Anyone added water to 12v battery?

[myleaf]

Sealed - no acid leaks, no maintenance, and possibly longer life ??

 

[TomT]

I can't remember the last time I had a lead-acid battery leak. And in 8,000 miles and 7 months the water level is still exactly where it was when I bought the car.

If it finally fails many years down the road, think about replacing it with one then. Why spend the money ($200) in advance when you don't have to?

Sealed - no acid leaks, no maintenance, and possibly longer life ??

 

[myleaf]

I will probably consider it once the two year replacement warranty is up. I have two sears diehard platinum (AGM) batteries in the other cars and they seem to be holding up well in the AZ heat.

 

[planet4ever]

I will probably consider it once the two year replacement warranty is up. I have two sears diehard platinum (AGM) batteries in the other cars and they seem to be holding up well in the AZ heat.

But wouldn't you be ahead financially to wait until the original battery starts to give problems? Let's say it actually lasts 3 years. At that point Nissan would have to sell you a new battery for 43% of their (admittedly inflated) list price.

Ray

 

[myleaf]

Good point. I would also be concerned about getting stuck somewhere with a dead battery, although I am not sure if this is possible as long as the traction battery is charged. I guess we will learn more as time goes on and forum members start reporting the symptoms of a degrading or failing 12V battery. My experience of living in AZ is that max battery life for an good ICE battery is about 3 years.
Dave

 

[garygid]

If the 12v battery becomes to low or disfunctional, can one start the LEAF like this:

1. Disconnect the negative side of the 12v battery
2. connect 8 "C" or "D" cells
3. Turn the LEAF ON, to Ready
4. Possibly disconnect the C/D cells
5. Possibly re-connect the 12v battery to be recharged
6. Drive ...

How does the DC-to-DC (HV to 12v) converter react
if the 12v battery is disconnected while the LEAF is ON?

 

[LEAFfan]

My experience of living in AZ is that max battery life for an good ICE battery is about 3 years.
Dave

I've lived here for 14 years and have yet (7 so far) to have a battery (Gold Duralast from AutoZone/3yr. free replacement) go three years. I talked to an 'old timer' (80+) who is a native here and he said he's never had any of his 12V car batteries last 3 years either. Because the LEAF's doesn't have to crank a starter or sit next to a hot engine, this one may be the first to go three years or more. I checked the level shining a light behind the battery (great idea that someone posted!) and it was at the 'full' level and read 12.6V.

 

[mark13]

Talking about car batteries and the AZ. heat..I use to go through batteries every 2 years also but they were checkers or autoshack ...We also have a 2004 Miata with a original sealed battery in trunk that is 7 years old now..Maybe batteries should be put in the trunk instead of under the hood where all the heat is..

 

[GerryAZ]

Usually, the "no-maintenance" or "sealed" liquid Lead Acid batteries can still "breathe" and loose water, right?

"Maintenance Free" batteries are not sealed, they have smaller plates and more liquid so they can stand more evaporation without exposing the plates to air. They have difficult or impossible to remove vent caps so they fail once they lose enough liquid.

AGM (absorbed glass mat) batteries have the electrolyte absorbed in fiberglass mat between the plates and are completely sealed under normal conditions. They have pressure relief vents for safety which will vent gas only if some abnormal condition causes excessive internal pressure.

Living in Phoenix for 29 years, my experience is that "maintenance free" batteries last from 6 to 18 months. Well-maintained conventional flooded batteries (like the original in the LEAF) last a bit longer. AGM batteries last much longer. I have been averaging over 4 years on AGM motorcycle batteries and am almost to 4 years on the one currently in my SUV.

 

[LEAFfan]

What's the average cost of an AGM car battery that would replace the LEAFs? I paid about $80 for a free 3-year replacement (Duralast Gold) and received a free one about every two and a half years.

 

[myleaf]

Optima has one for the prius, which I understand will fit the Leaf. It lists at 199.

http://shop.optimabatteries.com/products/productdetail/part_number=DS46B24R/1737.0.1.1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If the Prius and Leaf uses the same size battery (which has been mentioned), we are fortunate to have more choices than just the OEM from the dealer.

Dave

 

[garygid]

The 2010 Prius battery seems smaller (in my memory),
and it also has a vent tube going "to the outside" (I think).

I assume you are talking physical size, and not Ah capacity?

There are replacements for the Prius 12v battery that are almost double (at least 50% larger) capacity, as I recall.

But, it has been almost 2 years.
I remember that the Prius 12v battery in the right rear corner
looked "shockingly small" to me.

