Dead Battery...how do I get in?

[SRTim]

My SRT has a dead battery. I had surgery on my shoulder and have been unable to drive it. The top is up and the windows are shut. Fortunately, I have a battery charger and can recharge the battery. Had this happened in another place, such as a mall parking lot, how could I get into the car? The key fob doesn't work and the key hole under the drivers side door does nothing.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Tim

 

[GR8_ASP]

Never tried it but it was stated in another thread that the manual key (under the mirror) takes a lot of effort to work. Helped by pushing in on the door.

 

[Steve-Indy]

If the battery is dead, alarm will not go off when you open the hood to begin charging..connect charger, then lower hood so that alarm does not trip, try fob after battery recharged...may have to resync fob (I THINK that you can still do that with Gen III).

 

[Paul Hawker]

The keyhole under the mirror will open the door, but you must have faith and determination to make it work. You will swear the key will break off, but just before you give up all hope, the door will click open.
This is an emergency only option. Much like crawling in through the hatch of a GTS, or removing the rear window on a RT/10

 

[Franz]

It seems this is a common problem.

How many people are having problems with their battery? I have had my battery die on me and my Dodge dealer claimed it was a bad battery and replaced it. They couldn't find anything wrong with the electrical system. I did not leave anything on to drain the battery.

A couple of months later the same problem.

I drive the car often. I don't think it's the security system because I don't use it when it's in the garage.

Any thoughts?

 

[Viperfreak2]

Defective units from the battery suppliers are common. Get a good one and it'll last years. I even leave my radar detector and Gtech on when I park the car for a couple days and have never had a problem.

 

[snowmann]

It seems this is a common problem.

How many people are having problems with their battery? I have had my battery die on me and my Dodge dealer claimed it was a bad battery and replaced it. They couldn't find anything wrong with the electrical system. I did not leave anything on to drain the battery.

A couple of months later the same problem.

I drive the car often. I don't think it's the security system because I don't use it when it's in the garage.

Any thoughts?

You would think will all the headaches with the gen1/2's having this problem it would have been solved for gen3.

 

[Viperfreak2]

It will never be solved....1 out of 100 (or so) batteries seem to be fine during testing, but fail quickly after a few days / weeks. Mystery! Happens to all makes / models and brands. I know from extensive experience.

 

[SRT10]

The owners manual says that a fully charged battery should last 30 days, if the car sits longer than that, put the car to "sleep". In sleep mode the battery should last 3 months.

 

[yahllib]

The key under the mirror works. Some of the early cars had tight cables and it did require some amount of force to open the door. But now the system works perfectly. The plant has been charging most batterys b4 they are shipped so this should help on dead or almost dead batteries.

 

[Paul Hawker]

How do you put a Viper to "sleep"
ZZZZzzzzzz....

 

[SRT10]

How do you put a Viper to "sleep"
ZZZZzzzzzz....

Its all in the owners manual. You turn the key to Acc 3 or 4 times....push the...drivers window switch....up ..or....down......and.....

You must be registered for see images

 

[Steve-Indy]

But the question remains: Did SRTim solve the problem...and, if so, how ??

 

[Takhard]

I was at the Dodge dealership and they were going to bring the Viper out of the showroom... and lo and behold the battery was dead. Not sure if it was due to the hood being up for days though.

 

[Black SRT]

Have any of you folks noticed how bright the “alarm activated” light on the rearview is? It’s as bright as a dome light and it blinks 10 times a minute. It stays on for about .25 seconds and if you do the math that equals one hour a day. Now multiple that by 20-30 days and it’s easy to see why the battery goes dead in that amount of time.

When you put the car in “sleep mode,” thereby deactivating the alarm and blinking light, the car still remains theft proof since you need the key and a large crowbar to get back in.

 

[Paul Hawker]

Did the math, (I think it's right)
.25 sec X 10 times minute X 60 minutes X 24 hrs = 3,600 sec. per day.
3,600 sec. / 24 hr / 60 seconds in a minute = 2.5 minutes per day.
Maybe I mixed up my time/space continum.
In addition the electrical pulse could be less than .25 sec, however the glow may make it appear to last that long.

 

[Black SRT]

Paul,

I know I killed a pound of brain cells partying at Umass, Amherst, for 4 years, but I’m not sure I follow your math. I like the first line; 3600 seconds in 1 day definitely equals 1 hour, but the second line starts getting a little “fuzzy.”

I also like your glow theory. It helps explain Billy Crystal’s old impersonation of Muhammad Ali: “I’m so quick, I’m so fast, I can shut the light out at night and be in bed before the room gets dark.”

 

[George Murray]

Put the car to sleep...yeah...like that robot in "Lost in Space" you just yank out some box and there ya go...yeah that's it

 

[SRTim]

Sorry for the delayed response....yes, I used the key hole uner the drivers side door to get into the car. It does work better if you push in on the door while turning the key. I am currently charging the battery. Unfortunately, there is snow and salt all over the roads here in Pittsburgh, so I won't be able to drive the Viper for a while. Thanks for all of your help!

Tim

 

[Steve-Indy]

Glad it worked out...thanks for the followup...appreciate tip on using the key hole while pushing on door.

 

[Paul Hawker]

My math skills are impeckable.

If a chicken and a half can lay a egg and a half in a day and a half, how many days will it take for one chicken to lay one egg?

 

[fred]

104 and one half days

 

[GR8_ASP]

Found out something interesting about the SRT. You can connect a battery tender while the car is in sleep mode. The lighter socket in the console glove box is active even while in sleep mode. So all you need to do is plug the tender in via the lighter socket.