Tardy Battery

[snerlo]

OK, before I start, I really don't want this turning into a massive debate. Just some helpful advice please. Lately, our turbo jetta has been a little bit tardy when starting in the morning. Obviously within the garage, the automatic headlights come on so the car is starting with the headlights on but I assume that this is quite normal for alot of people. The car really struggles to crank over and start. I actually thought that it wasn't going to start at all at the end of last week. OK, to the question. I think that this might be a sign that the battery is on the way out. It is 5 years old as far as I can tell cause it looks like the standard one. If I buy a new battery for it and change the battery before it does actually die, am I going to have problems with the car having lights on up on the dash (warning lights) etc???
Also, any recommendations on batteries??
Thanks guys.
Leon

[Transporter]

Just connect a small 12V battery to the battery leads in your car (I use old sealed lead acid battery from the home alarm), that will keep the radio memory and other powered up while you disconnect the car battery. Make sure you don't do any shorts.

[brad]

A decent battery shop will test the battery & charge system & fit the new battery while maintaining all your customised settings

[nutttr]

Just get a new one, I got one for the TDI from Batteryworld and it was something in the $100-$200 range and they fitted it all and took a few minutes! Golfs are known for having issues cranking with bad batteries..

[The_Hawk]

Apparently the first frost of the season see's the battery sales man's sales go through the roof... or so I'm told

[maca]

Apparently the first frost of the season see's the battery sales man's sales go through the roof... or so I'm told

We're in Brisbane, we don't know what frost is

[snerlo]

Well I had the battery replaced in the Jetta yesterday. I ended up going down to Battery World and they replaced it for free. The cost of the battery was $189. They did a test on the old one first and he said that it was causing errors with their tester so he said that there was definitely something wrong with it. Anyhow, old one out, new one in, what a difference. The thing really sounds different when starting, and also, when it starts in the garage with the headlights on, she just kicks over without a problem whatsoever. Very happy I did it. It even feels different to drive. Even the missus agrees. It just feels smoother and eager. I reckon that the old battery had a deal cell or two. It wasn't doing too bad for a stocker though. When the battery world guys change the battery they put a battery pack onto the terminals as well as another one through the cigarette lighter so that you don't lose all your settings. Anyone that is a little cautious about there battery should just go and get it changed before you get caught out somewhere. The CCA (cold cranking amps) is also higher than the other one so that helps with the starts too. I assume that there is no problems for those diesel engines too because there is no differentiation for the diesels. Anyone have any questions, just ask. Best mod (haha) that I've done to the car!!
Leon.

[HANZ BLIX]

All cars have issues with cranking with bad batteries. If the battery fails the load test, get a new one. No point wasting time or possible inconvenience recharging a dud battery.

[Maverick]

Well I had the battery replaced in the Jetta yesterday. I ended up going down to Battery World and they replaced it for free. The cost of the battery was $189.

What battery did battery world install?

[snerlo]

I think it was a century that they put in. Certainly no problems starting now Mav.

[wokwn]

When you replace the battery you will have the power steering and the ESP lights on. The power steering light will go off once you've driven a bit and the system has calibrated. The ESP light goes off pretty fast (for my by the end of the street).

You will also need to roll down and up manually all the windows to calibrate the anti-pinch. You do this by holding down the button until the window gets to the end, and then lift it up until it gets back to the top. You cannot use the auto-down auto-up thing to recalibrate.

Otherwise everything else works. Your radio recognises that the VIN hasn't changed and does not lock, all your keys are stored in the cluster and do not get erased. Your gearbox settings might reset to stock (not in my experience) but they will relearn as you drive.

[snerlo]

Nothing like that happened wokwn. They have a couple of batteries that they use to stop the need of doing that. They hook a battery up through the 12v outlet in the car, and they also hook one up to the existing terminal cords that go to the battery from the car. There were no lights, no calibration or anything needed on our car.