2013 RT Ltd not starting - any ideas?

[vtspyderduo]

I have dash flicking on several times. Battery is fully charged, cleaned all connections
Turned key on and dash is flashing, parking lights doing same. Does this several times then nothing.
Temp. gauge needle jumping and then everything stops.
Any ideas on what could be wrong.

Thanks in advance for any help

[Mikey]

Check to make sure your grounds are CLEAN and tight, Both ends!!!

[Peter Aawen]

How old is your battery?? The dash playing up like that sounds very much like a dead or dying battery, and that doesn't necessarily mean it won't reach 13+ volts when fully charged by an external charger; but it does usually mean the volts drop below about 12v when you try to start!

You probably should get your battery load tested, and as mentioned, our power hungry Spyders really need a battery that maintains a fairly good voltage under starting loads - most cars will get away with about 11v under starting load, but not a Spyder! If they drop much below 12v, starting &/or dash display issues are likely to occur!

If you don't have a load tester but do have & basically know how to use a multi-meter, you can do a rudimentary load test with one of them as follows:

1. Check battery voltage in situ after it's been sitting for 12 hours not running/no charging - record/report here;
2. Check battery voltage with JUST ignition turned on - record/report here;
3. Check battery voltage AS CRANKING starter motor - record/report here;
4. Check battery voltage once engine is running at idle - record/report here; &
5. Check battery voltage when engine running at 3000 rpm no load - record/report here!

So if you come back with those 5 battery voltage readings, we should be able to give you some idea of your battery's condition, esp under load.... OR you could just take your battery &/or Spyder to your nearest auto elec/battery place & let them load test the battery for you!

Over to you!

[IGETAROUND]

take your battery to Battery + and have it load tested, I'd say you need a new battery.

Al in Kazoo

[Piratezz]

Peter is spot on (he usually is), me thinks there a bad cell in the battery, fully charged, does not mean fully functional...in this case, I saw in your signature a 2013 rtl, is it still the original battery?
That would make you a very lucky guy, even with proper maintenance, a battery, can go bad overnight...

[Bfromla]

+1 load test, FYI possibly also lost trip meters with dash flicker.

[vtspyderduo]

Thanks for all the info. All connections were cleaned and tightened and battery is 2 yrs, old with tender used.
Will have it load tested. Will let you know what I find.

[Peter Aawen]

Yeah, 2 y/old shouldn't be bad, but even brand new batteries can fail; and also, using a tender all the time/too much can be a bit of a trap and actually shorten the battery's life rather than prolong it.

It's best to just never put your Spyder away without a fully charged battery &/or after a good run of at least 30 mins ast Hwy Speeds, longer if you were only tooling around at lower revs; and then unless you're going to leave it sit for more than just a few weeks, don't put it on a tender!

Keep the tender for those prolonged periods of no running, and even then, unless it's a 'smart tender/battery maintainer' that has a discharge/de-sulphate/float period or cycle built in, it's probably best to take it off the tender for at least 1 week out of every 4.... or therebouts!

[vtspyderduo]

It was the battery and come to find out it was 4 years old. I will take the advice about tender use.