Chrysler PT Cruiser. Manual - part 478

(2) Disconnect and isolate the battery negative

cable. Connect the battery charger leads. Some bat-
tery chargers are equipped with polarity-sensing cir-
cuitry. This circuitry protects the battery charger and
the battery from being damaged if they are improp-
erly connected. If the battery state-of-charge is too
low for the polarity-sensing circuitry to detect, the
battery charger will not operate. This makes it
appear that the battery will not accept charging cur-
rent. See the instructions provided by the manufac-
turer of the battery charger for details on how to
bypass the polarity-sensing circuitry.

(3) Battery chargers vary in the amount of voltage

and current they provide. The amount of time
required for a battery to accept measurable charging
current at various voltages is shown in the Charge
Rate Table. If the charging current is still not mea-
surable at the end of the charging time, the battery
is faulty and must be replaced. If the charging cur-
rent is measurable during the charging time, the bat-
tery may be good and the charging should be
completed in the normal manner.

SPIRAL-PLATE BATTERY CHARGE RATE TABLE

Voltage

Minutes

14.4 volts maximum

up to 10 minutes

13.0 to 14 volts

up to 20 minutes

12.9 volts or less

up to 30 minutes

CHARGING TIME REQUIRED

The time required to charge a battery will vary,

depending upon the following factors:

• Battery Capacity - A completely discharged

heavy-duty battery requires twice the charging time
of a small capacity battery.

• Temperature - A longer time will be needed to

charge a battery at -18° C (0° F) than at 27° C (80°
F). When a fast battery charger is connected to a cold
battery, the current accepted by the battery will be
very low at first. As the battery warms, it will accept
a higher charging current rate (amperage).

• Charger Capacity - A battery charger that

supplies only five amperes will require a longer
charging time. A battery charger that supplies eight
amperes will require a shorter charging time.

• State-Of-Charge - A completely discharged bat-

tery requires more charging time than a partially
discharged battery. Electrolyte is nearly pure water
in a completely discharged battery. At first, the
charging current (amperage) will be low. As the bat-
tery charges, the specific gravity of the electrolyte
will gradually rise.

The Battery Charging Time Table gives an indica-

tion of the time required to charge a typical battery
at room temperature based upon the battery state-of-
charge and the charger capacity.

SPIRAL-PLATE BATTERY CHARGING TIME

TABLE

Charging

Amperage

5 Amps

8 Amps

Open Circuit

Voltage

Hours Charging @ 21°

C (70° F)

12.25 to 12.49

6 hours

3 hours

12.00 to 12.24

10 hours

5 hours

10.00 to 11.99

14 hours

7 hours

Below 10.00

18 hours

9 hours

STANDARD PROCEDURE - CONVENTIONAL
BATTERY CHARGING

Vehicles equipped with a diesel engine utilize a

unique spiral plate battery. This battery has a maxi-
mum charging voltage that must be used in order to
restore the battery to its full potential, failure to use
the spiral plate battery charging procedure could
result in damage to the battery or personal injury.

Battery charging is the means by which the bat-

tery can be restored to its full voltage potential. A
battery is fully-charged when:

• Micro 420 battery tester indicates battery is OK.

• Open-circuit voltage of the battery is 12.65 volts

or above.

• Battery passes Load Test multiple times.

WARNING: IF THE BATTERY SHOWS SIGNS OF
FREEZING, LEAKING, LOOSE POSTS, DO NOT
TEST, ASSIST-BOOST, OR CHARGE. THE BATTERY
MAY ARC INTERNALLY AND EXPLODE. PERSONAL
INJURY AND/OR VEHICLE DAMAGE MAY RESULT.

WARNING: EXPLOSIVE HYDROGEN GAS FORMS IN
AND AROUND THE BATTERY. DO NOT SMOKE,
USE FLAME, OR CREATE SPARKS NEAR THE BAT-
TERY. PERSONAL INJURY AND/OR VEHICLE DAM-
AGE MAY RESULT.

WARNING: THE BATTERY CONTAINS SULFURIC
ACID, WHICH IS POISONOUS AND CAUSTIC. AVOID
CONTACT WITH THE SKIN, EYES, OR CLOTHING.
IN THE EVENT OF CONTACT, FLUSH WITH WATER
AND CALL A PHYSICIAN IMMEDIATELY. KEEP OUT
OF THE REACH OF CHILDREN.

