Diesel car battery
Hello,
i would like an answer to this Questions :
i have a diesel VW Passat 1900
when i start the car -it uses a lot of power from the battery
Questions :
- how many times can i start without leaving it running approx?
- how many km's must i run before it's fully charged - in a townlike environment - approx; or how long in time must it run
i would like an answer to this Questions :
i have a diesel VW Passat 1900
when i start the car -it uses a lot of power from the battery
Questions :
- how many times can i start without leaving it running approx?
- how many km's must i run before it's fully charged - in a townlike environment - approx; or how long in time must it run
SOLUTION
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ASKER
ok - i assume i start with a fully loaded battery
Malmensa, that looks like a logic answer - maybe you can back it up with a link to an article ?
thibault - my car dates from1996 - but that is not relevant; what is relevant is the rest you posted - tx also
if someone has more info on this, plse post
Malmensa, that looks like a logic answer - maybe you can back it up with a link to an article ?
thibault - my car dates from1996 - but that is not relevant; what is relevant is the rest you posted - tx also
if someone has more info on this, plse post
1996, a good year for passats. Mines from 95. If your heater isn't working I can probably help with that :7)
I have a Golf with the same engine. So can add a couple of pieces of advice. Yes, the diesel engine requires a stronger battery than the gas version. One reason is that before even starting the engine, it has to be able to warm the glow plugs.
The answer to both of your questions will depend on how well the battery is getting charged. So hard to say.
I will tell you this... It sounds like you are trying to get by with a bad battery or something like that. Piece of advice, if your battery is not accepting a charge, that is hard on your alternator. If you keep using a battery that is not working well, you are going to wear out your alternator.
The answer to both of your questions will depend on how well the battery is getting charged. So hard to say.
I will tell you this... It sounds like you are trying to get by with a bad battery or something like that. Piece of advice, if your battery is not accepting a charge, that is hard on your alternator. If you keep using a battery that is not working well, you are going to wear out your alternator.
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ASKER
i am not trying to do anything - the Q is only because i'm curious
i get differen t opinions : Malmensa says 20 sec (that's very short - unbelievable), and bill says 2 hours idling for a truck; but mine is not a truck, so difficult to compare
as for how many starts Thibault says 20 minutes - that should be 30 or more times? that looks like a lot to me
and my car is fine - it only has about 60.000 kms, and is used for about 10 kms per month now
i get differen t opinions : Malmensa says 20 sec (that's very short - unbelievable), and bill says 2 hours idling for a truck; but mine is not a truck, so difficult to compare
as for how many starts Thibault says 20 minutes - that should be 30 or more times? that looks like a lot to me
and my car is fine - it only has about 60.000 kms, and is used for about 10 kms per month now
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i wonder if there are no articles or studies to be found on this matter
the Q should have arised quite often i think, with so many users?
the Q should have arised quite often i think, with so many users?
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"Older cars could only reach this voltage when the engine speed went above 2000 rpm. At what point that changed I do not know, and it might not apply to all modern cars either."
That time was a LONG time ago. Cars once used generators. The availability of cheap and reliable silicon diodes made alternators possible. Alternators produce most of their rated output even at idle. The switch to alternators began in 1960 with generators becoming obsolete by 1970. Unless you are restoring classic cars or something, you are unlikely to run into a generator.
That time was a LONG time ago. Cars once used generators. The availability of cheap and reliable silicon diodes made alternators possible. Alternators produce most of their rated output even at idle. The switch to alternators began in 1960 with generators becoming obsolete by 1970. Unless you are restoring classic cars or something, you are unlikely to run into a generator.
I was speaking about alternators.
>>> "Alternators produce most of their rated output even at idle" <<<
That was my point.
>>> "Alternators produce most of their rated output even at idle" <<<
That was my point.
Yeah, generally, right after a cold start, an engine will run for a while at a higher idle. An alternator will put out maybe 60% of its rated output at a slow idle, and close enough to 100% at a fast idle.
Generators, on the other hand put out pretty much NO current at idle, on such cars it is possible to flatten the battery during traffic jams, if a lot of load was applied. (Headlights, demisters)
Generators, on the other hand put out pretty much NO current at idle, on such cars it is possible to flatten the battery during traffic jams, if a lot of load was applied. (Headlights, demisters)
ASKER
does anybody know of articles about this?
Quite a few modern cars shut the engine down and crank again at every traffic light. These systems work just fine, and don't suffer from battery depletion problems.
In a warm country maybe, but in my cold country where heated windscreens, heater fans, and headlights have to be used on roads that are congested and riddled with slow-sequenced traffic lights, where the headlights and blowers are running off battery power rather than the alternator when a start-stop equipped car has gone into "stop" mode at the 7th set of traffic lights over a short distance of travel at very low revs.
