JaCqEeZ

So to my knowledge there was no open door or any lights on. There were no previous signs of it dying. And it happened in a few hours which is odd. Ive left dome lights on overnight in my old car and never had an issue. Does the relay for the HID's pull from the battery when the car is off ever? Only thing I could really think of.

Nopike

iTrader: (2)

Welcome to the club. My 98 Maxima I could leave the headlight lights on all afternoon and the car would still start.

The problem with the 7th gen is either the OEM Johnson Controls battery is junk and has very little reserve capacity. Or the car just draws a lot of current when in it's "resting state". Others have said the battery is garbage and have replaced it. They are probably right. I plan to measure how much current is drawn with just the radio on or a door open. If it appears to be normal then I will probably plan to replace the OEM battery. I guess you could get the OEM battery tested and see how it compares to a Diehard or some other popular brand.

Yes there is an issue here and you have to be careful with this car or your battery will die unexpectedly.

As far as relay harness, are you talking about adding aftermarket HID's? If so you would need to measure current draw with the harness disconnected and see how that compares.

JaCqEeZ

Ok, i almost hope it boils down to a junk battery. I might just look into getting a new one.

Nopike

iTrader: (2)

You could try getting it tested. I think many places will do it for free. I read of people's batteries dying because they sat for a while listening to their radio. That's pretty bad. The LCD display or radio should not use that much more current than radios in the past.

JaCqEeZ

So my tire pressure light came on when the battery died and is not going off. Anything I can do to fix it or do the sensors need to get reset or some ****.

Nopike

iTrader: (2)

All the addional technology they add to the cars is great for the dealers bottom lines. For consumers.... maybe not so much.


The advanced search feature of this forum can come in real handy.

http://forums.maxima.org/search.php?searchid=3078166

http://forums.maxima.org/7th-generat...idding-me.html

You can try disconnecting the batteries negative lead for 3-5 minutes. It works for the check engine light. I don't know if it will work for the TPMS.

BBmaxi

iTrader: (1)

change the battery

JimShady84

I bought my Max brand new and had to get the battery replaced after a year and a half. That's after the dealership told me that it tested fine. Haven't had a problem since.

zoemayne

iTrader: (4)

If it happened only once than I wouldnt be so quick to test the battery etc. A few weeks ago because of the push button start I left the car on and the Sat radio was even playing for over an hour... I dont know how I could of failed in turning the car off... When cutting the engine off do you ever hit the start button twice rapidly to avoid turning the radio off? Thats what I think happened to me... Its ridiculous the car is not smart enough to turn off under that situation.

Randy

All

I have fully loaded 2012 Maxima SV Premium with Tech Package.
Color White with beige interior. Dec 2013 the battery quit , dead , dead. So car was 16 month's old with 9500 miles. Normal I wouldn't want the dealer
to handle any work on my cars because they always dirty things. Anyway
I was able to get the car started with a battery booster. Went directly over
to the dealer I purcahsed the car from. They played the well most likley
you left some lights on or something drained the battery. They ran a test and
sure enough the battery was dead. Service manager informed me that they
were replacing the battery with a new one No charge to me. As it turns out
the car comes with a 500/550 CCA battery. They replaced it with a 700/750
CCA battery. Additionally the new battery is bigger in size so the so called
shield that was around the orginal battery no long fits. No big deal. Its seems they don't put a big enough battery in the Maxima anymore.
By the way all other Maxima's I have had since the 90's never had battery
problems.

Randy

Nopike

iTrader: (2)

Cheaper parts mean more profit for Nissan. If they have to replace batteries for a few customers under warranty, still no big deal.

gravkillz

If I could chime in for a bit about batteries...

Most manufacture batteries are based off of the same technology. It's basically the same type Lead Acid 6 Cell battery I really haven't seen them vary much in the tech they use. I'm not talking about Gel or AGM batteries just Lead Acid type.

