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Have to jump start every day.

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4K views 12 replies 8 participants last post by  GewOne  
#1 ·
2019 SUZUKI IGNIS SZ-T DUAL JET 90 1242CC 5DR
I have to jump start just about every day. Luckily I have a
12v Portable Car Jump Starter/Air Compressor.
I don't drive many miles and it first wouldn't start last xmas, but I had a small LED xmas tree plugged in to usb port but it goes off when ignition off so thought it maybe somehow was to blame. Called the AA man and he said battery had only 12 V but some cars need 12-13V to start. I removed the xmas tree just in case. I took car for a short run and it started ok next morning and was fine until this year. It has done it several times this winter. Had to jump start yesterday morning and lunch time, so went for a 40 minute run. Now this morning, same thing, I took it for a 1 1/2 hour run today, so will see if it does it in the morning.
It has only done 2010 miles but all my previous cars did the same miles and I haven't had a problem before. Has anyone had a problem with ignis battery?
 
#4 ·
You either have a defective battery, a defective charging system, something left on and draining the battery, or, you're not driving far enough, often enough to keep the battery charged.

I'm ruling out the fourth option as I feel a forty minute drive with a functional charge system should be enough to fully charge the battery, it's under warranty, take it in and have them check - they can load test the battery to eliminate the first possibility & test the charge system to eliminate the second.
 
#5 ·
With the drive to reduce emissions and improve fuel economy, the Ignis, in common with many other recent cars has a “smart” alternator. Traditionally alternators have been voltage controlled. A well charged battery will sit at around 12.4 volts and when the engine is started the alternator controls the system voltage at around 14.2 volts. A smart alternator uses other inputs to vary the output voltage. Following a cold start, for example, the alternator can whack out 17 volts to rapidly charge the battery whilst at other times the output will be down to around 12 volts. Because of the ability to boost output voltage, cars with smart alternators are well suited to short journeys where a traditional alternator would struggle. You cannot use the traditional methods for checking the battery and charging system with a smart alternator. This does unfortunately happen and batteries / alternators have been miss-diagnosed and wrongly condemned. Testing a car with a smart alternator requires special equipment including an oscilloscope. Consequently leave diagnosis to the dealer or a well regarded auto electrical outlet!
 
#6 ·
A modern battery is a Lead Calcium battery, not the old type Lead Acid battery.
An older car with Lead Acid battery can be recharged by driving the car for a while.
A Calcium battery should be discharged and then charged up by a proper battery charger that is designed for just this job. An older Lead Acid charger is no good, neither is the old fashioned way of driving the car around for a while going to do much good.
If the battery has indeed gone 'flat' and you jump start it, then drive around, the alternator will not put much more than a surface charge into the battery.
You really need a dedicated charger for modern Calcium batteries. Some of these proper chargers have about 7 'steps' that they go through to charge the modern battery.
The typical Lead Acid charging voltage is between 2.15 volts per cell (12.9 volts for a 6 cell battery) and 2.35 volts per cell (14.1 volts for a 6 cell battery).
The ideal charging voltage for a Calcium battery is 14.8V for the recombination process to properly occur.
Maybe you need something like this...
MXS 3.8 UK
 
#7 ·
A modern battery is a Lead Calcium battery, not the old type Lead Acid battery.
An older car with Lead Acid battery can be recharged by driving the car for a while.
A Calcium battery should be discharged and then charged up by a proper battery charger that is designed for just this job. An older Lead Acid charger is no good, neither is the old fashioned way of driving the car around for a while going to do much good.
If the battery has indeed gone 'flat' and you jump start it, then drive around, the alternator will not put much more than a surface charge into the battery.
You really need a dedicated charger for modern Calcium batteries. Some of these proper chargers have about 7 'steps' that they go through to charge the modern battery.
The typical Lead Acid charging voltage is between 2.15 volts per cell (12.9 volts for a 6 cell battery) and 2.35 volts per cell (14.1 volts for a 6 cell battery).
The ideal charging voltage for a Calcium battery is 14.8V for the recombination process to properly occur.
Maybe you need something like this...
MXS 3.8 UK
A calcium battery is still a lead acid battery but using calcium rather than antimony in the pates. Conventional lead acid batteries are still a big seller. Calcium batteries are usually sealed and are maintenance free but need a higher charging voltage than a conventional battery. As noted above, a special charger is needed for a calcium battery but even then, DIY type chargers will fail to start the charging process on a heavily discharged battery. In normal circumstances, a smart alternator will whack up the system voltage after starting so that the battery starting load is replenished within a few minutes,
 
This post has been deleted
#9 ·
The even more modern batteries are LiPo and they don't like heat. Where do they install these LiPo batteries in the Hybrid?

As for the OP's issue, I'd suggest going to a Suzuki service counter and talk to a Tech person. They will be up to date on anything if it is a common issue if Suzuki has released a world wide Service Communication, as issues get reported on a world-wide basis and the Maker does investigations to remedy faults.
 
#11 ·
They will be up to date on anything if it is a common issue if Suzuki has released a world wide Service Communication, as issues get reported on a world-wide basis and the Maker does investigations to remedy faults.
Usually they'll claim never to have seen the problem previously or claim "they're all like that". Admittedly I've only had few dealings with a couple of local Suzuki dealers but I wasn't impressed.