C4 killing batteries

[verdi]

Hi
Once you said "And lights are dimming and raising when increasing the throttle.." the meaning is that the voltage of the alternator is not stabilize. It seems to me that once you increasing the the throttle the voltage become too high and over time make a damege to the battery.
Simple test - turn the engine on and Check the voltage on the battery. Now increase the throttle and look if voltage increasing in the same time - If the answer is yes you should replace/repair your alternator.
Verdi

[CitroJim]

This thread may be of interest and may provide some guidance...

viewtopic.php?t=80846

[Marshy]

Hi. Thankyou for the reply.
When the engine is running the voltage is a stable 14.4v .. First thing every morning the voltage is 11.1v... I'm sure if I leave it for 2 days then I will have problems starting it.

[Marshy]

Does anybody know if there is a quick plug I can disconnect for the alternator to take it out of the equation.
Thanks. Phil.

[verdi]

As much as I understood the lights became stronger while increase thortlle - is'nt it?
in any case please measure the voltage as I've described before and look if the voltage become higher - If the voltage is 14.4v stabilize means the alternator is OK.
In this case you should go back to the baterry and what I think is the baterry discharge during the engine is off. any chance that any lamp, amplifier, alarm system or any electric consumer is staying on all the time?
If you have Ampermeter (at least for 10A) you can measure the current through the main cable of the baterry while the engine is off, so you can see the current consuption.

Verdi

[Marshy]

Hi thanks for the reply.
Yes the voltage in the car is a constant 14.4v ...I will check the amps and let you know.
Pretty sure nothing is left on. Everything is standard. I've just bought a battery isolater kit with a remote. I know it's not going to fix the issue but it'll certainly help with the battery life.. Something is definately draining the battery when locked up and asleep.

[bobins]

If you've still got enough enthusiasm to have a check, then start the engine and warm it up a bit then check for AC volts across the battery terminals with the engine running. Anything above 0.1 AC volts (100mV) is questionable and points towards the alternator being duff. However, if it reads below 0.05 V AC this does not necessarily mean that the alternator is good..... it's all just part of the diagnostics trail.

[Marshy]

Great thankyou, will give it a try.
Many thanks.
Phil.

[CitROeNALD]

I've had two c4 picassos from new. a 2015 1.6 e-HDI and my current 2018 Spacetourer 1.6 blue HDI.

One thing I have noticed about both is that the Picasso/Spacetourer seems to have a weak spot with their OEM spec of battery. They seem to be very pedantic about batteries and have a predilection to drain them if the car is only used lightly. Even after short periods of light use the Eco mode tends to come on earlier and earlier. This seems to escalate very quickly.

Regarding your issue, one thing someone picked up on was regarding the rating of the current battery installed. You said it was a 650A. Does that match what it specced for the car? Or have you installed an undersized/rated battery? If that is the case, along with the cold weather it could have dealt it a quick death blow.

Also, as far as I understand (I could be wrong) if a battery with a different rating is installed, does it not have to be properly registered with the ECU? If so, could that also have caused you a problem (assuming the above might be the case).

My own car is having battery issues at the moment. It's causing some very early Economy Mode warnings just before start-up, although cranking is never an issue. These vanish with a medium distance drive or with a top up charge from a smart charger, but after a few days of no driving the warning comes back. The battery seems to be hovering around 12.45v after a few days, but like I said, never has a problem cranking. The cold weather may have made things worse.

Ideally I need to take it off and give it a reconditioning charge of some sort.

I'm also concerned the alternator is working overtime trying to keep it topped up. I get a reading in of of around 15v just after start-up and dropping a bit to just under 15 after a short drive. So I am watching this thread with interest. I may also try a few of the tests @bobins suggested. the current battery was replaced by my Citroen garage just over 1.5 years ago I think, but the quality/robustness seems lower than the OEM brand as it is already giving me issues.

I wonder if I have an recourse regarding the warrantee on it.

[Marshy]

I have had 5 650a batteries at a cost of £70...all theses die after 2 days of not using the car...I have bitten three bullet and paid £170 for a 700a battery from a reliable dealer, every morning the battery is at 11v... Then when started it's a stable 14.4v ..I travel around 100 miles a day so I don't think the short run is an issue here.. Pretty sure there is a drain somewhere but haven't found it yet...I need to remove fuses in the glove box next to as the fuses under the bonnet appear to have little pull on the battery when asleep...
I have had an electrical fault message on the dash since this has started happening... And my heater motor doesn't work anymore..
That's where I am at the moment with this..

Regards. Phil.

[Gibbo2286]

You really need to find what's sucking the juice out of these batteries, if you can't bottom it yourself you need a competent auto electrician, anyone worth his salt would find the problem in minutes.
One common cause of this I've found over the years is aftermarket alarms but a lot of aftermarket add-ons will do it as will alternator regulators with blown diodes.

[CitROeNALD]

Curious if you ever got to the bottom of the battery drain issue.

It's the only weakness of my C4 Grand Spacetourer.

The first battery started to go into economy mode very quickly, and it's lack of use during covid seem to make it worse. The dealership replaced it, but if anything, this battery got to the same point even quicker. It is constantly going into economy mode very quickly. But, at the same time has no issue starting.

It's an EFB type for the 1.6 blue HDI.

The garage says the battery tests fine and has plenty of capacity and voltage. But, I'm not convinced.

I suspect the car needs a very good manufacturer of battery, YUASA or something. I imagine anything that is manufactured on the cheap dies quick with this car for some reason.

But I also suspect there is some kind of drain somewhere. But I do not run any after-market add-ons and never have. This model C4 is pretty much a base spec, and has no fancy add ons, (heated seats, electric boot) etc. So in that sense it has the least amount of installed peripherals to cause issues.


So, I wonder if you got anywhere with it.