What always kills these types of batteries is the car off discharge or standby. Your car will always draw when it is off and you must rely on the alternators ability to recharge what your car has used while it was sitting off/standby. Many times short trips wont produce the charge necessary to replenish batteries especially if your bumping the radio and using accessories. Manufactures usually rate the batteries for SLI (Starter, Lights, Ignition) notice accessories isn't really included, that is because they expect the alternator to replenish the battery charge. Anyway, a battery like lead acid rarely goes bad because of usage but mostly because of contamination. Contamination is inevitable its in the air stuff oxidizes acids in the battery lose the Proper PH level to make a transfer to the lead cells. Your battery works on a yo-yo effect changing the lead cells to lead sulfate and when the battery gets a charge it turns back to lead.

When you discharge your battery the lead cells are covered with lead sulfate and is very hard to reverse the process as the lead sulfate forms to crystals in the discharged state. The crystals are hard to brake up and often the lead cells shed a layer of these crystals. This whole process is called sulfation and eventually leads to massive buildup of this non-conductive crystals and will short your negative to your positive making your battery worthless.

Ok... boring I know but now that you understand the process the best practice is use a trickle charge of 2 amps to maintain your batteries health. I never rely on the alternator to charge my battery fully especially if I got a bigger than stock battery. The rule of thumb is always keep your battery at max charge and your battery will essentially never get old.

I know I'm a novel writer but it almost over. Manufactures never tell you that you should keep your battery charged to its max capacity because in the end if you replace a battery you give them money. However, some manufactures like VW often include an optional package to keep your battery at full with a cigarette plug solar panel. This method works great if you live in Sunnyville.

I also sell a custom package AGM battery to many of my Diesel customers as many of the workers never turn off their trucks and the rpms are low and they often use 120v/220v inverters off the back of their trucks. That's how many of my customers solve their power issues. Anyway, if you would like to know more information just hit me up anytime. I'm working on a lot of projects right now and I have tons of Maxima stuff I'm working on or designing a AGM battery pack is one of those things.

Ok I have typed enough... you know I love my Maxima and like belonging to a forum of fellow Machine lovers. I hope I can continue to help and contribute. Thanks for the read.

Nopike

iTrader: (2)

Thanks for the lesson on battery technology. I find your posts very informative and appreciate you sharing your insight.

I have had lead acid batteries in my cars for over thirty years. As long as I was reasonably careful I never had an issue with the batteries being accidently discharged. With the vehicle off I could play my radio and use other accessories for an hour or two and still start my vehicle easily. On occasion I even left my headlights on accidently. My 98 Maxima would still start hours later.

One day I accidently left my 2014 in accessory mode, nothing on, and a few hours later it was dead. On another occasion a couple of weeks later. I was working on the car and needed to move the seats a couple of times and had the interior lights on for a short period of time. The car barely started a couple of hours later. Others have had similar experiences with these OEM batteries. I don't expect my battery to last forever. I'm fine with replacing it after 4-5 years. I also don't expect to have to trickle charge it every time I park it in my garage. I have never had to do that with any of my batteries. I expect a battery that allows me to be confident that it will start my vehicle even if it is not fully charged.

gravkillz

It would be nice if OEM batteries were rated on something other than SLI. They should add OEM accessories into the mix but I believe federal law only mandates the minimum standard which is SLI. The smaller the cells the lower the rating on ampere hour unfortunately with lead acid batteries. I usually always change my OEM out with an AGM.

Trickle charging was always a requirement for vehicles 1980 and older. Manufactures even put trickle charging requirements in the owners manuals. I don't know if they do anymore. It just goes to show either how advanced our technology has become or how they just don't care anymore.

13Maximasv

Here is a cool video of the absorbed glass technology Die Hard Batteries

gravkillz

Odyssey makes DieHard batteries. I personally use UPG because the plates are bigger or are as big as name branded types. I hate passing the cost of branding to the customer unless the customer requests a brand.

The video did a nice job of explaining AGM batteries. Majority of batteries have heat resistant cases but they aren't impervious to overheating from overcharging or from rapid discharge. So overall "heat" is the issue but the classification is very general.

Many customers in my opinion overuse there tiny OEM batteries causing premature failure, it certainly isn't the customers fault. I believe that the OEM batteries are getting smaller and smaller to cut on cost. The SLI rating system for OEM's isn't valid anymore. The customer is then stuck trying to figure out what is wrong with their vehicle. All the while every autoshop/mechanic along the way makes a $90 battery a $500 battery.

