The Perils of Replacing a C5's Battery......

[Citroenmad]

Ive had the battery's off all of the C5s numerous times, usually to change a headlamp bulb or to do some kind of work on the car.

Ive not gone through the above procedures, sometimes i leave it 5 minutes before disconnecting it, but not always.

The only thing i ever have to set when ive reconnected the battery is to set the date and clock, my automatic headlights etc all stay activated.

A couple of times when ive had the battery off the 05reg C5 it didnt want to start for about 20 minutes after refitting it. But it didnt cause any other problems.

Mine seems to be getting a bit slow to start in the colder weather, so my battery is nearing the end of its life too. Mine is also an 04reg VTR.

The C5 must be quite heavy on battery's as its used to power the suspension when parked.

[spider]

Regarding battery life in general:

I tend to find they last the length of the warranty plus about six months, in most cases.

The factory batteries they used to fit on the PSA range (probably changed now) on the late 90's era would last two years typically.

I used to buy MotaQuip batteries for all my cars, avoiding the cheapo ones and getting the VBY or VBZ ones (I think VBX was the cheap one) , these would last a long time, the warranty was three or four years. The one in my 205TD did six years.

The 'Freedom' batteries they used to fit to Vauxhalls, they might still do actually. My '91 Astra had one of these and that did about 9 years.


My general advise: Buy a branded, quality one, go to a good factors for it and get one with a three year warranty not a two year warranty. Ensure you get a decent CCA rating too. These 3 or 4 year ones seem to just be better quality generally in my opinion.

[frenchcarnut]

Mine seems to be getting a bit slow to start in the colder weather, so my battery is nearing the end of its life too. Mine is also an 04reg VTR.

I've just had a quick look at mine from under the cowling and it's a Varta (what else) L3 450/720A. So I'm trying to figure out the cold cranking and power rating on this. However, taking a look at Citroen's parts list (thanks again Clogzz), it appears to be 70 Ah and 640 Cold crank start given their reference thus:

L3D 70/640 - BATTERY L3 450 AND AGE >= 5

However, the Varta green light indicator is still faintly on. But are these indicators reliable? Perhaps I need to check after a cold spell. And is the "AGE" reference above meant to be the minimum guaranteed longevity? So 6 years life could sound about right.

[Citroenmad]

If i leave my car parked for a couple of days then it is slow to start, after a run its then back to normal. It was the same last winter but ill need a new one for this one.

I think ill stick with a Varta battery, then at least i know what im getting.

Our C15 has a battery with a lifetime warranty, which is handy as it does like to eat through them, usually a new one is needed every 2 years. It has a high security after market alarm and remote central locking system, which must be the cause of he drain.

I find 6 years seems about average for a battery. Saying that im sure our 52reg C5 is still on its original and thats still as powerful as it should be.

[frenchcarnut]

If i leave my car parked for a couple of days then it is slow to start, after a run its then back to normal. It was the same last winter.....

Identical ditto. And if this winter is going to be as harsh as that mother of all winters last year, then I suspect there's no choice but to go for it.

[myglaren]

If i leave my car parked for a couple of days then it is slow to start, after a run its then back to normal. It was the same last winter.....

Identical ditto. And if this winter is going to be as harsh as that mother of all winters last year, then I suspect there's no choice but to go for it.

Me too. It was a bit lethargic last winter but much more so this year and it hasn't been properly cold yet (-3 lowest up to now).
I have a strong feeling that it is the original Varta battery, will replace with one like it.

[Citroenmad]

If i leave my car parked for a couple of days then it is slow to start, after a run its then back to normal. It was the same last winter.....

Identical ditto. And if this winter is going to be as harsh as that mother of all winters last year, then I suspect there's no choice but to go for it.

Have you found a good source of Varta battery's? I might order one online.

[myglaren]

No, haven't looked yet. Did find some online a while back but don't recall where.

I will likely get it from my local autoparts shop, poor guy needs the business.

[wheeler]

However, the Varta green light indicator is still faintly on. But are these indicators reliable?

These indicators are not the slightest bit reliable in my opinion, Most knackered batteries that i replace with one of these indicators are still showing a healthy green when testing, even though the voltage drops from 12.3v to 3v on cranking.

[myglaren]

I'll have to see if mine has one

Did look at the battery once with the intention of checking/topping up the electrolyte but it is sealed so the bonnet got shut on that sharpish

[JohnD]

If i leave my car parked for a couple of days then it is slow to start,.

I find this. Generally I use our Saxo for running around so the C5 stands for days at a time. Unfortunately I keep a lot of tools in it so I often unlock it to get something. And each time, the pump starts up and canes the battery.

[RKM]

I find that, if I'm leaving the C5 parked for more than a week (which happens quite a lot, as I work from home) I put the suspension on "low" so that, when I unlock it, it doesn't rise.

When I need to use the car again, I select normal height after the car and wait for it to rise, while I am putting on my seatbelt, adjusting the stereo etc. Ahh, reminds me of the old GSA & BX days!

R

[dnsey]

If you're feeling adventurous, you could try this:http://blog.hasslberger.com/2007/01/how ... d_bat.html.

[frenchcarnut]

Okay, just to let you know, I've bought one of these for £79.99 online via PayPal (Click on image for Bosch specification and website):



Their office hours are Mon-Fri and I need to tell them no-one will be in Tuesday for delivery. But I can't do this until their office is open Monday, so let's see how that goes.

The S5 seems to be a good purchase in comparison and will certainly fit my needs until I decide to offload the car at 10 years old or sooner. I don't think the image represents the actual battery as the size ordered (dimensionally) is the same as the original Varta.

Halfords equivalent (like for like Bosch) and generic alternatives, can be found here. £40 difference on the Bosch it seems.

My local Motor Factors were better than Halfords, but couldn't come close to the above.

I can recommend this outfit for an overnight delivery of a new battery to your door: http://www.performancebatteries.co.uk/. I used them recently .........

Thanks for the recommendation. I was really tempted to get their 4 year warranty Varta at @ £86, whilst their equivalent to the Bosch was £115 . But in the end, the reason I plumped for onlinebatteries.co.uk, was their location. If anything goes wrong, then I can nip across the East Midlands (where I find myself quite regularly) and access 6 stores.

ASIDE

If you're feeling adventurous, you could try this:http://blog.hasslberger.com/2007/01/how ... d_bat.html.

I found this too on youtube, which I thought was quite interesting (the annoying underwear adverts don't take long at the beginning):
Lead Acid Car battery to Alkaline rechargeable battery conversion:- Part 1 & Part 2

[frenchcarnut]

Ground frost in Brum this morning. Let's see how the old Varta performs tomorrow morning. Better get up early just in case eh.