I found that frozen moisture in the doors of my 1997 Golf was causing the battery to discharge.

Last winter I experienced flat batteries with identical symptoms to those experienced by ST, Eltham. I have a '97 Golf TDI, which I have had for nearly six years. During the very cold spell last year I...

Should I plug my Honda Accord's battery into a charger on a time switch to give it a two-hour daily charge?

I recently had to change the battery on my five-year-old Honda Accord because I only use the car for holidays and long journeys. We use a Jazz day-to-day. It was marginal whether the battery needed changing...

This is a good method for finding the source of a car battery drain.

You wrote of a chap whose batteries ran down after three idle days and gave him a possible theory. Actually, the matter is simple to prove - to anyone with any electrical knowledge. You switch off everything...

Long time standing

I have a 2003 Renault Clio 1.6 automatic which has done only 11,000 miles. It has not turned a wheel in three-years. I have replaced the battery and the key fob is working, ie it locks /unlocks the car....

I bought a Toyota IQ-2 which missed its first service by 1000 miles - what problems could this have caused?

I bought a July 2009 Toyota IQ-2 from a reputable dealer last weekend after receiving a good trade-in value for my car. The advert said that the Toyota had a full service history and had done 11,004 miles....

Starting a car that has been standing for a long tim

My relative has an original 1993 mk1 1275cc Mini which has been sat unused for two years or more. What would I need to do before attempting to restart the car with regard to engine, brakes or anything...

Lexus battery fully charged but car still "dead"

My dad has a 1998 Lexus that isn't used very often and so the battery has gone flat a number of times. He now leaves the battery on charge periodically. However, today he found that the car battery would...

How exactly does a hybrid car work and how is the electric battery charged?

My questions are: 1) How exactly does a hybrid car work? 2) How is the electric part recharged and how far would the average car travel on one charge? 3) Would the driver in reality use the petrol part...

Are Mazda 3s known for being susceptible for battery drain whilst parked for a few weeks?

Illness and zero degree weather meant that I did not start my 2009 Mazda 3 for three weeks. When I tried to start the vehicle the battery was flat. The dealer told me it was the extreme cold and they had...

Why did my Freelander 2's keyfobs fail to work until I placed the remote in the dock?

I returned home after six weeks abroad to find my Land Rover Freelander 2 diesel would not respond to the remote control plipper. Having tried the second remote with the same result, I used the retractable...