13Maximasv

Unless something just changed I'm guessing you mean Oddysey makes the Diehard Platinum and AGM batteries because Johnson Controls makes the Die Hard Gold, etc

Ross2893

Get a DieHard Platinum and call it a day. Yeah it's going to cost you $220 and yeah its going to weigh 50lbs vs 35lbs from the stock battery but I've had it since late November and I have had no problems. even comes with 4 year replacement warranty. Definitely better than the Yellow Top, Red Top, and any other AGM batteries on the market for our car!

13Maximasv

I had a Die hard Gold North that lasted 10 years ( never totally died , just was showing less CCA's) in the extreme heat and Cold of Minnesota and Connecticut.

$220 for a battery, unless I lived in someplace like Vegas I would pass

ChrisMan287

iTrader: (34)

It wasn't the HID relay harness.

Ross2893

Yeah they're some reliable batteries. I will admit the DieHard Platinum is overkill but it's costing the same price as the Yellow Top and slightly cheaper than the Red Top and it beats both these AGM batteries.

But yes, heat is not the only culprit. My stock battery died on campus (CCSU) because the acid froze over in 16 degree weather and I was only getting 50 out of 550 CCA.. Ouch.. (Thank god for AAA because a jump did nothing)

Again this battery is overkill because of what it offers vs what is actually needed but I've seen people invest in worse things like spending $1,549* on a AAM Blue Tip Exhaust System and realistically only getting 5-12 horses.

While it's a great exhaust system, that amount of money for that amount of ponies is one hard saddle to get on..

But hey, you know the saying; it ain't tricking if you got it! So to each his own.

gravkillz

Yes you are correct. I was referring to AGM batteries by Diehard. Enersys technically owns Odyssey batteries its all re-branding. I believe that Johnson Controls makes the optima line of Gel batteries which are pretty much trash in my opinion. The optima line only carries a one year warranty.

Ross2893

Yeah the Optima brand's quality changed for the worse when they company relocated their factories. DieHard Platinum for the AGM win!!

gravkillz

I've also noticed my cars run better with AGMs. If you check your voltages with a Spectrum analyzer you can see a considerable reduction in overall noise. AGM's just have a cleaner ground connection. Of course the materials used to build a battery have a lot to do with this. I've just noticed the AGM's I use don't hum with audio applications.

Ross2893

Good point. But yeah what really sucks about the DieHard Platinum is the freaking weight!!! It's 50lbs and that is ridiculously heavy for a car battery. The stock battery is only 35lbs in that regards.

gravkillz

Yeah the weight is a major downer especially if you mount an extra in the trunk for audio. Imagine trying to pull it out in the middle of all that wiring to trickle charge.

I'm game for Lithium Ion if they ever get them cheap enough to mount inside the engine bay.

Ross2893

Yeah you're right but honestly I installed my DieHard battery myself in 20 minutes right outside of Sears Auto. Lifting it isn't the bad part, it's the fact that there's more weight being added to this fatty lol

gravkillz

Buy the battery make the Mrs. walk to work, gas mileage stays the same.

Ross2893

Lmao

13Maximasv

Johnson makes Diehard, Interstate, Duralast, Everstart, and Costco ( Kirkland I believe) batteries among others. They also make car interiors, have a HVAC division, etc,, etc


It's my fav stock ( JCI ) and the company is so diversified it's like owning a mutual fund without the fees

OptimaJim

Hello, I noticed your conversation involving our batteries and wanted to offer some assistance. Many newer vehicles have significant key-off loads that will quickly discharge any battery, regardless of brand. Some manufacturers shipping cars from Europe even send them with solar chargers mounted on the windshield to prevent the batteries from being totally discharged during transit. Measuring your parasitic draw is a very good idea and will help you understand how much energy your car consumes when it isn't in use.

