Electrical Help

[Mr. Hawver]

I'm having a bit of an electrical problem with my '95 GT. Two weeks ago I went to start my car after letting it sit for three or so weeks (I know, its a sin, but I'm at college). It barely turned over when I turned the key, so I jumped it and it started fine. This Monday I went to take it for a spin and tried to disarm my alarm and got nothing. My battery was so dead that not even a single LED would shine.

Yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon I threw the battery charger on it while still connected to the car. Twenty-four hours later I check it and 2 amps are still flowing into the battery. Usually it only takes four to six hours to charge a battery.

I'm absolutely horrible at electrical issues, so I ask... what should I start checking first?

By the way, the battery was replaced only six months ago. I haven't had any issues like this before the last month and a half. Thanks a lot, I really appreciate it.

 

[fordtech28]

Batteries can go bad at any time there is a good chance that battery is bad and not holding a charge since you jumped it and the stang ran .I would get the battery change to rule it out.

 

[HISSIN50]

I agree. Your battery is likely under full warranty (not being pro-rated yet) so I'd swap it. FWIW, always have new batteries load tested before you buy one. I've gotten bad batteries right off the shelf.

Periods of being discharged can make it real hard for the battery to deep cycle properly again.



Good luck.

 

[mo_dingo]

I deal with battery problems at work seemingly everyday. Here is what I have learned:

The water level only needs to be above the lead plates. Going full to the brim is not necessary and often leads to acidic water spewing all over the place when the battery is charging.

A lead/acid battery needs to be drained and recharged at least 60 times to reach it's maximum charge potential.

A fully dead battery usually takes 48 hours to fully charge (depends on charging system, regular chargers can take even longer).

The only way to truly test a lead acid battery is with a hydrometer which measures the specific gravity of each cell. Since a 12V battery has 6 cells, 1 cell can be bad, and 5 can be good enough to pass the load test. The dead cell will always drain the other 5 cells (attempting to equalize).

^ applies to lead acid batteries only since glass mat/gel cell/etc batteries cannot be tested by individual cells.
Scott

 

[smitty_64]

You can also check to make sure you don't have a trunk or hood light that is stuck in the ON position. I know it sounds crazy, but... But you can get a bad battery brand new too.