I noticed the difference in my battery's power during Winter over my short but congested commute until I had a mechanic disable this feature. I did this because it was a pain in the ass and isn't quite as instantaneous as the manufacturers would have you believe, not because I was worried about flattening the battery. It wasn't enough to worry me with a battery that was in good condition, but my guess would be that I would have had more difficulty restarting the car if it had an older battery in it.
I noticed the difference in my battery's power during Winter over my short but congested commute until I had a mechanic disable this feature. I did this because it was a pain in the ass and isn't quite as instantaneous as the manufacturers would have you believe, not because I was worried about flattening the battery. It wasn't enough to worry me with a battery that was in good condition, but my guess would be that I would have had more difficulty restarting the car if it had an older battery in it.
My son's new car has that stop/start feature. I hate it.
It is a diesel engine though. I'll have to ask him about the heater and the lights, but the engine certainly starts multiple times.
Perhaps battery technology has improved so that they can charge faster from a higher output alternator without boiling or bending the plates.
Or else the car computer can tell if the battery is getting depleted and disable the feature itself until it's charged up again.
It is a diesel engine though. I'll have to ask him about the heater and the lights, but the engine certainly starts multiple times.
Perhaps battery technology has improved so that they can charge faster from a higher output alternator without boiling or bending the plates.
Or else the car computer can tell if the battery is getting depleted and disable the feature itself until it's charged up again.
One of the drivers at my work has a car with start-stop. On his particular car he has discovered that if he has the blower fan running on the 3rd (of 4) blow speed settings, the start-stop doesn't kick in and stop the engine when idling. I would imagine that the starter motor would wear out faster than normal with so many starts, or at least the coupling probably will. I don't know anybody who has owned a start-stop enabled car for longer than a couple of years, so this is just an educated guess. a few years ago I read about one car manufacturer's failed attempts to use a different technology to restart the engine, by stopping it with one piston at full compression or something like that so that it spun the flywheel when the driver pushed in the clutch to start the engine instead of using the starter motor.
I remember the flywheel one. It span the flywheel up using the energy from braking so you probably stopped easier.
I wonder how much extra fuel you used dragging a heavy flywheel around with you.
Would cornering be difficult if it was spinning?
What would happen to it in an accident? If the wheel shattered you would have sharp bits flying everywhere, or if it found its way out of the car whole how far would it go?
I wonder how much extra fuel you used dragging a heavy flywheel around with you.
Would cornering be difficult if it was spinning?
What would happen to it in an accident? If the wheel shattered you would have sharp bits flying everywhere, or if it found its way out of the car whole how far would it go?
Do you remember gyroscopes that you spun up with a length of string? I have a feeling that would be the effect ;-)
They fitted a rotary engine to a motorbike back in the 70's and people complained of difficulty turning in one direction.
It does seem that helpful articles are tricky to find. A Google search for { how long to recharge car battery } brought many links, but the vast majority were essentially just like this thread. One article that seemed useful: How long does it take to charge a battery? I've used batteries-faq.com before for some tech info about batteries, so it's at least been around for a while.
Certainly everywhere you look, you can find reinforcement of the idea that it depends on battery age, battery type and characteristics, electrical circuits condition, alternator characteristics, current draws and other factors.
Certainly everywhere you look, you can find reinforcement of the idea that it depends on battery age, battery type and characteristics, electrical circuits condition, alternator characteristics, current draws and other factors.
ASKER
i've asked VW this Q - let's see if they answer it
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"Yes, the diesel engine requires a stronger battery than the gas version. One reason is that before even starting the engine, it has to be able to warm the glow plugs."
Also, Diesels run a far higher compression ratio, meaning more effort to crank. 12:1 for a non-turbo petrol engine is a pretty high ratio, while 15:1 is low for diesels.
Also, Diesels run a far higher compression ratio, meaning more effort to crank. 12:1 for a non-turbo petrol engine is a pretty high ratio, while 15:1 is low for diesels.
ASKER
all the above is beside the quesyion and not needed
ASKER
no real answer, but good info
youguys refresh my memory....
youguys refresh my memory....
Thank you nobus
In Diesel Engine car battery capacity(AH) is higher in comparison of Petrol engine. If you car takes more time to start then it might be battery cause. Drive at Least 10km daily and let them start 15 minutes for fully charge.
"how many times can i start without leaving it running approx?" - don't understand the question.
In answer to your second question, it entirely depends on the current level of charge the battery has.
If it's totally flat or nearly so, you'd be better of using a charger to charge the battery up again, if it's not flat, but just partially discharged, then perhaps just a few hours?