Am I the only one with a dead battery?

[BandSofC]

It had been about 6 weeks since last driven. Dead as a door nail. Nothing special running or plugged in.
My last "summer car" ('03 Civic Si) sat for months and months and never needed a charge or jump. This joke-of-a-car's battery is dead after sitting a few weeks, and the battery is only a year old!

Charging it now. At least my charger says it's charging.

That Styrofoam over the battery is tough to get out.

[24-42]

Originally Posted by Karl Roth

http://www.optimabatteries.com/_medi...yDataSheet.pdf
These are great but they still produce hydrogen when you charge them (that silly vent tube) and they live in the passenger area of our car. Just wondering, run a spill proof in an other car and it is vented to the exterior
karl

To clarify the above post, Under Normal plus Reserve margin conditions, the Optima discharges NO gassing to the atmosphere. There is a safety valve that could open if the battery is over (ampere)charged or has a malfunctioning regulator (to prevent explosion).

Plus there is no need for the 34/78 to be a 'R' (Reverse). Simply move the NEG cable to the other end of the battery compartment (there is stud for this end also). Same 10mm wrench. The POS cable is long enough to reach the other end without modification.

Donald LaFavor

[Periclaws]

The optima works with the stock hold down with no mods?Why didn't anyone go with a 35 series model ,it seems a little smaller?

[SIVARTE]

Now that I have seen this thread, I went ahead and ordered a new Kinetic battery since I have a couple amplifiers in my car and don't want any surprises.

[Karl Roth]

Originally Posted by 24-42

To clarify the above post, Under Normal plus Reserve margin conditions, the Optima discharges NO gassing to the atmosphere. There is a safety valve that could open if the battery is over (ampere)charged or has a malfunctioning regulator (to prevent explosion).

Plus there is no need for the 34/78 to be a 'R' (Reverse). Simply move the NEG cable to the other end of the battery compartment (there is stud for this end also). Same 10mm wrench. The POS cable is long enough to reach the other end without modification.

Donald LaFavor

I drove a car with lead acid batteries under the seats at one point in my life. It had far more flow thru ventilation than my smart has and I have become more risk adverse with a car my wife drives as often as she can. Overcharging is not that uncommon a fault.

The replacement battery the dealer put in my car has worked just fine. The car gets driven more than the other cars we have. The bikes all get hooked up to battery tenders here if you keep the car outside you could try a solar cell to keep the battery topped up there is plenty of window area...
karl that's my story and I am sticking to it.

[hdickerson]

has anyone come up with a solution to the battery issue?can I put a different battery in here? if so...what is recommended. this is my fourth issue w/ the battery

[Karl Roth]

the first one died and was replaced free of charge for us and not a single problem from that time on.
karl

[WilyB]

Originally Posted by hdickerson

has anyone come up with a solution to the battery issue?can I put a different battery in here? if so...what is recommended. this is my fourth issue w/ the battery

Yes, request the smart 2.0 upgrade from your dealer if you are eligible. The new software and the larger battery solved my problem!

[randyzimmer]

Originally Posted by hdickerson

has anyone come up with a solution to the battery issue?can I put a different battery in here? if so...what is recommended. this is my fourth issue w/ the battery

I wired in a Harbor Freight solar charger

- Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

so if I'm not going to use the car for a week or more, I plug the charger in and toss it on the dash.

[Old SGM]

I drive my 2009 almost everyday, so far no battery issues. A few months back the dealer called and advised me to bring my Smart in and get the bigger battery. It is my understanding that if the car has a factory alarm system it is more prone to have a dead battery if not used for several days. I had a 2000 Jag S-Type, if not driven daily it would destroy a batter in about 6 months, Advance Auto kept replacing them for free, they were equally happy when I unloaded that beautiful, but high upkeep car. No more Jags for me! My Smart is perfect for how I use it.