C5 mk 1 starting problem

[hirsty]

After months of fairly problem free motoring, including two trips to Scotland, my C5 has not started twice from cold. The starter turns slowly but doesn't fire. Once started, however, it turns over faster and starts with no problem. I called at Halfrauds and had the battery and alternator and starter checked with one of their hand held gizmos and all came up ok. The current battert is 19 months old and is a Lion 100, 70Ah, 620cca. I have bought a battery charger, but think the battery may be underated for my 2.0 HDi. Any suggestions. I have looked on ebay and found a Varta E44 (096) rated at 77Ah and 780cca with a 5 year guarantee for £69.99 with next day delivery.


hirsty

[Peter.N.]

I think the problem is more likely to be the starter, they require a specific amount of revs before they will start so if yours is turning slowly that will likely be your problem. A good 70ah battery should start it OK.

Just check the wiring to the starter, feel the battery terminals when you have tried to start it, if they are getting hot you may have a poor connection which could also cause a problem.

Peter

[Hell Razor5543]

If it IS the starter motor, I replaced mine about 6 months ago with a reconditioned Bosch one from GSF for about £120, but I got back about £55 when I returned the old motor in the packaging provided (so Bosch can recondition it).

[hirsty]

I have checked the battery terminals and leads after starting and there is no heat at all. I am currently giving the battery a good charging as I have been doing a lot of short journeys.

hirsty

[Peter.N.]

Flat batteries on short journeys hark back to the era of dynamo's (which I remember well) the output of an alternator is such that it will replace the starting power in a few minutes so if the battery is OK it shouldn't cause a problem.

Peter

[wurlycorner]

If you're worried that the battery may be under-sized, connect up another car with the engine on that one running (i.e. as if jump starting your C5) before trying to turn the C5 over.
If you're happy with how quickly the starter turns that time, then you could well be right about the battery being under-sized.

[hirsty]

I will try jump starting from my daughters car in the morning to see if it turns any quicker. If not it looks like a starter from GSF. Thanks for the tip. The strange bit is why after starting, it turns over much faster.

hirsty

[wurlycorner]

Could be because After having run for a bit, the battery is 'warm'. Lead acid batteries are a chemical reaction and warmer = more reaction occurring. So you will get more oompf out of it.

[hirsty]

After a full recharge yesterday (on the car), the car started perfectly well this morning. The recharge took nearly 5 hours before the battery full light came on. To reassure myself and avoid problems when it gets frosty, I have ordered the uprated Varta battery mentioned above, which is coming tomorrow. Will I need to do the BSI reset procedure before I reconnect the new battery? I have noticed since charging, that the trip meter and overall mileage stays lit after removing the key, however, everything else seems to work ok.

hirsty

[GiveMeABreak]

After a full recharge yesterday (on the car), the car started perfectly well this morning. The recharge took nearly 5 hours before the battery full light came on. To reassure myself and avoid problems when it gets frosty, I have ordered the uprated Varta battery mentioned above, which is coming tomorrow. Will I need to do the BSI reset procedure before I reconnect the new battery? I have noticed since charging, that the trip meter and overall mileage stays lit after removing the key, however, everything else seems to work ok.
hirsty

Definitely undertake the BSI reset, making sure you disconnect the battery only after allowing the car networks to sleep (if you keep your ear near the inside of the car without opening the doors, you'll usually hear a couple of 'clicks' after closing the door with ignition off which indicates the car has gone to 'sleep').

[myglaren]

Battery swap procedure.

[Peter.N.]

I would check your alternator if you haven't done so. Connect a meter across the battery and it should read about 16.4 volts with the engine running.

Peter

[wurlycorner]

16.4? Thats a bit high?!

[myglaren]

Bit of transposition I suspect - I reckon 14.6 would be more like it.

[hirsty]

How do I reset the auto lights function?

hirsty