Having had to call out River Canal Rescue last week, it was with a wry smile that I summoned the AA when we got back to the marina. My oldish Honda Jazz Sport has been totally reliable since I bought it, and was assured on that occasion that it had been so since the previous owner had had it from new. Indeed, the AA man who attended this week said, "A Honda Jazz? They don't go wrong!"
It was only a flat battery. Well, a battery, one cell of which had died totally. The reason, said the AA man, was that I use the car too little, and allow the battery voltage to drop too low. I leave it for weeks at a time, several times a year, and even when we're living in the marina, it often doesn't get used for over a week at a time. So what happens, I was told, is that the plates in the battery cells develop deposits of sulphates, and these can eventually cause a short circuit between adjacent plates. This is what had happened to one cell in my battery. Time to get a new battery.
Mr AA man jump-started the car and left it with a charging pack for ten minutes, after which I took it for a spin to charge it more. The car would restart and drive several times that day, he said, but it'd be useless the next day. I checked on the web, and found that the Rugby branch of Halfords had a battery in stock, so I drove over and bought it, and fitted it there.
The AA guy also told me that the way to prevent damaging the battery through under-use was to buy a car battery solar charger to keep the battery fully charged all of the time. The AA had these on special offer on their website, so I duly ordered one, and await its delivery.
Thank goodness for these rescue services!
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