Replacing the battery
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,086
Likes: 27
From: Ephrata, PA, USA now. Originally from the UK
Had my battery in and out a few times and the only thing I had to know was the radio code, nothing else required. Mine is a Bosch. Same one the past 2 years which was on when I got the car. Had to charge it up one time when i was messing with the top up and down for so long with the engine off that it flattened the battery or at least failed to lift the top again. I have a 1999 cab. The Bosch you can get from pep boys at just over $100. I use the car every second day tops, so it gets a good warm up and battery boost.
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 2,467
Likes: 16
From: redmond wa
A few weeks ago I replaced the battery in my Turbo and did so so quickly the residual power/capacitance in the electrical system kept things "alive" the few moments the car was without power. I had no electrical systems on, all doors closed but of course the front trunk open.
The trunk light's electrical load was likely enough to draw down the engine ECU power entirely. The only way to know for sure is an OBDII check to see if the emissions incomplete is set.
I disconnected the dead battery as per the tech's instructions, lifted it out and set it down and then lifted the new battery up, positioned to and hooked up the leads as per the tech's instructions. Took about as long to do as to type in and I'm not a professional car repair/service tech, just an out of practice amateur.
When I took the car to the dealer to return the dead battery to qualify for the free replacement the tech double checked my work and fetched a proper vent hose/fitting for the new battery and fitted that for me.
While we were talking he mentioned that sometimes the loss of power can trigger a steering angle sensor error or some other error related to the loss of power but there were no warning lights on nor any error messages displayed on the dash.
I asked the tech about the ramifications of these possible errors and driving the car and the tech told me there were none and that just driving the car normally would have these dismissed anyhow and since none were in evidence I elected to just drive the car. The tech was right and everything was fine.
No, sorry, the tech was WRONG. If your steering wheel's rotational position sensor is off just ever so slightly the result will be, might be, unwarranted activation of the stability control system. So you might drive for day upon end before you discover the problem.
Now my car doesn't require any radio code but if yours does be sure you have this handy just in case.
Also, just to be safe I reset the window limits and went through the steps to calibrate the e-Gas.
The trunk light's electrical load was likely enough to draw down the engine ECU power entirely. The only way to know for sure is an OBDII check to see if the emissions incomplete is set.
I disconnected the dead battery as per the tech's instructions, lifted it out and set it down and then lifted the new battery up, positioned to and hooked up the leads as per the tech's instructions. Took about as long to do as to type in and I'm not a professional car repair/service tech, just an out of practice amateur.
When I took the car to the dealer to return the dead battery to qualify for the free replacement the tech double checked my work and fetched a proper vent hose/fitting for the new battery and fitted that for me.
While we were talking he mentioned that sometimes the loss of power can trigger a steering angle sensor error or some other error related to the loss of power but there were no warning lights on nor any error messages displayed on the dash.
I asked the tech about the ramifications of these possible errors and driving the car and the tech told me there were none and that just driving the car normally would have these dismissed anyhow and since none were in evidence I elected to just drive the car. The tech was right and everything was fine.
No, sorry, the tech was WRONG. If your steering wheel's rotational position sensor is off just ever so slightly the result will be, might be, unwarranted activation of the stability control system. So you might drive for day upon end before you discover the problem.
Now my car doesn't require any radio code but if yours does be sure you have this handy just in case.
Also, just to be safe I reset the window limits and went through the steps to calibrate the e-Gas.
