[GreenHyundai]

Hi guys !

Wanted to run this situation past you and get some opinions.

I have an i30 Auto Blue Drive only 3 months old which would not start the other morning. Battery was dead (but lights, dash were on). I had used it to commute to work the night before so it hasn't been left for a long period of time.

Called the AA, The AA guy did some tests said that Alternator was fine but I might have a duff battery. He even suggested that it was unable to keep its charge, as he re-charged it while I stood there, then left it for 5 mins and we couldn't restart it again.....

Took it back to Hyundai dealer , they've run more tests and re-charged the battery and have concluded that there is nothing wrong with the battery.
Hyundai asked me if anything was 'left on' in the car or plugged into the front electrical socket. Well nothing was 'left on' but.........

......I usually keep a DashCam plugged into one of the front electrical sockets but it switches itself off about 5 seconds after I turn the ignition off. Could this still be pulling power somehow ? It's been in the car since Christmas so not sure why it would suddenly drain the battery now?

One thing I have started to leave in overnight is my USB stick - it's just a plain Toshiba £3.00 USB drive which I have mp3s on. I've google and found loads of ppl who leave these plugged in without issue - surely this couldn't be draining the battery? Also doesn't the radio run off the secondary battery anyway ?

Any thoughts, answers or opinions welcome !

Thanks !

[Phil №❶]

Not likely to be either of those devices. After parking the car, check that the electric power steering switches off a few seconds after turning the engine off. Ylour steering wheel should be easy to turn immediately after engine off but become hard to turn a few seconds later. Also check that your boot light or glove box light are off when lids are closed. There is obviously a little "mouse" somewhere consuming electricity.

[Dazzler]

  These scenarios can be quite frustrating.

I tend to agree with Phil. Not sure if the boot light has an on off switch (can't check as wife is out in ours) Maybe that has got knocked to on?

Nothing caught in the hatch which is stopping it closing properly (keeping the light on?)

Strange how the AA guy thought the battery was duff.  I assume a Blue Drive is Diesel? (we  don't get that version here) they do have a heavy duty battery which requires a special type of charger. Did the battery seem to hold its charge after the Dealer zapped it?

[Doggie 1]

 

My car has done a lot more kms than yours but I had a similar scenario two or three months ago.
It happened once and once only. Nothing left on, don't know why it happened but it hadn't happened before and hasn't happened since.   

[GreenHyundai]

Yes it's a Blue Drive Diesel.

Thanks for the responses guys ! Here's an update:

I got the car back from the dealer and they said they had tested the battery/alternator and could not find any issues with either.  They did write on the report 'did the customer leave the dash cam plugged in?' and the guy I dealt with said to me 'best not to leave it plugged in' which suggests that they thought it might be the DashCam pulling the power. I wasn't happy with the ambiguity so asked for a definitive answer on whether the 12V socker does or doesn't draw power when the ignition is off.  The service guy went off to talk to a 'technician' and after several minutes he came back and said "I can confirm the 12V socket is only live with the ignition, therefore it couldn't have been the dashcam that drained the battery".

On one hand it's good to know that, but on the other it doesn't solve my mysterious power drain. I am 99% certain that no lights were left on but it's hard to prove........  I've been double checking the interior lights / headlights every night since but this will get 'old soon !

I'll check out some of your suggestions, boot light, electric steering, etc.

I guess I'll just have to see if it happens again........

Thanks again !

[Dazzler]

No fault found, that's unusual! Dealers should get a stamp made up for that...

[GreenHyundai]

Ha ! Yes indeed.

I was wondering whether there is anyway to see the current charge of the battery? Is there a display option anywhere that would show this on the front console? I mean, the car seems to know when the battery is low because that is one of the things that doesn't meet the 'auto stop' conditions.

I have an automatic, I was wondering also whether leaving it in 'Drive' with the ignition off could possible drain the battery?

Cheers !

[Phil №❶]

No that won't drain the battery, but it is very dangerous to do that. The car is NOT in any gear and could roll in any direction or be manually pushed. Very dangerous around kids & people.

To test the battery voltage you could use a simple multi meter across the battery terminals. Over time, the voltage will fall, as there is a small battery consumption even when switched off.

[Lester]

Dodgy built battery and the 'Cool English weather?'

[gazzell]

I had this problem once, years ago with a Citroen saxo.  After many visits to the dealer it turned out to be a faulty stereo

[The Gonz]

Get analytical and use the half split rule each night while garaged.

Assuming 32 fuses in car, for example:

Day 1: remove half the fuses
Day 2: if effect still noticed, replace these and remove the other half (16), if not, remove half (8) of these.
Day 3: of these, if effect still noticed, replace and remove others, if not remove half of these.
.
.
You'll find the problem within 4 days with this example.