Battery Issue? AGM Lifetime?

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dc_v01

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So 2 weeks ago I had a slew of warnings, DSC Not Available, Terrain Response Not Available, Emergency Braking Not Available (or words to that effect). Truck drove fine and the warnings were gone on next start. It was cold that day. Last week I had an HDC not available warning, came on during driving, probably also cold that day, also gone on next start. I've read this can be anything from battery, to brake light switch, ground point on passenger side, to actual problem with rear locker.

Since the battery is 4.5 years old, I'm assuming this is the likely cause? It starts just fine.

I see that replacing with an AGM is a popular upgrade. Has anyone had these long enough now to make a lifetime comparison?

I read conflicting info on how ok it is to replace a flooded battery with an AGM based on charging profiles. One I read said Odyssey AGMs should never be charged with over 14.0V, my LR4 was charging at 14.5V at startup. OTOH the LR4 has a battery management system so I think it would be compatible.

The system on these trucks is frustrating - I couldn't even run the radio with the engine off for more than 5-7 minutes before it shuts down even when the battery was brand-new. That time is now down to probably 1-2 minutes which makes me think the battery is the source of the original problem. Yet the battery is still reading 12+V and starts the truck fine. I usually get at least 8 years out of a battery on my other vehicles.
 

ktm525

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You will get 3-5 years out of a standard lead acid (H8, not the puny H7 lol)
AGM may buy you 2-3 extra years?

The LR4 has an appetite for batteries.

I bought an H8 Energizer H8 from Costco delivered to my door for no more than a standard lead acid.
 

CThody

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I have a battery question as well - a couple of days ago my Eco warning light came on, at the same time heated steering wheel and heated seats stopped giving out any heat... The Disco 4 is 2015 and has a new Secondary battery, but I suspect it is still on the original main one. Could the main battery beginning to fail be the issue here? It seems a strange coincidence that all three stopped at the same time.

Unless I am imagining things, there may be a small amount of heat in the seats, but nothing like there was.
 

DirtyHal

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2.5 years so far on my AGM with no issues, I hook it up to a battery tender a couple times a year. Reportedly the LR4 doesn't do a good job of fully recharging batteries so I try to do a little maintenance.
 

AdventureTim

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I had a genuine Land Rover battery replaced ~2.5 years ago and I recently switched it out because it was failing. It does feel like these things go through batteries at a crazy rate - I'm assuming based on where it's located that it runs very hot which shortens its lifespan.
 

CThody

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I had a genuine Land Rover battery replaced ~2.5 years ago and I recently switched it out because it was failing. It does feel like these things go through batteries at a crazy rate - I'm assuming based on where it's located that it runs very hot which shortens its lifespan.
What indications were you getting that it was failing? Did you just notice a reduction in performance at start up for example, or did other electrical ancillaries begin to not work?
 

Michael Gain

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I have a battery question as well - a couple of days ago my Eco warning light came on, at the same time heated steering wheel and heated seats stopped giving out any heat... The Disco 4 is 2015 and has a new Secondary battery, but I suspect it is still on the original main one. Could the main battery beginning to fail be the issue here? It seems a strange coincidence that all three stopped at the same time.

Unless I am imagining things, there may be a small amount of heat in the seats, but nothing like there was.

You're not crazy. It's the power supply distribution box (PSDB).

I cover this same issue in my traxide install thread:

https://www.landroverworld.org/threads/2014-2016-traxide-dual-battery-kit-lessons-learned.42404/

In your case, check for any codes (AutoZone or your own code reader) and also check the fuses contained within the PSDB. Also, check to make sure that the connectors are tight. You may need a new PSDB... but try the small things first.
 

AdventureTim

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What indications were you getting that it was failing? Did you just notice a reduction in performance at start up for example, or did other electrical ancillaries begin to not work?

The car would fire up fine every time, but more and more regularly I would see the warning on the dash stating the battery was low and to start as soon as possible. This began when I was at camp and opened the doors pretty regularly, but then it was occurring more and more often - sometimes when I unlocked the car first thing in the morning. I decided to replace it as a preventative measure. When I switched it out at Batteries Plus, they threw the battery on a tester and claimed it was no good (obviously they're biased though).
 

Miguel T

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The car would fire up fine every time, but more and more regularly I would see the warning on the dash stating the battery was low and to start as soon as possible. This began when I was at camp and opened the doors pretty regularly, but then it was occurring more and more often - sometimes when I unlocked the car first thing in the morning. I decided to replace it as a preventative measure. When I switched it out at Batteries Plus, they threw the battery on a tester and claimed it was no good (obviously they're biased though).

AdventureTim, please check your PM.
 

bbyer

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So 2 weeks ago I had a slew of warnings, DSC Not Available, Terrain Response Not Available, Emergency Braking Not Available (or words to that effect). Truck drove fine and the warnings were gone on next start. It was cold that day. Last week I had an HDC not available warning, came on during driving, probably also cold that day, also gone on next start. I've read this can be anything from battery, to brake light switch, ground point on passenger side, to actual problem with rear locker.

Since the battery is 4.5 years old, I'm assuming this is the likely cause? It starts just fine.

I see that replacing with an AGM is a popular upgrade. Has anyone had these long enough now to make a lifetime comparison?

I read conflicting info on how ok it is to replace a flooded battery with an AGM based on charging profiles. One I read said Odyssey AGMs should never be charged with over 14.0V, my LR4 was charging at 14.5V at startup. OTOH the LR4 has a battery management system so I think it would be compatible.

The system on these trucks is frustrating - I couldn't even run the radio with the engine off for more than 5-7 minutes before it shuts down even when the battery was brand-new. That time is now down to probably 1-2 minutes which makes me think the battery is the source of the original problem. Yet the battery is still reading 12+V and starts the truck fine. I usually get at least 8 years out of a battery on my other vehicles.
Yes, probably your battery, and the good news is not everything breaks down at once, not even in a Land Rover.

My view is that the more red lights etc one gets at the same time, that suggests the problem is minor but near impossible to figure out just what it is.

I am speaking of my LR3 when I say this, but all the factory batteries in the newer LR3's and I suppose 4's are what is called AGM, that is the Absorbed Glass Mat design.

There is no cap or even hint of a screw cap - these things are sealed but they do have a vent hole on each end - one end should be plugged off and the other connected to the vent hose so when they "cook off", the vapors end up down by the front fender and not generally in the engine compartment.

I use the Interstate 94R/H7 MTP-H7 battery for the main #1 cranking battery as it fits better than the specified H8 - less long, 12.38" vs 13.94". The MTP-H7 Interstate lasts 3 maybe 4 years for me and when I say that, I mean that while the engine will start, the computers will not.

Remember, the 3 was the world's first mobile 4x4 computer and a first go at the electric truck as well - a less than perfect battery spells trouble for the computers and yes, the engine will always start but the 5 volt computers will not. I think they have lousy voltage converters and need at least 12.5 volts (maybe 13VDC) to yield 5VDC to the chips - you are driving a computer.

As to the radio shutting off, see my gallery info per the link below re how I decreased the radio shut down voltage setting from the factory 13.5 volt setting to 11.8 VDC. This was for the radio in my LR3 but I presume the setup is similar for the LR4. I think the radio setting of 13.5 volts was to make certain the computers always had something near 13 volts or you get red lights.

http://www.disco3.co.uk/gallery/displayimage.php?album=34462&pos=16

The link below is to a collection of files re the Infortainment / Nav system including some material re the fibre optic MOST buss.

http://www.disco3.co.uk/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=34462
 

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