Jump starting 05 ducato (1 Viewer)

estcres

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Oct 9, 2007
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I went to the vehicle this morning to give it a run as it has been lying idle for about 3 weeks, only to find the battery had gone flat and needs recharging.

Had great difficulty in connecting the jump leads as the + terminal seems to be set a long way under the bonnet, eventually the jump lead clip broke so had to give up on that idea.

If I disconnect the battery to bring home to put on a charger will I have to re-programme my radio (factory fitted) and the vehicles immobilliser system etc?.

I cannot recharge the battery on site as there is no mains power.
 

American Dream

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Aug 20, 2007
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I went to the vehicle this morning to give it a run as it has been lying idle for about 3 weeks, only to find the battery had gone flat and needs recharging.

Had great difficulty in connecting the jump leads as the + terminal seems to be set a long way under the bonnet, eventually the jump lead clip broke so had to give up on that idea.

If I disconnect the battery to bring home to put on a charger will I have to re-programme my radio (factory fitted) and the vehicles immobilliser system etc?.

I cannot recharge the battery on site as there is no mains power.

Do you have another battery that you can temporarily substitute for the original?

You don't mention how old the battery is?

If it's older than 3 years it might be a good idea to replace it as it'll surely fail in the next year or so..
 
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estcres

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Do you have another battery that you can temporarily substitute for the original?

I have another battery but would still have to disconnect the existing one to connect up the new one and that is the problem, would I loose all my stored information?.

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American Dream

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Aug 20, 2007
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I have another battery but would still have to disconnect the existing one to connect up the new one and that is the problem, would I loose all my stored information?.

Not if you link across it with wires first + to+ and - to -....Beware DO NOT TRY TO START OR PULL ANY CURRENT FROM THE BATTERY WHILE LINKED LIKE THIS.

This is pure backup voltage only.

Charge the battery....refit....disconnect the backup battery being VERY careful not to short any wire out.

I guess...If the battery is original fit item....I'd be looking to replace it for next season...for peace of mind.
 
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pappajohn

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Not if you link across it with wires first + to+ and - to -....Beware DO NOT TRY TO START OR PULL ANY CURRENT FROM THE BATTERY WHILE LINKED LIKE THIS.

This is pure backup voltage only.

Charge the battery....refit....disconnect the backup battery being VERY careful not to short any wire out.

a much simplified and safer version is to make a lead with a fag lighter plug on each end to plug into both your car and van sockets (with the van ignition on if it needs it on to be live).
this will backfeed the electrics on the van.
simply remove the flat battery and fit the charged one.

the heater glow plugs may draw some power but only for a few seconds which wont hurt the wires.

this way theres no chance of a wire getting dislodged when trying to connect/disconnect to the + battery post.

make doubley sure the live, +, pos wire doesnt contact any other parts....slip a plastic bag over it when its taken off the battery and remove the socket to socket link before you try to start the van.

the immobiliser shouldnt need resetting but the radio probably will if the battery to battery connection is lost.

i presume you dont have the radio code ?
 
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clarify

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Jul 19, 2009
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Hi When working at ford refurbishment place batteries always flat and some models had terminals you could not reach but they had connection on engine itself not on terminal .Dont know if yours has the same . Ray

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American Dream

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a much simplified and safer version is to make a lead with a fag lighter plug on each end to plug into both your car and van sockets (with the van ignition on if it needs it on to be live).
this will backfeed the electrics on the van.
simply remove the flat battery and fit the charged one.

the heater glow plugs may draw some power but only for a few seconds which wont hurt the wires.

this way theres no chance of a wire getting dislodged when trying to connect/disconnect to the + battery post.

make doubley sure the live, +, pos wire doesnt contact any other parts....slip a plastic bag over it when its taken off the battery and remove the socket to socket link before you try to start the van.

the immobiliser shouldnt need resetting but the radio probably will if the battery to battery connection is lost.

i presume you dont have the radio code ?

