Help Please Vauxhall Zafira

[Tilly2]

I haven't been out in the car since Saturday lunchtime but had to move it back from in front of the garage earlier today, for the SOCOs to come to look at the garage (Another story!)

I went out earlier to move the car back but it would not start and I gave up.

I have just been out and tried again and it reluctantly started after some considerable time. Is it 'damp' or something?

[tonyav]

Yilly do you mean that the engine was turning over but not firing ?

[Tilly2]

That's right, Yont it was chug, chug, chugging but not coming on. It did eventually.

[tonyav]

When it did fire up was it mis firing ( engine running unevenly ) and was there any warning lights on especially the one with a little picture of an engine.

[Psybbo]

Visitors gone, Tilly?
Have you had your garage burgled?

[BRIGHT SPARK]

It sounds like a very weak battery Tilly.....get it charged

[Tilly2]

Hi, Psybbo, yes, yes.

Yont, all the warning lights came on. It was like Blackpool illuminations. I don't know if it was mis firing. I am stupid about such things. When it started up it sort of just drifted into it.

B.S. I thought it might be the battery. Will the AA change it for me?

[Tilly2]

Oh, B.S. you said, charged, not changed. Will the garage charge it for me?

[tonyav]

Yilly it just needs charging not changing. Are you using the car very much ?, and when you do are they just short journeys ?.

[tonyav]

Yilly one way to charge your battery if you don't have a battery charger is to take it out for a good run preferably with the heater, lights and radio turned of.

[sunny-dave]

It's an underused diesel tony (iirc) - "it started after some considerable time" suggests that the battery was actually spinning the engine OK, but it wasn't firing (glow plug?, soot?).

The battery is probably suffering now - a good hard run up the motorway would probably sole a lot of issues ...

[Tilly2]

Yont, I only use the car for short journeys and not very often. I only used it once last week and did about six miles.

[tonyav]

Did the warning lights go out once the engine was running ?.

[Tilly2]

It's not a diesel car, Sunny Dave. It's a petrol one.

[tonyav]

Ah right, dave. Yilly didn't say it was a diesel, I took it for granted that it's a petrol.
I should have asked her.

[sunny-dave]

Apologies - mis-remembered

Dx

[Tilly2]

Yes, Yont. They did all go out but all I did was move the car about two metres back to the garage door.

If it starts o.k. tomorrow, I will take it for a bit of a spin. I don't drive on motorways.

[tonyav]

Yilly, now I see it's a petrol, get the battery charged up. The winter cold weather murders them if the car is standing for a length of time.
how old is it, by the way.

[Tilly2]

You don't need to apologise, Dave. Thanks for trying to help.

Thank you to you too, Yont. You are being very patient.

[tonyav]

You don't have to go on the motorway, Yilly. But the less stop / start driving the better.

[Tilly2]

It's just had it's second birthday.