Dead Battery (incl. battery charging)

[Westfield 11]

How long do you think the carpet and the foam in the foot well will last if you keep pulling it up to futz with the battery? This stuff does not go in and out with any sort of ease: you have to fold up the carpet and force the foam holding the tire pump out and then back in. I have already had the carpet replaced once due to fit and puckering issues, don't want to do that again.

[dennyrex]

>Your garage doesn't have a power output?

it's a commercial garage under a hotel, not my garage.

[NJREDZ06]

I have an 09 and have parked it for at least 3-4 days at a time with the auto headlights switch on the 'on' position and have not experienced a battery drain. But I got this email today from SMART USA


Dear smart fortwo Owner,
We have had reports of batteries being drained within an 8 to 12 hour period in Model Year 2009 smart fortwos which are equipped with the comfort package option. This appears to happen when both the rain sensing windshield wipers and auto-headlamps are left in automatic mode when the car is not running.
To help avoid a dead battery, please always turn your wipers and headlamps to the full off position when parking your car for any period of time. The safety of your vehicle will not be affected and your headlamps and wipers will operate normally in any position when driving. Note -- For full off positions, the headlamp switch should be rotated fully clockwise to the off (O) position – the wiper stalk should be one click up from the bottom position.
Your smart center dealership will advise you as soon as possible of the availability of the upgrade which they will install at your convenience.
We apologize for the inconvenience in needing to return your car to the dealership for this work.
Sincerely,
The smart USA Team

[cablvr]

So it has been 9 days since the smart was last started. Kept the "auto" headlight setting in the full off position, but the "auto" wiper position was still on. She fired right up! I think the letter referred to by NJREDZ06 above applies to late build MY2008 vehicles (ours was built in August 2008). We will keep the headlight and wiper settings in the full off positions until we have a chance to visit a dealer (sometime in May 2009).

[cirofeola]

I have had my smart for about 4 months now. I take it out only about once a week and drive it for about 40 or 50 miles. It always starts up with no problem, but this last week it was very cold here in N.Y. I tried to start her and nothing. had roadside come and give me a boost. Did the cold wheather have that much to do with killing the battery? I drove the car for about an hour at high way speeds after the jump. Will my battery be ok now or was damage already done and I need a new one? On most cars getting a jump is not such a big deal. Just pop the hood, but the smart is a little bit of a pain. The roadside man who had jumped smarts many times even had a hard time. Not the greatest place to put a battery.

[Duckhunter]

Originally Posted by cirofeola

I have had my smart for about 4 months now. I take it out only about once a week and drive it for about 40 or 50 miles. It always starts up with no problem, but this last week it was very cold here in N.Y. I tried to start her and nothing. had roadside come and give me a boost. Did the cold wheather have that much to do with killing the battery? I drove the car for about an hour at high way speeds after the jump. Will my battery be ok now or was damage already done and I need a new one? On most cars getting a jump is not such a big deal. Just pop the hood, but the smart is a little bit of a pain. The roadside man who had jumped smarts many times even had a hard time. Not the greatest place to put a battery.

Takes a lot more to start a cold car and battery has to work harder. Battery could be fine but I would get it load tested to be sure of its status.

[nemo1]

Hi - I had my car in the garage for two weeks during the bad weather here in NYC. I went to use it Christmas Day and it was completely dead. What a hassle - had to take a bus with all the presents ;). Help with the following questions is much appreciated:
1. Had to use the key manually to enter the car. The car won't lock manually - correct? If so, bad design.

2. I ordered a good battery maintainer - can I just hook it up to the battery without disconnecting it first?

3. I read that 2009 cars have a problem with keeping the headlights and wipers in auto mode. Is this true for 2008?

I have a service appointment later in the week so Mercedes can check out the battery and make sure everything's ok. First I have to get the battery charged so I can drive it in. I would be interested in upgrading the battery if anyone has a replacement model / number for me.

Thanks!

[henrychan]

I had exactly the same problem mutiple times : I couldn't start the car...dead battery...called roadside service (Penske - very responsive)... they jump-start and it's OK for a few hours...a day at most...then same thing all over again. Finally, after the snow storms were done in Seattle I got them to tow the car into the service center. They did diagnostics and confirmed the auto-headlight setting draws too much from the battery and basically the battery was done. They've replaced it with a larger battery (apparently approved by the automaker) to handle the problem so we'll see... No mention of the fix via software updagrade 'tho - I'll ask when I collect the car this weekend. That's 1 thing I'm not happy about - Smartcar Seattle would not drop off the car citing "short of staff due to holidays". I live 25 miles away from the service center so it'll cost me time & $$.
I bought this car for my wife & we're both starting to get buyer's remorse... Hopefully the new battery fixes things!

[24-42]

Originally Posted by nemo1

I would be interested in upgrading the battery if anyone has a replacement model / number for me. Thanks!

"Optima 34/78". same size - double the power of what comes with the car.
Search for: "Optima 34/78", complete writeups

Donald LaFavor

[nemo1]

Thanks for the Optima tip. I'd like to recount my experience in the hope of possibly helping others:
When I first realized my battery was dead, I ordered a Deltran plus battery charger / maintainer. It comes with a terminal adaptor that can be attached to the battery, making it easy to just plug it into the charger when needed. I then plugged the charger in figuring it would be fine in the morning.
WRONG. Next day, the battery was still dead. What I learned after reading the charger instructions (Duh), was that the charger will not work if the battery voltage is too low. Thinking that the battery was toast and wouldn't take a charge, I set about getting it replaced. Smart told me to call roadside and have the car towed in. I didn't like this idea much, as I was parked in an underground garage, and getting towed or even jumped would not be that easy due to space restrictions. Also, towing leaves the possibility of damaging the car, however small.
Smart would not give me a battery and let me switch it out myself, and buying one for $130 was foolish when the car is under warranty, so my next step was to get a battery somewhere else, if only to get the car into the shop. I didn't realize that a jump start would probably do the same. So, on New Years Day, I bought a Group 26R battery from Strauss Auto, which was nearby, and open. Cost, $50. I switched batteries and voila - the car sprang to life. Then I hooked up the removed dead battery to the charger and lo and behold - the charger indicated it was working (red light went steady, whereas it was flashing before).
I used the car that day with no problems. I had an appointment the next day for service, so I switched back to the original battery and drove it in to Smart. Smart agreed the battery was bad (voltage was still low, even after being on the charger overnight) and replaced it for free. Now I have an emergency battery that cost me $50 and a charger.
I learned a few things from this experience. One, if using a trickle charger you may need to disconnect the battery to get it to charge. Two, a 26R battery fits ok, but this one was a little loose under the bracket. Three, I am now an expert at removing and installing smart batteries .
I'm going to make sure my lights and wipers are on OFF when not using the car. I hadn't used it for over two weeks when this trouble started. If I run into trouble again, I may invest in an Optima battery. I called Optima and spoke to a technician who wouldn't recommend an Optima for a Smart, but hinted that it might be possible. I'm sure now that it is, thanks to 24-42. Thanks for reading this and I hope it is helpful.