There lies the problem John....

If the ignition NEEDS to be switched on...there will be some reasonable current flowing.In the case of Glow Plugs this could be substantial current and would require reasonably thick wires to accomodate this Surge.

I work on the assumption the ignition does not need to be switched on and therefore there only needs to be a backup voltage to feed to those items mentioned.

I understand the concern regarding the possible accidental disconnection or short circuit to the chassis but I assumed the Writer of this thread already appreciated this and would ensure the terminals were sufficiently insulated to prevent this.
 
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pappajohn

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There lies the problem John....

If the ignition NEEDS to be switched on...there will be some reasonable current flowing.

I work on the assumption the ignition does not need to be switched on and therefore there only needs to be a backup voltage to feed to those items mentioned.

agreed steve but ducato pos battery teminals are notoriously hard to get to and they are posts not blades so to connect a wire, and ensure it stays there, is difficult to say the least.
providing nothing is turned on, lights etc, the only real power drain will be the heater plugs and for 20 seconds the wires should cope.
could always pull the plug relay. its only sat on the bulkhead.

of course, with a radio code it wouldnt matter anyway.
 

American Dream

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agreed steve but ducato pos battery teminals are notoriously hard to get to and they are posts not blades so to connect a wire, and ensure it stays there, is difficult to say the least.
providing nothing is turned on, lights etc, the only real power drain will be the heater plugs and for 20 seconds the wires should cope.
could always pull the plug relay. its only sat on the bulkhead.

of course, with a radio code it wouldnt matter anyway.

True....

I guess the question would be...

Is it time to replace the Battery?

I'm beginning to get the feeling this is the original item....

05 to 09....? I don't expect any more than 4 years max out of my batteries.

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estcres

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flat in 3 weeks doesnt sound good.
probably will need replacing soon.

I agree, the battery may need replacing which means disconnecting the existing one and connecting the new one. which refers back to my origonal question, will I loose my various codes etc?
 

pappajohn

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I agree, the battery may need replacing which means disconnecting the existing one and connecting the new one. which refers back to my origonal question, will I loose my various codes etc?

only the radio code.
the immobiliser will be ok.

if you have the vehicle handbook it gives more detail

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lookback

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Nov 30, 2007
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I had the vehicle battery on my 2004 Fiat Ducato replaced 3 months ago. I agree that it is a bit of a bugger to get to so, I went to my nearest tyre/battery shop and asked them to replace it (no additional charge!) with a like for like vehicle battery.

The MH has an imobiliser and a radio with a removable face plate. The exchange of the batteries went quite painlessly and the MH started first time and the radio worked.

Suggest you check to see if your radio has a security code.

Ian

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derekfaeberwick

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Dec 1, 2007
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has the radio got a removable front or is it standard fit.

removable fronts/head dont usually have a code.



Sorry, disagree, removable radio will have a memory, not a removable front panel.

Old tech I know, but I do prefer a wireless to a radio.Link Removed
 

Beachbum

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Sep 13, 2007
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I went to the vehicle this morning to give it a run as it has been lying idle for about 3 weeks, only to find the battery had gone flat and needs recharging.

Had great difficulty in connecting the jump leads as the + terminal seems to be set a long way under the bonnet, eventually the jump lead clip broke so had to give up on that idea.

If I disconnect the battery to bring home to put on a charger will I have to re-programme my radio (factory fitted) and the vehicles immobilliser system etc?.

I cannot recharge the battery on site as there is no mains power.


I agree it is difficult to attach the + lead to the battery. Same as my Ducato. It can be done. I have done it several times. Try to get a grip with the edge of the terminal. With a bit of patience you should succeed.:thumb:
 

lunarman

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Escres,

There is away of charging the battery in situ if you have a generator.

Connect the gen to the electric hook up and select the vehicle battery on the 12v control panel in the van. The on board charger will then charge the vehicle battery. A couple of hours may give enough to start.

