I turned on the ignition and the fuel gauge went up to way beyond the full mark, when I turned it off it went down to rest at the half full mark, so both full and empty reading about half a tank over what they should. I turned the ignition on and off again a few times and each time the reading dropped nearer to where it should be until after six or seven times it read as normal and continues to do so, what would cause that?

 

I know this sounding like a broken record, but have you been keeping your battery in a battery tender when the car is not in use overnight or longer ?

just doing that simple task has eliminated all of my electronic gremlins.

I know one shouldn’t “have” to do this. But their is a price to driving a 20 year old car, and the extra battery attention seems to be part of the dues one must pay.

Z

PS. my gas gauge does have odd behavior, but I’ve put it down to the float needing replacement, ie, I can live with it:

when I don’t drive the car for a long distance, the gauge reads low, as in daily use in town, short trips under 10 miles. But when I’m going cross country, and the car is in continuous operation for hours at a time, the gauge works perfectly.

 

Hi zray.
The battery was replaced 2 months ago and is always on a trickle charge when the car is not in use so I wouldn't expect that to be the cause.

 

I hope you don't mean trickle charge but mean a modern smart charger.

 

Crikey, you have got me worried now!
I use a "Streetwise Automatic Trickle Charger" as per https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12v-Trick...0AAOSwhEtdkfD4
I also have a 1935 Rover and have always used one of these to keep that topped up without any problems.

 

That looks fine to me - it is designed to stop charging when the battery is fully charged. More expensive smart chargers will also run a discharge cycle from time to time to keep the battery healthy and are better for long term storage on a car that isn't in use.

 

Thanks dibbit, I may have a look at something a bit more upmarket as I will need another one anyway, the Rover is due back soon from being re-upholstered and I only have the one charger at the moment.

 

I use a CTEK - lots of people recommend them. Something like this:-

https://www.ctek.com/uk/products/car/mxs-5-0-uk

 

I am going to get myself one of those CTEK chargers, I have just been reading a comparison review of this type of product and the one I have scored very poorly with the charge rated as "erratic", so maybe it is causing an issue? The budget ones are probably OK for vehicles like my old Rover which is bomb proof (well it survived world war 2) but a more "finicky, temperamental, looking for any excuse to throw up a code" type of vehicle may need something a little better.

 

I’m using the Battery Tender + , manufactured by Deltran. it may not have all the bells and whistles that the Ctec products do, but costs much less, is reliable, & “smart” in that it will keep a fully charged battery on “float” and not overcharged. I’ve had them for at least 20 years, probably since the 1990’s

Ive never had a battery last less than 10 years when using the battery tender +

......and for me, it’s extremely tough. I have to admit, I’ve ran over mine twice and the outer case barely bent and was easily bent back into “as new” condition.




https://www.batterytender.com/Battery-TenderR-Plus


https://www.batterytender.com/about-us

Z