Battery problem with 2009 XC70

[waldi]

I have interesting problem and was wondering if anyone had something like this. It has happen twice in past 6 months that when car was not driven for about 6 days, it could not be started as battery was dead. First time i assumed freak incident, but repeat recently puzzled me and made me feel uneasy (can I trust the car) since there were no light on, no radio no other sources of drain. I had car at dealer first time and they did not find anything, now I must say looks like some type of short or bad battery (3 year old?????). Any opinions appreciated.

[cattlecar]

Check to see if battery has cracked at negative post and has a load of acid salt buildup on that post. See your dealer.

[XCovlov70]

There is normally a small constant (24/7) output from your battery to keep certain electronics 'alive' like your Radio settings, but normally you can leave a battery without problems for some time, although very cold weather will flatten a battery faster than anything.

Depending on how frequently the car has been used it would be worth taking the car to a dealer to have the battery 'tested' this will tell you if the battery is able to hold its charge, if it cannot then it means a new battery.

In a number of cases batteries of 3 years are known to pack up.

[OKCXC70]

I'm with they guys here but you don't have to go to the dealer to get the battery checked, most auto part stores will check it in the parking lot for you. And honestly, if you can't trust the battery, get a new one.

[cattlecar]

You do have to go to the dealer to get the battery warranted and the neg cable replaced for a problem seen and noted on a number of the 09 models with factory installed battery. Look at the neg post and then if it has the heavy build up, point it out to the dealer.

[waldi]

Well, it is pretty warm right now so cold weather is definitely not in play. We are talking car not being operated for 6 (six) days. It is second occurrence now, it has happen before when we were away for a week, same thing happened. Took it to dealer for check and nothing was found, now after second incident (bought car new) I am concern, as I do not know how long doe sit take to drain battery, not to mention why. Check both posts and they look fine, but I will recheck again and inspect as suggested. Going to have dealer inspect it next week.

[RogerC]

The battery in my 2010 XC70 went dead after sitting for 2 weeks in mild weather. Nothing was on, and the fob was 50+ feet away. Dealer says battery is fine and charging system works. Has anyone figured out what might be causing this? With winter coming, I am concerned.

[jfullofic]

Similar problem: If I lock the car, no problem, if I leave the car unlocked in a relatively warm garage the battery is dead in as little as 3 days. Any ideas? Dealer looked at it and found no problem. 2011 xc

[wurthman]

We just replaced our XC70 2004 with a XC70 2010 and twice now the battery, failed. The car was sitting for 3 days each time. Is this a problem with the battery or the car?

[XCovlov70]

We just replaced our XC70 2004 with a XC70 2010 and twice now the battery, failed. The car was sitting for 3 days each time. Is this a problem with the battery or the car?

Hi wurthman,

If I could suggest trying a little 'process of elimination'?

If you can leave the car for 3 days without using it, then disconnect the Positive Lead (Red) on the battery, then after the 3 days re-connect it and see if it works.
If it does then the problem has got to be the car which is draining the battery over the 3 days.

If however it won't start the car then the battery is defective and needs to be replaced.

One other interesting comment that I saw on here was that if the car was locked using the key fob then when the car was to be used again the battery was OK.

So it would seem that when locking the car it shuts down any significant power drain on the battery, which some people might not consider if it is in the garage at home and doesn't get locked there!

Hope this helps.