Boxer X250 Vehicle Battery Replacement

[DartmoorPete]

Hi there!
The vehicle battery has "died" on my 2009 Autosleepers Nuevo Classic (Boxer X250) which I intend to replace next week - probably with a 020 Varta 110ah unit. I saw a great post by forum member "Techno" on this subject (back in 2014)which shows how to do it but I have a few additional questions that I hope he or someone else might be able to answer for me:-

1) I note it is a good idea to maintain current whilst the battery is being changed (to preserve Radio Codes etc) and that Techno used a "Sterling BtoB" - whatever that is! I have a spare 12v leisure battery - if I connected this (using jump leads) to the +ve and -ve terminals under the bonnet during the battery change process, would that work OK?

2) Techno showed how the two screws holding the red plastic tags (he called it a doobery!) need to be removed before disconnecting the +ve apparatus from the battery. Do I need to make sure the new battery has holes to accommodate these screws or are they self-tappers that should go into any new battery?

3) I assume our battery may have died due to previous owners not maintaining charge over winter months or whatever. To avoid this happening again I was thinking of permanently attaching a trickle feed charger to the under-bonnet +ve and -ve terminals throughout the winter months. I see Screwfix do a 1.5amp trickle charger. Do you think this would work OK?

Many thanks!!

Pete

 

[Richard n Ann]

Optimate 2 are the best trickle charger/maintainer. They just float at 13.4v which is now regarded as better than 13.8 and let the battery rest every half hour.

 

[HandyAndy]

As long as you dont short anything out then yes, attaching jump leads to somewhere will preserve battery power while you change the battery. Just dont let go of the disconnected battery cables or touch them on anything metal during the swap.
Would probably be best to attach jump leads away from where you are working to give you less worry about knocking into anything.
negative cable onto a chunky part of the engine /gearbox and positive cable on to the fat red cable on the starter motor. That should keep them well out of the way.
But the fact you have a hab battery on board it might be easier to just run a jumper wire across the volt sensing relay. To effectively connect hab and stater batteries together(again making sure when you disconnect cab battery, not to let cables touch anything metal or touch together.

a lot less hassle to just find the radio code and not worry about it though ??

 

[SandraL]

Item 2, yes the battery will need those 2 holes. Basically a plastic plug goes into the hole and a screww goes into the plug, expanding plug to grip the battery. With the extra cable and fuses this stops too much tugging on the battery post.
Dont suggest a battery without them and screwing into case.

 

[hchris]

Have a look at
eBay item number:
252731277211 £99.19 with delivery
For a Varta silver dynamic
From Tayna

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[Vipar]

Negative off FIRST

Negative on LAST

 

[berni109]

As long as u have the radio codes I would just disconnect as Vipar says.
No power so nothing to spark or short out.
Used to remove my battery for a few months over winter - never had a problem.

 

[Deneb]

The best method is to take all required tools into the cab and remove the floor covering in preparation. Make sure the ignition is off and remove the key, then shut all of the doors and wait at least 3 minutes, which allows all the ECUs to shut down correctly to low power mode.

Then you can disconnect the battery, negative first, positive last. Shield the cable clamps to prevent them electrically contacting the battery or any metalwork whilst removing and refitting.

Once the new battery is in, refit the battery cables in reverse order (positive first, negative last) with the doors still closed. Wait at least 10 seconds then switch on the headlight switch before turning on the ignition.

It may sound like overkill, but it should avoid any problems with spiked or corrupted ECUs, which the SRS ECU in particular seems fairly prone to and is often blamed on incorrect battery disconnection or jump starting procedures.

If you find it easier, you can of course open the passenger door to swap the batteries once the cables have been removed, but close all the doors again and make sure you're back in the cab before refitting the power cables

 

[Camping Gaza]

The best method is...

Bang on there Deneb, Did exactly as you described when fitting my tow bar electrics, all I had to do was re do the date and time on the radio. I found the info in the boxer manual.

 

[DBK]

I didn't lose the battery codes on our 2013 Ducato when the battery was changed. I had it done at the Plymouth Battery Centre on the Faraday Mill Industrial Estate. They will price match any battery you find on line and do all the work. Can't recommend them enough if you live in this area, which from your username you do.

My van has solar panels and a BatteryMaster which keeps the vehicle battery charged when the vehicle is not in use.

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[Deneb]

In newer vans the radio is programmed to the vehicle and carries out security checks through the canbus when it's switched on, so the old code system is redundant. I think the OP's van may be too old for that to apply though.

 

[mitzimad]

my 08 fiat ducato had no radio code

 

[joka250]

The best method is to take all required tools into the cab and remove the floor covering in preparation. Make sure the ignition is off and remove the key, then shut all of the doors and wait at least 3 minutes, which allows all the ECUs to shut down correctly to low power mode.

Then you can disconnect the battery, negative first, positive last. Shield the cable clamps to prevent them electrically contacting the battery or any metalwork whilst removing and refitting.

Once the new battery is in, refit the battery cables in reverse order (positive first, negative last) with the doors still closed. Wait at least 10 seconds then switch on the headlight switch before turning on the ignition.

It may sound like overkill, but it should avoid any problems with spiked or corrupted ECUs, which the SRS ECU in particular seems fairly prone to and is often blamed on incorrect battery disconnection or jump starting procedures.

If you find it easier, you can of course open the passenger door to swap the batteries once the cables have been removed, but close all the doors again and make sure you're back in the cab before refitting the power cables

When changing batteries on a modern vehicle as you say no such thing as overkill.

 

[hchris]

My battery was disconnected for 2 weeks when we rebuilt the gearbox had no problems when reconnected.