Hi everyone,

I have been quiet for the past month as my children were kind enough to share their winter colds etc with me and I haven't been on top of things so apologies..:-(

Meanwhile though, what I thought was a one off has become a regular occurance.. my S-Type is driven weekends only really, but is doing some reasonable length journeys. Everything works and is as expected but after parking her up on Sunday night, by Wednesday the battery is flat as a pancake.

Is there any common culprits with the S-Type to cause this? I am sure it isnt interior lights such as door lights etc as the car is completely dark inside whilst parked up, the cigarette lighter sockets turn off with the ignition off.. I am assuming that includes the one in the armrest? I am open to any thoughts or ideas on this ... Many thanks, Steve

 

Just an additional comment.. the first time this happened it was a cold night and the original Jaguar fitted battery so I replaced the battery and that was about 2 months ago. Sometimes she has lasted a week without going flat before being started, but this has happened twice in a row now in as many weeks. There is no warning on the dash that it is not charging, and she runs perfectly (when battery not flat) so that is why I am leaning towards something draining it but I have no idea where to start.. my first thought is wondering if the power socket in the arm rest goes off when ignition off, I know the door lights are off all OK.. there is no sign of water ingress in the boot area, or anywhere to give issues.. I am very very open to ideas

 

I'm in the process of chasing something similar, although mine threw a code that got me looking.
My problem could well be connected to a failing battery itself but nothing conclusive as yet.
Cells do die in cold weather over here if the battery is not in top condition.
Have a look, might be of some use to you, especially the last post #44.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...3/#post1812561

 

Thanks for that Steve - I had seen your thread and noted we seem to have a similar issue. When I had an X-Type admittedly it didn't have all the electrics that the S-Type does, and it was used daily for commute, not just weekends but you could safely park it for two weeks, go on holiday and it would be fine.. last weekend we drove two short trips on Saturday, then a long trip about 50miles round trip on Sunday which I would expect (says me) to have left the battery charged, but this morning dead as a dodo.. what seems to be developing is ... flat battery - charge overnight, put back in car, reset everything (snore lol) and then use one weekend fine, start 20mins mid week all OK, use the next weekend all OK, then the following week dead. When OK the engine turns over normal speed on starter, all is OK but three days later dead.. which is why I am wondering if something is draining it

 

It was pointed out to me about possible battery voltage problems could have caused my fault to appear, which in turn got me going down the same route as you in the possible quiescent battery drain thing.
Since using the battery tender, I have had no re-occurance of the engine failsafe warning I originally got, which has led me to suspect the battery itself.
Subsequent scanning with IDS has shown nothing out of the ordinary.
Hence the reason I did the battery test yesterday.
Plus my battery is only 18 months old, if I believe the date written on it, but it was on the car when I bought it so.............
I'm just reading through this which Karl posted recently, might get some pointers from it
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...pe-faq-123983/

 

One last oddity as well - when I say flat I mean REALLY flat.. no alarm light flashing, remote control opening dead, absolutely flat.. I would expect with previous cars the battery going low, maybe slow starter turnover or just relay click but with the S-Type it's completely dead - like the parrot in the Monty Python sketch if you know it :-)

 

Love Monty Python
Is your car parked in a garage or outside?
The latest cold weather snap we just had killed my fathers battery during it, he has a 2015 Honda Jazz. Luckily his is still under it's 3 year warranty so got changed for nothing.
Another thing, does the light in the boot go off when the lid is closed?
You'll need to drop the rear seat down to see it, mine stayed on so I disconnected it.

 

I don't believe so but cannot say 100%.. I will double check that tonight. The car is parked outside on the road, but the original battery was swapped out about two and a half months ago for this, and then when the replacement did the same I got it swapped under warranty just in case so am sure it isn't the battery failing as such (well, it seems not let's put it that way) but yes I will be sticking the battery on charge overnight tonight and refitting it in the morning and will pop the back seat down and check the boot light.. there is a subtle difference in my household about Jaguars - I see a problem like this as something to figure out and fix and one of those things a pain but hey it happens, my better half sees it as the car failing on me and suddenly suspect of being no good - sigh.. she is completely different when out and about in the Jag though lol

 

Yours going that flat would definately indicate that something is draining it in my mind.
Any new toys added recently?
New radio, phone, mp3 player, stuff for the kids in the back?
Do you have SDD or IDS to plug in?

