Battery Change - Any Pitfalls?

[Sixchannel]

My 2000 2.0HDi will need a new battery this Winter for sure.

Is changing the battery just a simple matter of removing old one and fitting new one, or are things going to have to be Reset by the Dealer?

cheers

Sixchannel

[Guest Peter Mann]

Based on my experience with my 1994 2.0 petrol Xantia, two things to be alert to. First is that the security code for the radio may need to be re-entered if the disconnection lasts more than a couple of minutes.

The other, the important one, is that many of the Xantia's earthing points are hidden under the battery, and a battery change gives a good opportunity to wind off the bolts and inject some oil onto the threads and contact surfaces to prevent corrosion causing strange electrical behaviour.

I use gearbox oil for this job, because it contains high quality corrosion inhibitors and the oil molecules are large, so they are much slower to evaporate away and thus will protect your electrical connections for longer.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

As Peter says you need to know the radio code before disconnecting the battery. If you don't have it I beleive the car can be "backfed" with 12 v through the cigarette lighter while the battery is off. This is not just for Xantias. I beleive you can do it with most cars. This will prevent the radio from losing its code and settings. The only other thing that will happen is that the alarm will probably sound when the battery is re-connected (if you haven't done the backfeed business) and you will need to turn on the ignition to stop and re-set it.

 

Cheers. Hope this helps. :huh: