The battery drain issue...

[Serra16]

Hi everyone,

I've recently purchased a VE series II nov 2012 Omega Z series wagon. Two days ago I had to get RACQ to come out and start it as the battery was completely flat. No whrr, no lights, nothing. He checked the battery once started and all the numbers looked good for condition of battery, charging etc. It started the next day no problems. I thought I'd get on to do a bit of research about it and I've read that certain things can draw current, but this was in the earlier models. So I have a few questions.

Were the battery drain issues common in the later cars? I did notice that the car was unlocked (but the boot locked) when the battery was dead. Is this a safety feature or just me forgetting to lock the car? Could leaving the car unlocked be the reason the battery went flat? The car does have blue tooth (which I use all the time) and sat nav fitted. We live out of town so it does get a regular 1-1.5hr return trip in to town every second day or so.

Many thanks

 

[robbo59]

I have a 2008 sport wagon and had the battery replaced 2 years ago it was the original so at that time it was 7 years old RACV came out and replaced it Feb this year the battery let me down that they replaced so I charged it and took it to an auto sparky to see if they could find a fault they had it for 2 days and could not fault the car they said it was the battery.... so Racv replaced it at the auto elecs.... for the past 2 days the battery as been getting weak to start the car and this morning it was flat... grrrr called Racv they came out went over the car and can't fault it the system is charging the battery is charging so like you I'm at a loss....

 

[Sean880]

Hi everyone,

I've recently purchased a VE series II nov 2012 Omega Z series wagon. Two days ago I had to get RACQ to come out and start it as the battery was completely flat. No whrr, no lights, nothing. He checked the battery once started and all the numbers looked good for condition of battery, charging etc. It started the next day no problems. I thought I'd get on to do a bit of research about it and I've read that certain things can draw current, but this was in the earlier models. So I have a few questions.

Were the battery drain issues common in the later cars? I did notice that the car was unlocked (but the boot locked) when the battery was dead. Is this a safety feature or just me forgetting to lock the car? Could leaving the car unlocked be the reason the battery went flat? The car does have blue tooth (which I use all the time) and sat nav fitted. We live out of town so it does get a regular 1-1.5hr return trip in to town every second day or so.

Many thanks

1. You have not indicated how old the battery in your car is but if it is still the original(I would guess it is) then you should replace it soon. These are special batteries with a venting opening in the case and the vent tube in the battery compartment needs to be fitted on to the new battery when you replace them.

2. I am unaware of any common power drain issues in 2012 plus Commodores as a consequence of some fault. I also have a 2012 and I have never had any issues with power supply but I did change my battery 4 months ago for peace of mind. Waiting till they give problems and potentially stranding you is not the best option IMHO.

3. Leaving your car unlocked in your garage overnight won't cause an abnormal power drain on your battery. I often do this and have never had an issue (nor should I).

4. You may have a parasitic power draw in your car and if so this will start to drain the battery when the car is left sitting and will more quickly affect a weak battery. The stock systems on the vehicle draw a very limited amount of power while your car is switched off but a sound battery will easily cope with this.
Have a mechanic or auto electrician check for an abnormal current draw on your car and if it is found he will have to identify the circuit that is draining the power. If you have any aftermarket electronic equipment installed in the car this can sometimes be suspect if you find an abnormal current draw.

5. When your battery is run flat as you described you should remove it from the car and have it charged as is recommended.

 

[Serra16]

Thanks for responding Sean. The information was very helpful.

I'm not entirely sure how old the battery is but I will get it checked and changed next service.

 

[Kerseristhesickest99]

Hi everyone,

I've recently purchased a VE series II nov 2012 Omega Z series wagon. Two days ago I had to get RACQ to come out and start it as the battery was completely flat. No whrr, no lights, nothing. He checked the battery once started and all the numbers looked good for condition of battery, charging etc. It started the next day no problems. I thought I'd get on to do a bit of research about it and I've read that certain things can draw current, but this was in the earlier models. So I have a few questions.

Were the battery drain issues common in the later cars? I did notice that the car was unlocked (but the boot locked) when the battery was dead. Is this a safety feature or just me forgetting to lock the car? Could leaving the car unlocked be the reason the battery went flat? The car does have blue tooth (which I use all the time) and sat nav fitted. We live out of town so it does get a regular 1-1.5hr return trip in to town every second day or so.

Many thanks

Hi,

Outta curiosity did you by any chance find the reason behind this power draw and if so what was it? I have a 2010 ve series sv6 wagon and my car has been doing pretty much exactly what yours is doing. I've had 2 auto sparkies look at it check the battery etc both couldn't find the issue. Please lemme know if possible

 

[chrisp]

Hi,

Outta curiosity did you by any chance find the reason behind this power draw and if so what was it? I have a 2010 ve series sv6 wagon and my car has been doing pretty much exactly what yours is doing. I've had 2 auto sparkies look at it check the battery etc both couldn't find the issue. Please lemme know if possible

If you are handy with a multimeter, maybe have a read of this post I did yesterday - https://forums.justcommodores.com.a...-finding-parasitic-loads.303983/#post-3430487

 

[Skylarking]

3. Leaving your car unlocked in your garage overnight won't cause an abnormal power drain on your battery. I often do this and have never had an issue (nor should I).

I heard that leaving any modern car unlocked with the key close to the car, like on a hook within some meters of the car, will result in the car‘s modules never going into full sleep mode. As such more current is consumed than a full sleep mode which can cause battery drain…

Seems the solution is to always lock the car and not leave the keys anywhere near the car.

Whether that’s what @Serra16 was or @Kerseristhesickest99 is experiencing, I’ve no idea.

 

[Fu Manchu]

A seven year old thread can get confusing.