I wrote in an earlier thread about my battery going dead and having issues now I never had before. My passenger seat won't go back and forth (although I can hear the motor), the steering wheel no longer collapses, the passenger door doesn't automatically lock, and the "no seatbelt" light doesn't come on, my windshield wipers came on thier own etc. I charged the battery for two days, it started up and drove it 200 trouble-free miles. I took the car to have the battery tested and it reads(not running) 12.8V but said "Needs charge". I'm sure I need a new battery but am perplexed because all the charts state 12.8 is 100%. The Autozone tech said "something else maybe going on"(what ever that means) But, to the point, I'm going to replace the battery. I've read a few threads regarding the venting issue as well as the "resets". Can anyone recommend what brand battery I should buy and what my reset procedure will be?
Appreciate all the great advice I get here.
Thanks

 

The 'reset' procedure is simply touching the negative cable removed from the battery to the positive cable. That drains all the little electrons hiding in the many capacitors in the many systems on these cars.

As far as batteries are concerned the US is down to two manufacturers even though there are many brand labels. Buy one of the better VENTED battery on sale.

 

A US car shouldn't have to reset the radio code, but check the manual to be safe. You will have to reset your stations. You will also have to reset the windows on a convertible.

The battery reset is good advice, although you might get to skip it if the battery is to long enough. I'd do it just to be safe. It will solve some of the random issues once the new battery is in.

 

A number of us have purchased the vented Bosch battery from Pep Boys. Reasonably-priced and it has worked well in my wife's XK8 since September 2012. Check the Pep Boys website for battery coupons - they typically have a $20 and sometimes $30 coupon that brings the final cost down to less than $100 with core trade-in....

 

The battery must have a Vent (circled in red) at the +ve end next to the bulkhead:



The black plastic vent tube pushes onto this and passes through a grommet in the floor to vent beneath the vehicle.

As well as being the correct capacity, the battery should be the same or as near as the same physical dimensions as the original so the clamp holds it securely.

I expect a 'hard reset' could resolve a lot of the weird electrical issues you have listed.

Graham

 

Mine's from AutoZone, they had a direct replacement with vent tube. 3 yrs and okay. If I knew I was moving to a place where I couldn't keep the car on a battery tender, an Optima may have been a better choice. No vent/corrosion worries and less self-discharge while the car sits for 5 months in the heat.

 

By hard reset, do you mean disconnecting the negative cable and touching the positive terminal? and if so, is the positive still connected to the battery and for how long?
thanks again

 

Either the Positive cable or the post with the cable attached for only a moment. Those little electrons move pretty fast to escape.

 

Just so it's absolutely clear:

1. disconnect the negative cable
2. touch it to the positive terminal which remains connected
3. refit the negative cable

Shorting the battery can be spectacular!

Graham

 

I will be replacing the battery. Once I put in the new one, and perform the "reset", besides the windows on my convertible, and the drivers and passenger memory settings, is there any other reprogramming I must do? I've read someplace here about the alarm reset (key fob) etc.
Thanks again

 

There is no alarm reset needed if the doors are unlocked when you replace the battery. If they happen to be locked and the alarm goes off simply unlock the car with the key fob.

 

Done! Although I was waiting for fireworks when I touched the cables (which didn't happen) - everything is back to normal, . Thanks again

 

Good to hear it was a success.

Doing a 'hard reset' puts fuel trims back to default values. They will adapt again as you drive but you may notice some performance issues at first.

Graham