 

[baumgrenze]

I just tried checking the cells in the battery on my 2012 SL. The individual 'caps' are very small and hard to turn by hand. I did not take a pliers to them. Do they, in fact, turn or do they pull straight up?

 

[VinceGlorioso]

The 12v battery caps in my 2011/2012 were screw-type, it took about four turns after I broke them "loose" with a pair of needle-nose pliers to remove the caps. The caps have a + design on top, with 2 pairs of vent holes.
I checked the 12v battery, found 5/6 cells were just perfect fine, with water touching the bottom of the hang-down tab. I added one drinking straw to the low one to bring it up the bottom of the tab.
I would guess I put in less than 1 ounces of distilled water in that one cell.
Since it take so little work, I set my computer to remind me to check this every 3000 miles.

 

[baumgrenze]

Thank you. I'll give it a try soon.

 

[Dennisj00]

Slightly off topic, but I've had two experiences in jumping a Highlander Hybrid and most recently my MIL's Prius.

On the HH, my wife had left the doors open to air the car out after leaving some raw chicken in the August heat for 3 days! She didn't realize that the light wouldn't go out and I didn't check behind her.

Got in the car on a Saturday afternoon to go to the airport and it wouldn't start. I checked the battery and it was about 8 volts, would play the radio but apparently not enough to enable the computer. I quickly put a charger on for 10 minutes and it started right up.

On the Prius, my MIL took a trip and it was in the garage for 2.5 weeks. I thought about driving it but didn't. Day after she returned, she called, wouldn't start.

Same situation, the battery would play the radio / lights, but wouldn't go into reverse to get out of garage.

I took one of the battery jump boxes over (and a set of jumper cables). It has the + jump connection on the left quarter panel under the hood in the fuse panel under a plastic cover. BUT the terminal is small and recessed to the point that NO jumper cable would fit on it.

I grabbed a large screw driver, put the clamp on it and stuck the blade on the terminal. A couple of minutes later, it went into reverse and started the car.

I'm going out now and get familar with the LEAF terminals.

(and as best I can tell, she had left the headlights in 'Auto' - a no-no for a couple of weeks.)

 

[Ingineer]

The Leaf's battery is a Lead-Calcium battery. It should not normally need any water added, nor should it lose any. It is functionally the same as all modern ICE batteries, though a little smaller as it doesn't have to endure the starter load.

You should only ever add water if the level is such that the plates are in danger of being exposed, and then only 100% distilled. Tap water will destroy it! You do not want it "full"! There needs to be expansion area for the recombination to take place which occurs under slight pressure. I strongly advise you leave the battery sealed, because if you cause a light air pressure leak, the battery will most definitely then lose electrolyte!

There is no need to consider replacement of the Leaf's battery unless it is failing to do it's job. You are just wasting money and resources!

The key to a long life is to not deep-cycle the battery. Do not allow the Leaf to sit over 2 weeks without a "ready" event (no need to drive) of at least 10 minutes. A traction battery charge of at least 10 minutes will also top off the 12v. If you must let your Leaf sit unattended for longer than 2 weeks, I recommend disconnection at the negative battery terminal. It's also a good idea to have your traction pack charged to at least 50% but no more than 80%.

-Phil

 

[aqn]

From the Nissan LEAF Service Manual, page EVC-45:
VCM monitors the 12V battery voltage during POWER ON cycle and immediately starts charging when VCM
judges that the voltage is lowered.
When Vehicle is Left for a Long Period of Time
VCM measures the time of no operation using its internal timer. If the time of no operation reaches 120 hours,
VCM performs automatic charge for 5 minutes.
VCM resets the no operation status continuous time when the vehicle satisfies one of the following conditions.
• The READY has continued for more than 5 minutes.
• Normal charge has continued for more than 5 minutes.
• Quick charge has continued for more than 5 minutes.
• Timer air conditioning or remote air conditioning has continued for more than 5 minutes.

 

[TonyWilliams]

What kind of memory does the Clarion Nav/Audio have? How long before memory dump with a disconnected 12v?

My car is currently sitting with the tender on the 12v, still connected, and the car unplugged at 50% traction battery. I didn't have the courage to leave the 12 volt disconnected.

I just tried to ping the car from Munich, and it says communication error!

 

[TomT]

Some (most-all, really) of the functions are non-volatile and do not need a keep-alive. The others will hold for only a few seconds in my experience...

What kind of memory does the Clarion Nav/Audio have? How long before memory dump with a disconnected 12v?