2001 V70XC Won't Start

[sabbates]

Hi all-

My wife's 2001 V70XC wouldn't start the other day, so I checked the voltage on the battery, and it was only 9 Volts.

I jump started it, and with the engine running, the voltage was 13.8V. I drove it around a while to let it charge up, then turned it off, and the voltage checked in at 12.8V.

I took out the battery and had it checked at O'reilly's. They said it checked out fine, so I put it back in the car.

Two days later, however, it wouldn't start again. So I jumped it, and drove it home, and it is sitting in my driveway.

Should I check for a current drain with the car off? The alternator? Or could it still be the battery?

Thanks for any advice.

[hoonk]

Should I check for a current drain with the car off?

Or could it still be the battery?



Check for a current drain on the system preferably with an inductive ammeter. Close the tailgate latch (with a screwdriver) and lock the car (with the tailgate still open) It takes a minute or so before the system stabilizes and stops using several amps of current. Look for less than about 350 milliamps (sp) of current draw after sitting for a few minutes.

Your 12.8 volts after driving could have just been a surface charge, that dissipates with time. How old and what brand is the battery? Trunk mounted batteries can last a very long time, sometimes much longer than the normal 3-6 years.

[sabbates]

I checked for current drain with the car off as you suggested. I don't have an inductive ammeter, so I had to disconnect the negative terminal and connect an ammeter in series with the negative battery terminal and the negative cable.

There was 3.5 amps being drawn, but that was because the overhead lights were on. Once they turned off, the amperage dropped below .02 amps.

Should I check the voltage with the car running, but with all the electrical loads on? The lights, A/C, radio, etc? Maybe the alternator puts out 13.8V when running with low load, but it drops significantly with a bunch of electrical stuff turned on?

[Astro14]

If the battery was fully drained, driving around for a while won't help. It takes hours to fully charge...

So, I would check the age of the battery and replace it if over five years. Check your alternator voltage output as well. Alternators on this aren't cheap, and the over run clutch pulley can fail too. Any unusual noise?

[sabbates]

Replaced the battery on this and it's been running fine ever since.