8F - 10

BATTERY SYSTEM

BATTERY (Continued)

WARNING: IF THE BATTERY IS EQUIPPED WITH
REMOVABLE CELL CAPS, BE CERTAIN THAT EACH
OF THE CELL CAPS IS IN PLACE AND TIGHT
BEFORE THE BATTERY IS RETURNED TO SER-
VICE. PERSONAL INJURY AND/OR VEHICLE DAM-
AGE MAY RESULT FROM LOOSE OR MISSING
CELL CAPS.

CAUTION: Always disconnect and isolate the bat-
tery negative cable before charging a battery. Do
not exceed sixteen volts while charging a battery.
Damage to the vehicle electrical system compo-
nents may result.

CAUTION: Battery electrolyte will bubble inside the
battery case during normal battery charging. Elec-
trolyte boiling or being discharged from the battery
vents indicates a battery overcharging condition.
Immediately reduce the charging rate or turn off the
charger to evaluate the battery condition. Damage
to the battery may result from overcharging.

CAUTION: The battery should not be hot to the
touch. If the battery feels hot to the touch, turn off
the charger and let the battery cool before continu-
ing the charging operation. Damage to the battery
may result.

After the battery has been charged to an open-cir-

cuit voltage reading of 12.4 volts or greater, retest
the battery with the Micro 420 tester or perform a
load test to determine the battery cranking capacity.
Refer to Standard Procedures for the proper battery
load test procedures. If the battery will pass a load
test, return the battery to service. If the battery will
not pass a load test, it is faulty and must be
replaced.

Clean and inspect the battery hold downs, tray,

terminals, posts, and top before completing battery
service. Refer to Battery System Cleaning for the
proper battery system cleaning procedures, and Bat-
tery System Inspection for the proper battery system
inspection procedures.

CHARGING A COMPLETELY DISCHARGED
CONVENTIONAL BATTERY

The following procedure should be used to recharge

a completely discharged battery. Unless this proce-
dure is properly followed, a good battery may be
needlessly replaced.

(1) Measure the voltage at the battery posts with a

voltmeter, accurate to 1/10 (0.10) volt (Fig. 7). If the
reading is below ten volts, the battery charging cur-
rent will be low. It could take some time before the

battery accepts a current greater than a few milliam-
peres. Such low current may not be detectable on the
ammeters built into many battery chargers.

(2) Disconnect and isolate the battery negative

(3) Battery chargers vary in the amount of voltage

CONVENTIONAL BATTERY CHARGE RATE TABLE

Voltage

Minutes

16.0 volts maximum

up to 10 min.

14.0 to 15.9 volts

up to 20 min.

13.9 volts or less

up to 30 min.

CHARGING TIME REQUIRED

The time required to charge a battery will vary,

depending upon the following factors:

• Battery Capacity - A completely discharged

heavy-duty battery requires twice the charging time
of a small capacity battery.

Fig. 7 Voltmeter - Typical

BATTERY SYSTEM

8F - 11

BATTERY (Continued)

• Temperature - A longer time will be needed to

• Charger Capacity - A battery charger that

supplies only five amperes will require a longer
charging time. A battery charger that supplies
twenty amperes or more will require a shorter charg-
ing time.

• State-Of-Charge - A completely discharged bat-

The Conventional Battery Charging Time Table

gives an indication of the time required to charge a
typical battery at room temperature based upon the
battery state-of-charge and the charger capacity.

CONVENTIONAL BATTERY CHARGING TIME TABLE

Charging

Amperage

5 Amps

Amps

20 Amps

Open Circuit

Voltage

Hours Charging @ 21° C

(70° F)

12.25 to 12.49

6 hours

3 hours

1.5

hours

12.00 to 12.24

10 hours

5 hours

2.5

hours

10.00 to 11.99

14 hours

7 hours

3.5

hours

Below 10.00

18 hours

9 hours

4.5

hours

STANDARD PROCEDURE - USING MICRO 420
BATTERY TESTER

Always use the Micro 420 Instruction Manual that

was supplied with the tester as a reference. If the
Instruction Manual is not available the following pro-
cedure can be used:

WARNING: ALWAYS

WEAR APPROPRIATE

EYE

PROTECTION AND USE EXTREME CAUTION WHEN
WORKING WITH BATTERIES.

BATTERY TESTING

(1) If testing the battery OUT-OF-VEHICLE, clean

the battery terminals with a wire brush before test-
ing. If the battery is equipped with side post termi-
nals, install and tighten the supplied lead terminal

stud adapters. Do not use steel bolts. Failure to prop-
erly install the stud adapters, or using stud adapters
that are dirty or worn-out may result in false test
readings.

(2) If testing the battery IN-THE-VEHICLE, make

certain all of the vehicle accessory loads are OFF,
including the ignition. The preferred test position
is at the battery terminal. If the battery is not
accessible, you may test using both the positive and
negative jumper posts. Select TESTING AT JUMPER
POST when connecting to that location.