 

Nope nothing new added - which is a bit of a worry with this, and yes absolutely flat which I have never known before with any previous car - usually some kind of flicker at least but hey ho.. grin.

 

There is a tiny metal flap that slides back and forth to expose and then cover the keyhole on the ignition switch whenever the key is inserted or removed. Sometimes this flap sticks in place. Whenever that happens, it becomes a well-known battery-drainer. Get some graphite powder made for lubricating locks, brush a small amount on your key, then insert and remove your key in the ignition switch. Repeat multiple times, and be sure to wipe any residual graphite powder off of your key before you pocket it....

Let us know if this action resolves your issue....

 

Thanks guys, I will get the battery out and charged up tonight then lubricate the ignition flap and check the boot light.. it's at times like this that I wish the battery was easier to get in and out lol mind you if I had a driveway it would be even better :-)

I will let you guys know if either of the above seem to be the issue - it will be a couple of weeks before I know for sure, I suspect :-(

 

Yes!

(Don't be tempted to use oil - whether WD40 or whatever - as it just causes a sticky goo which will be even more problematic at some point.)

 

When I had an X-Type the flap sticking just seemed to disable the alarm remote - I know the S-Type is more complex but the keyfob is working fine each time I lock the car suggesting not the flap if it has the same system as the X-Type?

 

Don't know.

I found with my car I can even leave the key indefinitely in the ignition and it does NOT flatten the battery.

However, that flap has been known to cause trouble. (Which conflicts with what occurs with my car, I know and can't really explain - sorry.)

With a drain I'd go looking for which circuit(s) etc as per the various threads on this - sadly a rather painful and time-consuming process.

 

Steve, you should add this little bit of info to your current epic thread about your suspect battery.

Also, see post #10 in this thread about a similar situation with the trunk lights. This is on an '02, but I think the principle is the same on later models. I'm pretty sure the RECM will still think the trunk is open even with the bulbs removed, and may not let normal sleep mode happen:

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...5/#post1812706

 

Here you go, from the How-To section:


https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...-drain-123535/

 

I forgot to add something important about chasing down a parasitic drain. Even though it sounds really bad to have your battery go deader than a Norwegian Blue parrot (What beautiful plumage!) within three days, for troubleshooting that's a good thing.

Instead of chasing after some teensy rogue trickle of electrons, you've got a much better chance of success. Rather than hunting for an elusive needle in a haystack, don't despair because you're looking for a sumo wrestler at a tea party. Or maybe a bull in a china shop. Perhaps a mountain in the middle of a prairie. Or a Prius at a country/western bar. Well, you get the drift.

Keep us posted. No joining the Unresolved Thread Originator Club...

 

Hi Guys,

Just a very brief update on things.. charged the battery overnight all OK and refitted it this morning. I found the earth strap had worked a little loose (probably with all the battery changes) so tightened that up, and then using some graphite lubricated the ignition switch shutter.

Car started fine as expected and I noticed on turning off, that the handbrake light came on nice and bright and thinking back I am 75% sure that has not been coming on every time I shut down recently.

I have checked the boot lights and they are definitely going off when the boot is shut (could never have checked that so easily on the X-Type as the back seat was fixed :-))

Sooo it may be resolved, but over the next week or so I will follow the PDF on quiescent currents and see what I find.

Whatever happened to old cars where off was off with the alarm automatically switched on? lol Why on earth does the car need to be awake for an hour when parked? sigh.. Just glad I now know, and yes this looks like another chapter of learning for me lol. I will keep this thread updated as I go.. but at this moment in time I genuinely do not remember the handbrake light coming on every time.. so maybe... :-)

What strikes me at this moment is how many things we just don't notice about our Jaguars, until we have to think back..

 

Just a comment but it does not matter if the trunk lights go out or not. In fact leave the trunk open to prove it to yourself?

The car should time out in about 45 minutes including shutting off any lights left on. If it does not then something is keeping it awake. Any switch that is activated during this sleep window will restart the shut down clock.

Do the trunk lights ever go out if the lid is left open?
.
.
.