if it had just got 50,000 volts through the system - but it was in fact the battery as said here - totally flat. The AA put a new one in and off she went! It can seem a bit disconcerting to see all the dials going mad - leading you to think it's something more major!