(3) Connect the tester (Fig. 8) to the battery or

jumper posts, the red clamp to positive (+) and the
black clamp to negative (–).

NOTE: Multiple batteries connected in parallel must
have the ground cable disconnected to perform a
battery test. Failure to disconnect may result in
false battery test readings.

NOTE: When testing the battery in a PT Cruiser,
always test at the battery terminals

(4) Using the ARROW key select in or out of vehi-

cle testing and press ENTER to make a selection.

(5) If not selected, choose the Cold Cranking Amp

(CCA) battery rating. Or select the appropriate bat-
tery rating for your area (see menu). The tester will
then run its self programmed test of the battery and
display the results. Refer to the test result table
noted below.

Fig. 8 Micro 420 Battery Tester

8F - 12

BATTERY SYSTEM

BATTERY (Continued)

CAUTION: If REPLACE BATTERY is the result of the
test, this may mean a poor connection between the
vehicle’s cables and battery exists. After discon-
necting the vehicle’s battery cables from the bat-
tery, retest the battery using the OUT-OF-VEHICLE
test before replacing.

(6) While viewing the battery test result, press the

CODE button and the tester will prompt you for the
last 4 digits of the VIN. Use the UP/DOWN arrow
buttons to scroll to the correct character; then press
ENTER to select and move to the next digit. Then
press the ENTER button to view the SERVICE
CODE. Pressing the CODE button a second time will
return you to the test results.

BATTERY TEST RESULTS

GOOD BATTERY

Return to service

GOOD - RECHARGE

Fully charge battery and

return to service

CHARGE & RETEST

Fully charge battery and

retest battery

REPLACE BATTERY

Replace the battery and

retest complete system

BAD-CELL REPLACE

Replace the battery and

retest complete system

NOTE: The SERVICE CODE is required on every
warranty claim submitted for battery replacement.

STANDARD PROCEDURE - OPEN-CIRCUIT
VOLTAGE TEST

A battery open-circuit voltage (no load) test will

show the approximate state-of-charge of a battery.

Before proceeding with this test, completely charge

the battery (Refer to 8 - ELECTRICAL/BATTERY
SYSTEM/BATTERY - STANDARD PROCEDURE).

(1) Before measuring the open-circuit voltage, the

surface charge must be removed from the battery.
Turn on the headlamps for fifteen seconds, then
allow up to five minutes for the battery voltage to
stabilize.

(2) Disconnect and isolate both battery cables, neg-

ative cable first.

(3) Using a voltmeter connected to the battery

posts (see the instructions provided by the manufac-
turer of the voltmeter), measure the open-circuit volt-
age (Fig. 9).

See the Open-Circuit Voltage Table. This voltage

reading will indicate the battery state-of-charge, but
will not reveal its cranking capacity. If a battery has
an open-circuit voltage reading of 12.4 volts or
greater, it may be load tested to reveal its cranking
capacity.

OPEN CIRCUIT VOLTAGE TABLE

Open Circuit Voltage

Charge Percentage

11.7 volts or less

12.0 volts

25%

12.2 volts

50%

12.4 volts

75%

12.6 volts or more

100%

STANDARD PROCEDURE - IGNITION-OFF
DRAW TEST

The term Ignition-Off Draw (IOD) identifies a nor-

mal condition where power is being drained from the
battery with the ignition switch in the Off position. A
normal vehicle electrical system will draw from five
to thirty-five milliamperes (0.005 to 0.035 ampere)
with the ignition switch in the Off position, and all
non-ignition controlled circuits in proper working
order. Up to thirty-five milliamperes are needed to
enable the memory functions for the Powertrain Con-
trol Module (PCM), digital clock, electronically tuned
radio, and other modules which may vary with the
vehicle equipment.

A vehicle that has not been operated for approxi-

mately twenty days, may discharge the battery to an
inadequate level. When a vehicle will not be used for
twenty days or more (stored), remove the IOD fuse
from the Power Distribution Center (PDC). This will
reduce battery discharging.

Excessive IOD can be caused by:
• Electrical items left on.

• Faulty or improperly adjusted switches.

• Faulty or shorted electronic modules and compo-

nents.

• An internally shorted generator.

• Intermittent shorts in the wiring.
If the IOD is over thirty-five milliamperes, the

problem must be found and corrected before replac-
ing a battery. In most cases, the battery can be

Fig. 9 Testing Open-Circuit Voltage - Typical

BATTERY SYSTEM

8F - 13

BATTERY (Continued)

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