To help eliminate the confusion someone may have in reading the conflicting information in this thread, let me clarify that AGM (absorbed glass mat) batteries are lead-acid batteries and are definitely not gel batteries. gravkillz's advice to always keep your battery fully-charged is excellent, although batteries are consumable items with finite lifespans, even when properly-maintained. I do disagree with his suggestion that manufacturers never advise people to keep batteries fully-charged for selfish financial reasons. Our batteries also come with a three-year, free-replacement warranty, not the one year gravkillz suggested. Ross2893, while the quality of our products has always been excellent, the batteries we are producing today are the best we have ever made. While pricing can vary from one retailer to the next, our RedTops are generally less expensive than our YellowTops.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

Nopike

iTrader: (2)

Thank you, that appears to be some very good advice. How much current is generally acceptable for parasitic draw?

I checked my 98 Maxima a few years ago. With everything off it drew 0.1 Amps. Once the car went into sleep mode, after 30-60 seconds, that dropped to 0.01 Amps. Never had any issues with not having enough power to start that car.

I'll have to check my 2014 soon. I understand it has a sleep mode also.

Now if only Nissan would take some interest in this forum

OptimaJim

We typically suggest anything above 100 milliamps (.100 Amps) should be addressed, but it really comes down to how a vehicle is used and how the battery is maintained. For example, a Group 35 RedTop is a 44 Amp-hour battery. If you had a 50-milliamp draw, you would be discharging your battery at a rate of 1.2 Amps per day (.050 x 24 hours). That means your battery would be completely discharged in about 36 days (44 Amp-hours/1.2 Amps) if it was not being maintained at all. Those calculations assume the battery is fully-charged when the car is parked (most are not) and these timeframes can be shorter in hotter climates and longer in temperate climates. Most vehicles also need batteries that are well above a 0% state of charge to start.

Even if a battery is only parked for a few weeks in that scenario, if the vehicle isn't driven long enough and under the right conditions (not short trips with the AC on and the stereo turned up), the alternator may not have enough time to replace the energy that was used during storage and starting. Eventually, that can lead to a discharged battery, even on a vehicle that sees regular use.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

gravkillz

I apologize for the misinformation on the one year deal. I went to a authorized retailer that said he would only honor the 3 year replacement with the original receipt from their store. He then only offered me a pro-rate of only 1 year left.

In regards to the manufactures not suggesting charging... I've ran into many manufactures who will tell customers not to trickle charge their batteries because it ruins their charge systems (BMW, AGM, Alpha Romero). I think it is very contrary to the battery manufactures suggestions. I do know that those who manufacture the batteries always suggest keeping a full charge.

OptimaJim could you elaborate on these two points, also please understand that this isn't an attack on you or your company. I have really wanted to know why this type of stuff happens to the end user. For me running through the hassle of calling corporate offices and or running around town isn't worth the gas or the time.

OptimaJim

gravkillz, just like a lot of other consumer products, like iPods, that are sold at thousands of different retailers, our warranty claims are handled by the original retailer for the duration of the warranty. If I bought an iPod at Sam's Club and took it to Costco for warranty service, I'd be shocked if they offered me any kind of warranty coverage.

I guess I'm confused as to why a manufacturer like BMW would tell you not to use a trickle charger on their vehicles, when BMW sells chargers like this one. While I'm familiar with AGM batteries, I'm not familiar with an auto manufacturer by the same name. I do know Alfa Romeo includes battery maintainers with their 8C, so I'm not sure why someone from that company would tell you not to use one either-


In fact, most, if not all of the high-end automakers all have branded battery maintainers- Mercedes, Porsche, Ferrari, Bentley, Maserati, Lamborghini and many of them include them with new vehicle purchases.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

gravkillz

Thanks for your reply.

I understand about your warranty it only applies where you purchase it from. Its not like a Snap-on tool.

As far as manufactures go they only recommend using their products but i see no need to do such. I have dealt with mostly a European market in the EU. They don't take to kindly to servicing your own vehicle.

AGM was just an an autocorrect error on my part. AMG motors is what I meant to type.

They also state that jumping, recieving or giving is not permited as that also ruins their charging systems. Anyway, I thought i would ask as the only thing im aware of that could be damaged is diodes on the alternator.

Thanks again for answering my questions.