Lunarman

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nicklb

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Three weeks to flat is not good at all, try your recovery they will help, also it might be worth looking at what has drained it so quickly, we have a 05 ducato, just been up to it after six weeks started first time and battery still full, it does not have a alarm just the factory imobilisor and the stereo looses its memory every time it is switched off but it is one with the rev camera and sat nav screen not the original
 

JohnH

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I agree it is difficult to attach the + lead to the battery. Same as my Ducato. It can be done. I have done it several times. Try to get a grip with the edge of the terminal. With a bit of patience you should succeed.:thumb:

I used to work in a motorhome dealers doing the handovers, bit of driving etc. To overcome the problem of connecting to the positive terminal on Sevel made vehicles we used to carry a 14mm nut to screw on the last couple of threads on the terminal. You only need to finger tighten up the nut and it gives enough room to connect crocodile clips onto.
Hope this helps. I still carry the nut with me in my tool box.
 

froghopper

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jump start

hi, had same problem, buy a heavy duty battery lead, fit one end direct to posative. run the other ebnd to front of bulkhead, and secure. make sure of course you insulate the live end very well. never a problem again, either to charge up, or jump start, even to use a compressor etc. i have a thick rubber cover and just slide it off as and when,,
works on all the 1996 ish onwards, good luck, froghopper:thumb::Doh:

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Chris Woods

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Jun 6, 2009
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Just had our battery replaced a couple of weeks ago on our late 2004 Ducato. Failed suddenly and without warning as it had been fine all summer and only parked a few weeks. It still had 12 volts and would charge up but couldn't deliver any power. I tried a mains heavy duty booster charger and it still couldn't turn the starter motor.
I found a local garage who would come out to home and fit a new one and they quoted me 20 quid more than I could buy a battery for, (99 quid locally) so I let them have the hassle!
In fact the expected problems, factory immobiliser and cobra alarm were no problem at all, although the alarm squeaked when the new battery was connected the remote worked fine immediately. They did nothing to keep power on.
They did however have to dismantle the Cobra alarm sounder that had been bolted in the way and simply removing and refitting the battery took quite a while because of the insane :censored:2 positioning under the scuttle that even prevents the fluid being checked, so I'm pleased I let them do it.
 
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estcres

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Many thanks to everyone who has replied and given their advice, which as proved very useful.

Because of work I can't do anything else until Tuesday when I intend to take on board some of the advice and see if I can get the vehicle started again.

Can't think of anything that has been left switched on which could have drained the battery, could be the freezing weather conditions or it could be that the battery has just given up the ghost and needs to be replaced.

Will keep all you funsters up to date
 
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estcres

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Finally got the vehicle started by using the method recommended by Lunarman, (Many thanks) Plugged in the generator and had it running for over 3 hours which put enough charge into the battery to allow me to start up.

Took the vehicle for a 5 mile drive and restarted after parking up, everything seems to be in OK.

Going over to the park tomorrow to see if it starts again after a cold night, that'll let me know if it's the battery or something else.

Did a thorough check and cannot see anything left on which could have drained the battery, so it's either a knackered battery or the effects of the cold weather.

Thanks for everyone who gave advice and confirmed my views about the + terminal being a B*****D to get at.

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estcres

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Just thought I'd let you know the final outcome of this saga.

BATTERY DEAD, New one purchased from Kwik Fit fot £96 and before anyone goes on about RIP OFF BRITAIN, they are handy (literally 100yds away), had what I wanted on the shelf and I got a "FREE" mince pie.

I want to get one of those small solar panel chargers that fit into the Cigar Lighter Socket to trickle charge the battery so this won't happen again.

Has anyone got any experience of these items?
 

lunarman

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Before spending any money make sure that the cigar lighter is "live" with the ignition off otherwise the panel will be useless. I know that the cigar lighter on our van is only live when the ignition is on.

Lunarman
 

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