Battery dies on Gen 4, recommendations?

[HobokenViper]

So the previous owner told me this always happened to him, that the battery discharges after roughly between 1-2 months of sitting in the garage, so he connected a trickle charger to the Viper and it kept it charged. I live in an apartment building where there are no accessible outlets to trickle charge the car, and I don't want to remove the battery for fear of messing something up, having no place to put it as space is now very limited, and the fact that would prohibit me from driving the car on a rare warm weekend like the one coming up after a rainstorm washes all the salt off the roads. I last drove the car maybe 2 weeks ago, and went to fire her up tonight and it barely failed to start, and then would barely do anything at all. I think the fact that the garage is a bit cold isn't helping the battery to keep a charge, but 2 weeks to being dead is terrible.......

What are my options to keep the car charged and healthy outside of starting her up every week or two for 30 minutes or so and burn a couple dinosaurs worth of gas each time and piss my garage neighbors off with the fumes and noise? Secondly, is there any issue with jumpstarting the car? I can try to use my Buick Enclave to do that, but I could also get one of those jump-starter kits that you charge indoors, then hook to the battery to supply enough charge to jump start. Any recommendations on that and which model to buy and use if so? Will my Buick have enough juice to start the huge V10 engine? Is it bad to jump-start the car and can it cause damage if done too often or at all?

Thanks for any help or advice.

 

[PeterMJ]

You can remove the battery or get a solar charger or better yet, find a garage for your car.

 

[HobokenViper]

I hear it is easy to remove the battery, but I hate to admit I have no real tools and lack many simple technical skills at this point and don't feel comfortable removing the battery (unless it really is THAT easy to do), my car is kept deep in a far corner of the third floor of my building's parking garage surrounded by concrete and not one single window, and I technically could keep it at my in-law's house for the winter connected to a battery tender, but I don't trust leaving it there as there are constantly workmen coming and going unmonitored and that would defeat the whole point of being able to sneak down to the garage to sneak a look at the beauty or take it for a spin on a random nice weekend like the one coming up.

I need a solution regarding jump-starting it with the Buick or with an appropriately sized battery jump starter, OR if someone can tell me how to properly remove, charge, and re-install the battery without damaging anything or electrocuting me, that would be greatly appreciated.

 

[HyperViper]

If you are on the original battery there is a good chance it is toast and needs to be replaced. I replaced mine with a Sears Diehard platinum at the recommendation of several here.

You should be able to jump start it with your Buick. Positive terminal under the hood.

 

[Chrissss]

I know my gen 3 has a battery saver feature which I use all the time. I've left my car sitting without starting for as long as three months using this feature, and the car started strong. I assume the gen 4 has the same available feature.

 

[01sapphirebob]

I know my gen 3 has a battery saver feature which I use all the time. I've left my car sitting without starting for as long as three months using this feature, and the car started strong. I assume the gen 4 has the same available feature.

This. Since you have no access to power and it doesn't sound like you want to remove the battery (just for ease of use of the car when nice weather rolls around) then I would also recommend the batter save feature. It's listed in the owners manual and sounds like it would be the perfect solution for you.

 

[SLViper]

You should get 30 days minimum with a new charged battery. Your battery is compromised.
For storage over 30 days use "battery save feature", page 210 in the owners manual (this disables alarm)!
Good Luck

 

[Steve-Indy]

You have a battery saver mode on your Gen IV...directions are in the owner's manual.

On our Gen III and IV Vipers, I changed the batteries to Sears Die-Hard PLATINUM (NOT Gold which is a lesser model) ...and on the Gen IV's, I made the change within the first year.

 

[swexlin]

You have a battery saver mode on your Gen IV...directions are in the owner's manual.

On our Gen III and IV Vipers, I changed the batteries to Sears Die-Hard PLATINUM (NOT Gold which is a lesser model) ...and on the Gen IV's, I made the change within the first year.

What everyone else said. I have the same issue - the garage where I keep my car doesn't have access to an outlet for a charger. Two years ago, I installed a diehard platinum, and keep the car on "sleep mode". My car sits sometimes in winter 3-4 weeks at a time, and she starts right up (knock wood, don't want to jinx myself!)

 

[HobokenViper]

Thanks everyone, this is extremely helpful! I'll jump start the car this weekend and will bring it to get the battery replaced on that trip with a Sears Die-Hard Platinum battery. Now that leaves me with one final question..... Do you trust the guys at Sears to drive your car into their garage bay and do this relatively simple battery swap?

 

[01sapphirebob]

Thanks everyone, this is extremely helpful! I'll jump start the car this weekend and will bring it to get the battery replaced on that trip with a Sears Die-Hard Platinum battery. Now that leaves me with one final question..... Do you trust the guys at Sears to drive your car into their garage bay and do this relatively simple battery swap?

I wouldn't. Replacing the battery on a GEN IV is very easy. It's located in the trunk under the carpet and an access panel on the left side.

 

[bluesrt]

One more detail. Starting your car and letting it idle will in time only discharge your battery

 

[SLViper]

I am going to miss taking the wheel off to get to the battery! Not

I wouldn't. Replacing the battery on a GEN IV is very easy. It's located in the trunk under the carpet and an access panel on the left side.

 

[VicTxV10]

You should be able to jump start it with your Buick. Positive terminal under the hood.

Can a battery tender be hooked up to this location also or does it need to be hooked up to the battery under the trunk panel?

 

[Steve M]

Can a battery tender be hooked up to this location also or does it need to be hooked up to the battery under the trunk panel?

