Hi,

After two weeks of snow, the battery was dead. I tried a jumper battery but its current was not strong enough for the starter. A passer by jumped me for $10 (karma is working, he lost his Antenna a minute later) and the car was good to go and could restart after running it for an hour.

I'm not very knowledgable about currents etc. Will this have enough muscle to start up my XJ8L if the battery dies? SpeedCharge 2/6/10 Amp Battery Charger and Maintainer with 50-Amp Battery Clips -
And, how do I check if my battery needs replacement? I don't think this is the alternator.

Thank you for your time!

 

The unit won't do much for a jump start. It is designed to maintain your battery at full charge. 10 amps won't crank the starter motor. Off the top of my head I think the group 95 size is correct for the vehicle and has cold cranking amps in the 600 to 650 range. The starter probably draws 250 to 300 on start up so 10 amps isn't going to do much.
You need to go to somewhere like Autozone/Carquest and have the battery load tested. That will determine its condition.

 

Thanks for the info! Will it extend the life of my battery?

 

Your battery is done. The fact that it was completely flat after 2 weeks indicates that it has very little capacity left, probably due to age-related sulphation. Even if the battery did have good capacity before it went flat, the very act of allowing a battery to run so low will usually herald its demise.

You have a pretty simple choice : buy a battery, or keep having to jump start the car, get sick of it, THEN buy a new battery.

Load testing it is a waste of time, as it can't test battery capacity.

 

Any recommendation for a battery? It's a 4.0 V8 engine, is 825 Cold cranking amps enough? Which of these would you choose: Batteries for Jaguar (XFR, XJ8L and XKR-S)

Thanks again!

 

Any of those is sufficient for your needs. Be sure that it can be vented and has a new venting kit with it.

 

I usually get the Wal Mart Everstart Max. Not because it is a particularly fantastic battery, but it is good enough, has a good warranty, and the price is right.

The best thing you can do for the battery life is keep a battery tender or similar on it, if the car tends to sit unused for more than a few days.

 

I recently had this ordeal as well, I went with Autocraft Gold battery Part No. 49H8, 900 CCA & haven't had an issue since.

http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/a...49h8/2130012-P

 

Here's the one I got recently :

EverStart Maxx Lead Acid Automotive Battery, Group Size H8 - Walmart.com

 

The vast majority of the batteries you will come across are made by the three big makers -- Johnson/ Exide/ Delphi. Johnson makes the Everstart and I believe the Advanced Gold ... I normally get the Bosch from Pepboys .. also a Johnson. I like the handles and it the larger CCA of the groups that fit. A couple times a year Bosch has a rebate and Pepboys does also - so it's a good price and warranty. Always check the CCA.

I don't purchase from Walmart.

The Jaguar battery is a common European size -- used by MB/ BMW/ Porsche. The OE is made in Spain and has a white case. My local dealer installs Interstate (per Jaguar corporate) ... also owned by Johnson.

 

I like the Autocraft Gold, last one lasted six years and probably was still good -- but I bought another only to find out it was the alternator. $169 at Advanced Auto Parts, or less with military and antique discounts./

 

A passer by filched $10 from you - thats alomost comical , and not I suspect what is meant by the American Dream....

 

One of the best regarded battery manufacturers for deep cycles is Deka/East Penn. If I was planning to keep the car for a long time, I'd consider a battery from them. As it is, I tend to keep cars for 3 years or so, so buy the cheapest decent battery with a 3 year warranty, which would be the Wal Mart.

 

just to throw in my .2 cents about the battery.

i had a weak battery manufactured date on it was from 2005! when i purchased my jaguar XJR. i was getting small problems here and there such as traction control and ABS lights coming on upon start up. and a longer slightly slower crank over upon cold starts. (about 5-7 seconds) my car is driven once or twice a day locally every week.

i took the battery to a local shop to get it tested under load it was going to 325ish amps. after sitting for about 4 days. they suggested getting a new battery.

looked around at a few places; and in all honesty the best deal i could find was at Walmart. a battery rated for 900cold cranking amps at 0 and 1000 at 32F its a MAXX-H8 (12/15 production date) battery. with a vent and cap. had them load test the new battery as well came to 924.

upon the new battery install. cold start ups (California weather) is a lot faster than before(about 3 seconds) and once driven start ups are instant. and no errors TC/ABS anymore!

the battery was 130 USD out the door with a three year replacement warranty and a 5 year protection warranty (i have no idea what that is).

 

"the battery was 130 USD out the door with a three year replacement warranty and a 5 year protection warranty (i have no idea what that is)."

That means they will replace the battery free for 3 years, and after that it is pro-rata. For example, if it fails after 4 years, that is 4 out of 5 years which is 80% of the expected lifetime, so you get 20% off a new battery.

 

....learn something new everyday loll thank you sir.

 

Years ago Deka was the go to battery for MB's ... especially the TD's ...they made the best batteries. My family had a farm not too far from the plant ... Unfortunately, battery technology has come so far that the difference is not as great between brands.

I don't support Walmart ...