R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
I bought an Odyssey PC210 from an online dealer this week and it arrived. Last night I installed it in my Discovery, but I'm having a bit of an issue...
The instructions say that if it has a 12.65 or better open circuit voltage, it's charged and good to go. It was exactly 12.65, so I dropped it in. I tried to start the truck, and just got clicking. I went back, measured the open circuit voltage again, and it was now reading 12.25.
I broke out my pretty typical automotive battery charger and hooked it up. I read the instructions, and it says that the 2150 will require a 40Amp charge rate to charge it up. It also says that you should not use a standard charger if the voltage goes over 15V, as this will damage the battery. I measured the voltage on the charger, and it started at 14.6V pushing about 7A. After several minutes, the amperage dropped to about 4, but the voltage reading was over 15V, so I disconnected it.
This morning, the truck still wouldn't start, so I jumped it using the old battery. I drove 30 minutes to work and parked it. At lunch I had to go pick up some steel, went out to the truck, it turned over slowly, but wouldn't start. I had to get another jump start. I left the truck idling for 30 minutes while picking up the steel. When I went to leave at 5, it still wouldn't start. Another jump, and drove 30 minutes home. I decided to try it again after getting home, and it very weakly did fire up, finally.
Has anybody else experienced this charger problem? I don't fully understand how the charger works, but how can any charger pump 40 Amps into the battery without going over 15V? Is the battery not taking a charge? Or is it that the battery is so big, it'll take the alternator a while to charge it enough that it will start well?
Or is something wrong with this battery?
I really wasn't expecting this much trouble when I bought it...
The instructions say that if it has a 12.65 or better open circuit voltage, it's charged and good to go. It was exactly 12.65, so I dropped it in. I tried to start the truck, and just got clicking. I went back, measured the open circuit voltage again, and it was now reading 12.25.
I broke out my pretty typical automotive battery charger and hooked it up. I read the instructions, and it says that the 2150 will require a 40Amp charge rate to charge it up. It also says that you should not use a standard charger if the voltage goes over 15V, as this will damage the battery. I measured the voltage on the charger, and it started at 14.6V pushing about 7A. After several minutes, the amperage dropped to about 4, but the voltage reading was over 15V, so I disconnected it.
This morning, the truck still wouldn't start, so I jumped it using the old battery. I drove 30 minutes to work and parked it. At lunch I had to go pick up some steel, went out to the truck, it turned over slowly, but wouldn't start. I had to get another jump start. I left the truck idling for 30 minutes while picking up the steel. When I went to leave at 5, it still wouldn't start. Another jump, and drove 30 minutes home. I decided to try it again after getting home, and it very weakly did fire up, finally.
Has anybody else experienced this charger problem? I don't fully understand how the charger works, but how can any charger pump 40 Amps into the battery without going over 15V? Is the battery not taking a charge? Or is it that the battery is so big, it'll take the alternator a while to charge it enough that it will start well?
Or is something wrong with this battery?
I really wasn't expecting this much trouble when I bought it...
I grabbed my booster cables and the PC625 off the shelf and jumped it. A little slow to crank but it fired up. So now I'm carrying the 625 around with me. It does prove one point though. I had theorized one could install a 680 on the truck as a dedicated staring battery, and the 2150 could be for accessories/backup. Just an option for anybody who wants the 2150 instead of two full size batteries. 
