Battery problem?

[tomto147]

I am using my diesel D5 on short distances up to 30km a day. You need no loger then 30 min drive to fully charge the battery. I had no problem with DPF but my battery was drained one time already after 4 days of no driving. I am sure it is not because of driving style but a technical problem. I am at my Volvo dealer right now to check if everything is OK with car's electronics.

Originally Posted by woofer

It seems that XC60 it is a car not for short distance driving.
I heard firstly that we can't drive XC60 on short distances due to DPF problem, and now service are telling us that we should "driving enough" (what distance is enough?) to charge the battery.
Maybe in car manual should be determined the minimum distance we should drive every day to get rid of all this problems.
I'm going to bay XC60, but after reading this forum I have doubt if it is a realy good car for town driving.
When I buy XC60 then after 300-800km I have to make a trip about 10-20 minutes to clean DPF filter and charge the battery.
Is there somebody who have a Diesel XC60 and using them on short distances 10-15km per day without any problems (like in normal car)?
Did you notice that all problems are solved the same way - DPF, battery and... - new software is installed?

[tomto147]

I have just got my car upgraded to new software. My dealer admitted that battery problems (fast draining) were caused by fault software in my car. Don't know what exactly but they assured me it was the software. Let's hope it was ;-)

Originally Posted by tomto147

Hi guys,

today in the morning my XC60 (2 months old) was found "dead" in my garage, after standing there for a bit over week time with no milage done. The battery was completely drained and I had to call Volvo Assistance to help me start the engine. I am sure that no interior lights were on during this time and the car was properly closed. The only thing that I left inside was my iPod connected to USB.

Do you think this small toy could cause the battery to drain completely?

Tom.

[steinar]

The first problem I had was that the red airbag fault light came on, I took it to the garage and they changed the sensor in an airbag.

Then twice I found the car totally dead after being left for 10 days each time. The battery was depleted for no obvious reason.

The latest problem is that all four side windows open when I unlock the car. What ever next?!!!

[polsesnabb]

Originally Posted by steinar

The latest problem is that all four side windows open when I unlock the car. What ever next?!!!

Are you sure you don´t press the unlock button on the remote too long, because the windows opening is supposed to happen if you press it for a couple of seconds instead of just once quickly to open it. The same thing happens when pressing the lock button for a few secs too, then the windows and the sunroof close.

[Mike Jenvey]

New here - please treat gently! Looks like I am not the only one with the battery problem........

I have an XC60 that was bought new in Jun 2010. Very happy with the car, it drives superbly & coped with the recent UK snow as if it wasn't there.

However, about 6 weeks ago, I had a flat battery at home. The driving pattern prior to that had been a 40 mile journey, 5 days parked up, return 40 mile journey home, a couple of short (14 mile) journeys over a couple of days, then 5 - 6 days interval (car in garage); the alarm had been set whilst parked up & garaged.

So, took it to my local dealership (Cambridge) who looked it over for most of a day, doing battery & alternator tests, & running a trickle charge to the battery. Nothing untoward was found; they said that the previous driving distances might have been the cause, not allowing a long enough drive to recharge the battery. Lights on all the time + occasional use of the driver's heated seat, etc.......

So, all was well for a while, but about 5 weeks ago, returned to the car (parked up at work for 6 days) = flat battery again; driving pattern before this had been similar - a couple of 14 mile trips. Car now booked in for a 2 day period for deeper investigation.

Checked it yesterday evening (in the garage) = battery flat as a pancake! Had to use the key within the fob to access the car. Trickle charge now in progress.

My social/shopping/work driving distances won't change that much - in fact for shopping, that can't change (drove 6 miles to Park & Ride as Cambridge city centre is a nightmare to drive around normally!), & driving to work is a fixed distance + park up for 5 - 6 days at a time. It will be a pain to have to keep connecting up a battery charger. I've thought about a solar panel charger when when I leave it at work (using rear compartment 12v socket), but that's treating the symptom, not the cause.

Intrigued about the change of software - will mention that before I take the car in, so the Service dept can look it up.

[Mike Jenvey]

Ok, all sorted - a big Thank You to tomto147 for the pointer towards a software issue.

I was advised that the "Central Electronic Module" required a software up-date.

So, fingers crossed......

[tomto147]

My software upgrade was done several weeks ago
No problems with the battery since then

Originally Posted by Mike Jenvey

Ok, all sorted - a big Thank You to tomto147 for the pointer towards a software issue.

I was advised that the "Central Electronic Module" required a software up-date.

So, fingers crossed......

[Skelly]

I have read this thread with interest as I too have had the battery on my XC60 (brought new in July 2010) go completely flat. First time was in November the car had been left on our drive for 1 week, came home and nothing. Had to use key to open door etc etc. Next time over Christmas car was unused for 3 weeks same again.

After both events car was taken straight to local dealer, first time they said nothing wrong with the car or battery (i.e. no fault codes). Second time they did detect a higher than normal current draw but stated it was caused by the hoist I have had fitted in the boot to lift my mobility scooter in and out. So they (unhelpfully) disconnected the hoist power lead from the battery.

The hoist installers (and myself) have checked the hoist and there is absolutely no current draw when it is switched off. I know for a fact it was switched off on both occasions.

I mentioned to the dealers technician that this forum mentioned a software update that may fix the problem, but he was unaware of any updates that would help.

Could Mike Jenvey or tomto147 tell me if this software update has a part number or some other identity that my dealer may recognise on the Volvo system?

Hope you guy's can help

[SKH]

My car was serviced on 27th December and put in the garage when I came home until 31 Jan (we use my wife's car for local running around), almost 5 weeks. It started with no problems at all, as it always has after being left for several weeks.

There is no reason why a battery should go flat in a week or so unless there is a fault with the car. Hopefully the software update will solve these problems but I wonder why it only affects some cars?

[micheljams]

It appears that you have two problems, the first is that the car battery is not charging. The battery should be 12.6 volts DC before cranking.Vehicle should be able to operate without batteries after it starts. Solve a problem with stress, because the battery with a voltmeter next.Check volts it should be between 13.6 to 14.7 volts DC.