Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
View Threaded
Wed 2 Sep 2020 10:39
Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue - keymoo

My Fiat Doblo van had no charge when I went to start it. I connected jump cables to my VW Sharan and left it connected for 20 minutes and then went to start the Doblo. It took maybe 30 secs of turning over slowly before it started, but it did start. I left the cables connected for about a minute and then disconnected the negative cable from the Doblo chassis and the engine immediately stopped.

Anyone know why?

I tried to restart it and it was completely dead. No lights on the dash, nothing.

I connected the negative jump lead back on to the chassis (saw a spark) and tried again. Totally dead.

Do I need a new battery?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 2 Sep 2020 11:20
Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue - elekie&a/c doctor
Very likely yes . You are not going to charge a dead battery from another car in a few minutes.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 2 Sep 2020 12:30
Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue - Gibbo_Wirral

IIRC it takes four minutes of engine running to replace the energy lost for each second a vehicle is cranked before starting.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 2 Sep 2020 12:48
Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue - Brit_in_Germany

If the engine stops when the donor battery is disconnected, I would say that the alternator is not working.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 2 Sep 2020 13:08
Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue - Galaxy

I had that once. Started the car and drove home. Following morning went out to start the car and it was completely dead. No lights, no starter, no nothing! Put a meter across the battery and it measured zero.

I came to the conclusion that something must have broken off inside the battery and it was no longer completing the circuit. Had I had to switch the engine off on my homeward bound journey the previous day then I'm quite sure I would have been well and truly stuck.

New battery cured the problem completely, as elekie has suggested. You would normally be able to measure 12 volts with a voltmeter on even a completely discharged battery but that clearly wasn't what I had.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 3 Sep 2020 15:03
Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue - keymoo

Halfords came out and replaced the battery. It was dead, alternator fine according to the OBD scanner.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 3 Sep 2020 15:43
Fiat Doblo Van - Strange battery issue - Andrew-T

I thought that when using jump leads the idea was to keep the engine of the 'donor' car running ? Or is that a no-no with 21st-century electronics ?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide

From which small car to buy at which price point to the best UK-built cars, our Top 10s have the lot. Click now for your shortlist.

Unsure of what to buy? Our Top 10s are here to help you....