Battery not holding charge.

[michaeljeffery]

Hi all,

New here and needing advice on where to start looking.
I've Got a 2007 Sprinter 518CDI V6 3.0 Diesel which i've had since new, just recently the battery isn't holding charge. I've had 2 new battery installed over the past week and both are losing charge over a couple of days.

The van only has 53,000km on the clock, it's a cargo van with no after market add-ons nor has the electronics been touched.
A few months ago i had the full set of 6 glow plugs replaced.

Any help on where to start would be much appreciated.

Cheers
Mike

 

[Altered Sprinter]

Hi Mike Welcome:You have replaced batteries! but you state not holding charge.???
First off What is the standing charge of your mains start battery from an overnight stand .
Same applies to aux! What is the standing charge at ?
Did you match batteries to your alternators ratings as per manual and or VIN ?
The quickest way would be to take the batteries back and run a full voltage check on the state of the batteries, as to being correctly charged prior to installation in your van.
Prior to starting what is the voltage on your mains battery from an overnight stand it should be 12.35v to 12 ,85V.
When you cycle start, the voltage will drop into the low 9v at worst with no accessions running on a cold crank start. once started the voltage build will up from 10v to to 13.8/9v and steady at 14 V to 14.2 v
This will fluctuate during the day 13.9 to 14.2 v depending on rpm, Radio, heater-on, voltage drops back to 13.8 no less.
Batteries are matched to your alternator ,with specific type batteries Deep cycle maintenance free and AGM for aux.
Richard

 

[BigBlueBus]

Hi all,

New here and needing advice on where to start looking.
I've Got a 2007 Sprinter 518CDI V6 3.0 Diesel which i've had since new, just recently the battery isn't holding charge. I've had 2 new battery installed over the past week and both are losing charge over a couple of days.

The van only has 53,000km on the clock, it's a cargo van with no after market add-ons nor has the electronics been touched.
A few months ago i had the full set of 6 glow plugs replaced.

Any help on where to start would be much appreciated.

Cheers
Mike

Mike,
Read this thread first, sounds like you may be experiencing the same issues as described here:https://sprinter-source.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13606

Hope that solves your problem.

Let us know how it turns out.

John

 

[michaeljeffery]

Cheers for all your advice guys, turns out it was the cables.
here his a photo of the dodgy cable.

 

[michaeljeffery]

Solder Repair:
Thought I would try to repair the Y cable before I spent $500+ for a new one from the dealer.
I held the centre connector in a vice with the cables vertically upwards. Trimmed the insulation back approx 25mm. Applied heat to the connector using a gas flame, (caution, only use enough heat to melt the solder). A little "Bakers Soldering Fluid" helped the flow. I took my time with this and using resin cored solder was able to fill the multi-strand cable and connector with solder. Result, battery is now charging (14.2 volts at the battery terminals), the voltage drop across the cable with the battery charged is down to 0.2volts (from 0.54volts prior to repair).

 

[220629]

Not a bad idea given the replacement cost.

I would like to add some cautions though. In my experience hot connections like that can cause the strands of the cable to form a "crust" for lack of a better word. If the strands are accessible they can be scraped or otherwise cleaned to expose a good surface for a solder bond. If you cannot access them the solder being added may help heal the connection, but the effect may not be permanent.

I find a similar thing in trailer wiring when the trailer has been dunked repeatedly in saltwater. The outside of the copper corrodes to the point that solder doesn't want to bond. In that case it is even worse because scraping or cleaning the conductor doesn't seem to improve things much because the property of the copper seems to have been changed.

I'd keep an eye on it, but it could very well last a long time. FWIW. vic

 

[shanemac]

My cable was 68047520AA 246.40 CAN 500 hundred seems a bit steep unless that's installed even so a skilled tech in a heated shop with all the best tools and such could easily change cable in under a hour. I took much longer because i changed mine in pretty much the worst conditions in middle of winter outside.

Thanks for followup.

 

[RGC]

I replaced my cable outside in the winter as well and it took me about 2 hours. My local dealer wanted about 3.6 hours for the repair. Bunch of crooks. The repair was quite simple but I don't recommend doing it outside in the wintery months. I replaced my cable at 252000km and I still have the original battery. But the cable fix seemed to have taken care of all the starting and charging issues.

 

[michaeljeffery]

I agree "Aqua Puttana" but what do I have to lose? My thinking with the soldering is that the copper strands inside the crimped connector should have a lot less oxidization on their surface than the strands outside. Likewise the internal strands compared to external ones.
The Bakers Soldering fluid does help clean the surfaces as well. Time will tell of course, but at $500+ for a replacement cable from the same supplier who has already shown incompetence in their manufacture, I think its worth a go.
I will post how it performs over time.

 

[michaeljeffery]

My cable was 68047520AA 246.40 CAN 500 hundred seems a bit steep unless that's installed even so a skilled tech in a heated shop with all the best tools and such could easily change cable in under a hour. I took much longer because i changed mine in pretty much the worst conditions in middle of winter outside.

Thanks for followup.

The price quoted for the cable did not include installation.
Also my dealer quoted $430 (fixed price, parts and labour) to replace 6 glow plugs but charged $680 when the van was picked up. I have no confidence in them anymore.

 

[Eric Experience]

Mihael.
Welcome aboard, I was reading your last posting and noticed you used Bakers solution, Then I thought he must be in Australia. The Bakers factory used to be in Melbourne but has been gone for years so hang on to that bottle, It does a great job of tinning an oxerdised wire. Eric

 

[220629]

Don't get me wrong, I think what you did is well worth the effort. Just wanted to highlight that it stills needs to be considered something which needs watching. I hope the repair lasts the life of the vehicle.

I still have some Fluxsolder tinning compound. It has finely ground solder in with the flux. Sounds similar to your Bakers. Works great, and I don't think it's available anymore either. Thanks for the additional info. vic

I agree "Aqua Puttana" but what do I have to lose? My thinking with the soldering is that the copper strands inside the crimped connector should have a lot less oxidization on their surface than the strands outside. Likewise the internal strands compared to external ones.
The Bakers Soldering fluid does help clean the surfaces as well. Time will tell of course, but at $500+ for a replacement cable from the same supplier who has already shown incompetence in their manufacture, I think its worth a go.
I will post how it performs over time.

 

[rb3232]

Solder Repair:
Thought I would try to repair the Y cable before I spent $500+ for a new one from the dealer.
I held the centre connector in a vice with the cables vertically upwards. Trimmed the insulation back approx 25mm. Applied heat to the connector using a gas flame, (caution, only use enough heat to melt the solder). A little "Bakers Soldering Fluid" helped the flow. I took my time with this and using resin cored solder was able to fill the multi-strand cable and connector with solder. Result, battery is now charging (14.2 volts at the battery terminals), the voltage drop across the cable with the battery charged is down to 0.2volts (from 0.54volts prior to repair).

Just wanted to confirm that this repair worked very well for my 2007 NCV3 Sprinter. Thanks Mike!

 

[flman]

Where is the Y actually located, at the starter? I am going to silver solder mine with oxy acetylene.

 

[icarus]

New cable is under $100, complete with the ends and the fuse. I carry a new one just in case.
'
Icarus