It can be hooked up to the positive battery terminal under the hood. That's how I run mine...I ground it to the metal around the water pump bleeder.

 

[BlknBlu]

put a battery disconnect terminal on the terminals to not discharge it. Or just remove the connections from the battery.

Bruce

 

[HobokenViper]

One more detail. Starting your car and letting it idle will in time only discharge your battery

Not that I ever do this, but I thought that starting your car and letting it run a bit (whether you drive around or it sits idle) charges your battery.....?

 

[Steve M]

Not that I ever do this, but I thought that starting your car and letting it run a bit (whether you drive around or it sits idle) charges your battery.....?

The starting process is a big drain on a battery...the alternator does immediately start recharging it once the engine is running, but the question is how long does it take for the alternator to replace the juice it took to start the car in the first place? I don't know the answer to that, but it's probably a little while.

 

[HobokenViper]

And what is it about the Viper that causes the battery to drain so fast when the car is off relative to other cars? My previous cars (2 Audi TT's, Nissan 350Z, and Camaro all could sit for long periods of time, even months without the battery draining, and some of them had far more technology and electronics on them...

 

[Wiretech]

Every underground parking garage has power, they have electrical boxes with dummy plates or lights all you have to do is to tap into it with a electrical socket or short ext cord, you have to test it with a meter for 120ac, I have done the hookup with live power for all my friends, very easy, just have to hide the cord when you need it and disconect it when you don't.

 

[Wiretech]

And what is it about the Viper that causes the battery to drain so fast when the car is off relative to other cars? My previous cars (2 Audi TT's, Nissan 350Z, and Camaro all could sit for long periods of time, even months without the battery draining, and some of them had far more technology and electronics on them...

Every vehicle has current draw around 50 to 100 ma, from radio memory, bcm, pcm, etc. and some cars has high capacity battery that will last longer.

 

[VicTxV10]

Can a battery tender be hooked up to this location also or does it need to be hooked up to the battery under the trunk panel?

It can be hooked up to the positive battery terminal under the hood. That's how I run mine...I ground it to the metal around the water pump bleeder.

Thanks for the info! I just received a battery tender for Christmas and was looking for options to install it other than under the trunk cover directly to the battery. It came with ring terminals to mount on the post with a quick disconnect plug.

 

[PeterMJ]

Every underground parking garage has power, they have electrical boxes with dummy plates or lights all you have to do is to tap into it with a electrical socket or short ext cord, you have to test it with a meter for 120ac, I have done the hookup with live power for all my friends, very easy, just have to hide the cord when you need it and disconect it when you don't.

Do not get caught, LOL.

 

[PeterMJ]

And what is it about the Viper that causes the battery to drain so fast when the car is off relative to other cars? My previous cars (2 Audi TT's, Nissan 350Z, and Camaro all could sit for long periods of time, even months without the battery draining, and some of them had far more technology and electronics on them...

That's a for any car and battery. Any battery will discharge on its own regardless of any drain from the car. All you do is cause sulfation to kill the battery, decreasing its original capacity. Anytime you have a car sit for over a week, disconnect the battery or hook up a maintainer.

 

[ViperGeorge]

A Gen 4 will discharge a battery very quickly, period. A newer battery will help but don't expect it to last for months without a trickle charger, never happen in my experience. Use the battery saver feature for extended storage. To access the battery you will need star drives (don't remember the size) and based on your posts I doubt you have them. If you do disconnect battery you will have to retrain the windows when you reconnect. You will also put the car's computer into learning mode and the IM Monitors (needed to pass inpsections in several states) will be reset. The computer will relearn things relatively quickly but the IM monitors may take quite a while to set.

 

[mgeorge]

Hobokenviper...just sent you a pm on a possible winter garage option (with electrical outlets) so you can plug in the batter tender.

 

[CitySnake]

I garage my car with a similar situation. But I generally can't go more than 3 weeks without taking it out for a drive, regardless of the season. The few times (after significant snowfall or snow on several consecutive weekends) when I left it for more than 4 weeks, it started up without too much problem, but I did notice a pause in the startup.

Anyway, they're easy to jump, especially if you have a portable battery pack. Amazon has several for under $100 and you can keep it charged in your apartment. Much easier than having to move another car into position to jump start. These packs are the size of a brief case and do the job with ease.

 

[HobokenViper]

A Gen 4 will discharge a battery very quickly, period. A newer battery will help but don't expect it to last for months without a trickle charger, never happen in my experience. Use the battery saver feature for extended storage. To access the battery you will need star drives (don't remember the size) and based on your posts I doubt you have them. If you do disconnect battery you will have to retrain the windows when you reconnect. You will also put the car's computer into learning mode and the IM Monitors (needed to pass inpsections in several states) will be reset. The computer will relearn things relatively quickly but the IM monitors may take quite a while to set.

Funny you say all this as I was planning to get the car inspected right after getting the battery replaced. I've never heard about this quirky issue before, and from what you are saying it is a pretty big deal to the car to disconnect and reconnect the battery, or replace it entirely. Will I have a problem passing inspection if this is the case? And what was that thing you said about "retraining the windows"???

 

[HobokenViper]

Hobokenviper...just sent you a pm on a possible winter garage option (with electrical outlets) so you can plug in the batter tender.

Thank you very much! Got your pm and will let you know what I decide to do depending on what I am able to figure out with my current situation. I really appreciate the offer to help!

 

[Richie7]

If the battery is disconnected or goes dead it will not pass inspection. The obd2 sensors need to go through drive cycles to reset them. Basically you will have to drive the car a couple times before inspection