Bl**dy battery +ve terminal MELTED!
10 February 2012, 09:50 AM
#1
Bl**dy battery +ve terminal MELTED!
Wife's Xantia had a flat battery Monday, we bought a new one.
The guy who fitted it for her noted that the old one had a HOLE
in it where some solder had melted out of the battery +ve terminal.
Anyway, she gets home last night, car dies, luckily on the drive.
Last night it was dark and snowing, so I left it.
When I've looked this morning, the terminal is COMPLETELY melted away where the wire meets it and the wire is hanging in mid-air
It's gone to a local car-electrics place now for a checkup and a new terminal. The wire was held on with a jubilee clip
Never seen owt like it in over 40 years interest in car-electrics
The guy who fitted it for her noted that the old one had a HOLE
in it where some solder had melted out of the battery +ve terminal.Anyway, she gets home last night, car dies, luckily on the drive.
Last night it was dark and snowing, so I left it.
When I've looked this morning, the terminal is COMPLETELY melted away where the wire meets it and the wire is hanging in mid-air
It's gone to a local car-electrics place now for a checkup and a new terminal. The wire was held on with a jubilee clip
Never seen owt like it in over 40 years interest in car-electrics
10 February 2012, 10:35 AM
#2
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Only time I have seen something like that is in the field of computing. Where a terminal was designed to carry a low level of current, but ended up carrying much more due to a short. I suspect that may be what has happened here, I would be interested to know what happened when you find out!
10 February 2012, 01:58 PM
#3
Also known as daz
Either that or the alternator is overcharging.
Knowing french cars it's possible, i had two 309's and both alternators died as the voltage regulators packed up.
Id fit a new terminal, and get a voltage tester on it asap.
Knowing french cars it's possible, i had two 309's and both alternators died as the voltage regulators packed up.
Id fit a new terminal, and get a voltage tester on it asap.
Last edited by hux309; 10 February 2012 at 01:59 PM.
10 February 2012, 02:52 PM
#4
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Is the battery shot and was therefore taking a high current while the system was trying to charge it?
Sounds as though it was doing something like that when the bloke saw that some solder had melted out of the terminal attachment when he looked at it.
It must have been getting pretty hot anyway. Alternators get pretty unhappy if the battery connection is lost as well of course-the regulation goes up the chute. Hope your alternator and its regulator are still ok.
Les
Sounds as though it was doing something like that when the bloke saw that some solder had melted out of the terminal attachment when he looked at it.
It must have been getting pretty hot anyway. Alternators get pretty unhappy if the battery connection is lost as well of course-the regulation goes up the chute. Hope your alternator and its regulator are still ok.
Les
10 February 2012, 03:05 PM
#5
Update, got the car back.
Just got back from the car-electrics place.
They have had to strip out the THREE big wires from the battery, all of which were sufffering melted insulation.
BUT: no earth faults were found, battery is brand new, and alternator working perfectly.
Best guess: the thick wire from battery to starter was badly corroded along most odf it's length We think that has led to a high resistance, especially at contact points, and from secondary school physics, high resistance = more heat generated.
Any way, the car is back on the road, the three wires have been prfessionally replaced and each is now in a separate conduit.
£83.99...........could have been worse.
Could have been better, mind, the damn thing could have burnt out......
They have had to strip out the THREE big wires from the battery, all of which were sufffering melted insulation.
BUT: no earth faults were found, battery is brand new, and alternator working perfectly.
Best guess: the thick wire from battery to starter was badly corroded along most odf it's length We think that has led to a high resistance, especially at contact points, and from secondary school physics, high resistance = more heat generated.
Any way, the car is back on the road, the three wires have been prfessionally replaced and each is now in a separate conduit.
£83.99...........could have been worse.
Could have been better, mind, the damn thing could have burnt out......
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10 February 2012, 04:36 PM
#8
Could be as simple as not being tightened up enough. We have a lot of 48VDC powered equipment in a lab at work (typically rack mounted boxes drawing 1.5KW). A few years ago someone installed one of these boxes but didn't do up one of the power supply lugs tight enough. This resulted in higher than normal resistance at the join which started to heat up, and as it heated up the resistance got higher. A positive feedback loop that only ended when something melted sufficiently to break the connection.
10 February 2012, 06:46 PM
#13
LOL 
No mate, the parts, including cabling, separate conduits and connectors, came to £6.99, £63 labour (1.5 hours), and VAT of £14.
I paid it gladly: it would have been an utter swine of a job, on my own, with no parts supply, in this weather. I do not have a garage to work in, let alone a heated workspace.
No mate, the parts, including cabling, separate conduits and connectors, came to £6.99, £63 labour (1.5 hours), and VAT of £14.
I paid it gladly: it would have been an utter swine of a job, on my own, with no parts supply, in this weather. I do not have a garage to work in, let alone a heated workspace.
10 February 2012, 06:49 PM
#14
Could be as simple as not being tightened up enough. We have a lot of 48VDC powered equipment in a lab at work (typically rack mounted boxes drawing 1.5KW). A few years ago someone installed one of these boxes but didn't do up one of the power supply lugs tight enough. This resulted in higher than normal resistance at the join which started to heat up, and as it heated up the resistance got higher. A positive feedback loop that only ended when something melted sufficiently to break the connection.
It was sluggish to start on sunday, the battery connectors were checked then, and both were good, with no corrosion.
Then, when it refused monday morning, a new battery was installed and it was noted at that time that some solder had dripped out of the positive terminal.
So the fault was there already, just waiting to happen, methinks.
10 February 2012, 06:55 PM
#16
I don't know mate, but I know that sometimes wires, especially on old cars, get corroded down inside the insulation.
A fortnight ago I was asked to go round to Andys, (COB on here), to help him solder up some wires on his new fuel pump.
BOTH were badly coroded/oxidised and I had to spend time getting them clean with glass-paper before they would solder.
I think it's common, oxidisation of copper cables on older cars, and the proximity of the battery acid at one end and the diesel fuel filter at the other is asking for trouble.
French electrics....
A fortnight ago I was asked to go round to Andys, (COB on here), to help him solder up some wires on his new fuel pump.
BOTH were badly coroded/oxidised and I had to spend time getting them clean with glass-paper before they would solder.
I think it's common, oxidisation of copper cables on older cars, and the proximity of the battery acid at one end and the diesel fuel filter at the other is asking for trouble.
French electrics....
10 February 2012, 11:36 PM
#18
Scooby Regular
Had a similar thing with my FZ750 a couple of months ago, all the main power lines were corroded inside the insulation, I was amazed at the heat being generated in the wires by the juice forcing its way through
Mine didn't kill the battery fortunately, it did boiled it up a bit though, and blew some fuses.
It's in bits in the garage at the moment, being treated to a full rewire
Mine didn't kill the battery fortunately, it did boiled it up a bit though, and blew some fuses.
It's in bits in the garage at the moment, being treated to a full rewire
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