Battery......

[Ssom]

My Jetta has a irritating and very recurring problem...The battery keeps going flat!!!!! Last week I discovered the car had a flat battery, so I jump-started it and let it charge, but then today I came to find the battery had died again!!!!

Is there a problem with the battery??? Is it just old and needs replacing??? Or is the acid level low???

[Steel]

if its the original battery, that means its 12 years old and needs replacing. If its new enough, they usually fall within a warranty, so if that's the case try getting a new battery out of waranty. If it still keeps dying, it could be any host of electrical problems.

[Ssom]

Originally posted by Steel
if its the original battery, that means its 12 years old and needs replacing. If its new enough, they usually fall within a warranty, so if that's the case try getting a new battery out of waranty. If it still keeps dying, it could be any host of electrical problems.

Yeah just as I thought.....though if it keeps up then it is clearly the altenator that is the problem, but cheers anyway.


Next question, do I HAVE to use a 12v battery made by VW or can I just use any old 12v????

[454Casull]

Any 12V will do. Preferably a high-quality one, though.

[enginerd]

The best of the best is the Optima brand. Be prepared to spend over 200$ if you go that route. Otherwise, 30~50$ is the norm.

[sciguyjim]

Some shops, such as Kmart w/Exide batteries, will sell old stock first to get rid of it. This happened to me several times. When the weather turned cold the batteries would die with little warning that anything was wrong. Being under warranty, Kmart would replace the battery with another no questions asked. It wasn't worth the hassle though. I switched to Interstate batteries and never had anymore problems. Try to buy the battery from a company that makes and sells their own batteries (such as Interstate.)

[SaabJohan]

Tudor also make a battery with the same technology as the Optima batteries (Tudor is a part of the Exide group). Then there is a brand called Reactor, but these are mostly for race cars / high performance cars, these batteries are also even more expensive than Optima batteries.

But your problem doesn't have to be caused by the battery or even the alternator. Sometimes faults on the electrical system can lead to that something lies and draw power from the battery at all times.

VW doesn't make their own batteries, they buy them and put their logo on.

[Ssom]

Well guys, took it to teh garage down the road......Turns out there is nothing wrong with the battery, the real problem is a fault with the light in the boot, which stayed on all the time and drained the battery I took the bulb out and I continue to enjoy the Jetta as the days go by