Hello All, So this is the 2nd time this has happened to me in 2days. I was driving to drop my daughter off to her Grandmothers I arrive shut the car off and drop her off within those 5-10mins the Battery was completely drained dead. I jumped it drove it home, The car did not do it for the rest of the day. Now i went to Little Ceaser's ran inside to get a pizza, less than 5mins go outside to start the car completely drained again. Vehicle is a 2000 S40. Any help is appreciated this is my only means of transportation and i have to put my 6month old in it and i really don't want this to keep happening with winter getting ready to roll in. Thank you.

 

I doubt the battery is dead. You need to take it somewhere to have it tested just in case. Most auto parts places will test it for free.

You may want to take the battery connections totally apart and clean between the wires with a wire brush.

Car battery care, tips and tricks - Auto Care Series - YouTube

 

I believe you need a new Alternator.

 

First check your battery voltage with a digital multimeter set to DC volts. Engine off should see about 12 volts and engine running should see about 14 volts. (Multimeters are cheap investments and last a good long time.)

Given your description I'm guessing a dirty/loose battery or starter cable connection. Does the red positive cable have a white or blue crusty material all over the battery post?

I've never seen a battery drain in 5 minutes. When the car acts up do you hear a clicking sound when you try to start it?

 

Could just be a bad battery. If the battery is old and isn't keeping a charge, it will do this. I see it a lot. Of the battery light isn't on when the car is running, I wouldn't suspect the alternator.

 

The same thing happened to me on another car, went to Autozone and they exchanged the battery under warranty...same issue...and it turned out to be the alternator.