Car Battery Drama - Taken for a Ride

[DekDoi]

Apologies in advance if this post is a little long, I have a tendency to ramble but i have just learnt an expensive lesson that I want to share ...

So on Thursday evening my car wouldn't start, I called out a roadside assistance guy, he came, confirmed it was just a dead battery and got the car going again. My car is a Chevrolet and the guy warned me that the battery I needed wasn't easily found and was expensive... Especially if I were to buy it direct from Chevrolet... Plus the Chev showroom was closed by now.

So on my way home I stopped outside one of those small battery shops (keeping the engine running) but they told me that they didn't stock this size, and this size is expensive. So I called B-Quik, no luck, out of stock and by the way - these batteries are expensive.

So decide to go for a franchise dealer - ChunLee - They are a national franchise and have 2 shops in CM. I go to the nearest one, its on the Hang Dong Road just outside Kulpunt 5. They've got one, good news, they tell me to turn off the engine & they'll fit it for me. It's almost 7pm by now so I'm just glad to have found somewhere with this battery in stock.

The battery they have is actually bigger than the one that was taken out but it fits in the casing so long as you don't use the 'tie down' bar. The owner of the shop assures me this is no problem - he's an expert, he has been selling batteries for a decade, he knows what he's doing. Then he takes my 'tie down' bar and another piece of the battery casing and puts it in his office, closes my bonnet and tells me everything is in order.
Ok but what about my 'tie down' bar? ....

- 'It doesn't fit, you don't need it anymore'

-'Yeah I know it doesn't fit but I want to keep it'

- 'Okay, fine if you insist'... he goes back into his office, takes it out and begrudgingly hands it over..

Then he hits me with the price which seems expensive but everyone had warned me.
- 'Any discount?'

- 'This is the discount price'

- 'Oh... Thanks'

So the next day my ever-diligent wife decides to check how much this battery is at other dealers... You guessed it, cheaper, a lot cheaper.. between 1000 to 1800 baht cheaper

So I called up the shop and asked them about this... His answer - 'the other shops don't have proper QC' ...plus the other shops are probably just selling reconditioned batteries, not new ones.. yeah right!

Later on Friday one of the shops my wife contacted got back to us and asked how this model battery could possibly fit in our car.. The battery casing needs to be completely adjusted for the battery to be held safely in place.. He sends a couple of pictures of adjustments he's done on Chevrolets, are we interested?

This guys shop (Rung Roj Battery ) is on Mahidol Road right across from the big police station. He takes a look at what the other shop have done, shakes his head and says - 'not again'
Then him and his team spend the next 45 minutes adjusting the battery box and welding on a new clip to make the 'tie down' fit securely. Job done and just 200 baht.

He also tells me that battery is a bad choice for my car but i might as well use it now till it dies, he has it in stock for 1500 baht cheaper than I had paid

He also told me that this wasn't the first time they had corrected shoddy work from a battery franchise on the Hang Dong Road. He explained how the last customer had had his 'tie down' bar and casing taken by the shop owner. I explained that had tried that with me...

Anyway lesson learnt.. and his my advice...

If you need a new car battery, there is a great place on Mahidol Road opposite the police station.

[taotoo]

If it's any consolation, I once had an oversized battery in my car and it lasted for a good year or two longer than the standard one.

[jonwilly]

My last battery problem was when I was back in UK.

Cold winter starts on my VW Golf diesel, did for the old battery 4 years old, I was advised to replace it with a more expensive and slightly larger Heavy Duty battery which did the job very well until I sold the car on coming out here.

john

[worgeordie]

Your big mistake was not asking for price first !, I can understand you were

panicking a bit,and at times like that its easy to make mistakes, you should have

just gone home, and sorted a new battery out next day,you could have saved

yourself bht2K, easy to say in hindsight ,but Thais can always spot an opportunity ,

not everyone,to take advantage in a situation like this.

regards Worgeordie

[Gsxrnz]

Why did you let the battery get fitted without asking and agreeing to the price first, or making sure it would physically fit the frame? The battery shops I've used in Pattaya have virtually every size battery known to man and if they didn't have the one you wanted one of their blokes will jump on the scooter and go and get one from somewhere.

Also, it was likely that with the drive home your old battery would have charged enough to give you another start or two the next day, so the "rush" to do something wasn't that urgent. It's rare that a battery just dies without prior indication of getting past its used by date. Unless of course the battery had been causing issues for some time and you had been ignoring it until it finally died for good.

EDIT - As the battery is oversize, make sure that it isn't over height as well and touching your hood/bonnet. There will be a sound proofing matrial on the inside of the hood - see if there are any indentations there. If it's touching then eventually the terminals will wear through their protective rubber cover and then the hood lining. The result will be a charred wreckage on the side of the road. Many people only worry about the depth/width when oversize and don't realise what over height can do.

Edited June 23, 2013 by Gsxrnz

[CMKiwi]

Very true about battery heights. We use to use RL Bedford trucks in the Kiwi Army many years ago and one of the inheriant faults was with its battery. The battery compartment was under the passengers seat and over time the metal seat base would sag and end up touching the 2 terminals. Believe me, vehicle batteries can contain a fair charge.... in this case we usually flew out of the seat rather quickly from a burnt arse.

I have also seen vehicle batteries to arc weld metal together, powerful stuff. So you can imagine what may happen should the 2 battery terminals touch the bare metal of your car bonnet/hood.

I hope your car is safe!

Regards

Edited June 23, 2013 by CMKiwi

[trainman34014]

Batteries don't last long here if you don't look after them. Check the distilled water level frequently and get yourself a battery tester so you know when it's almost time to replace it. Keeping a set of jump leads handy is also recommended. Keeping the car covered or under cover when not in use does help make certain things last longer. You should also check your tyre pressures at least once a month too as rubber/nylon breaks down faster in tropical conditions.

I know some folks just don't understand anything mechanical but a little bit of common sense and care will keep your motoring stress free.

[junglechef]

I had a battery replaced on Super Hiway 11 and 1006 and told them I wanted to keep the old one. They took it 4x, basically every time I looked away, and finally I had them put it in the back of my SUV and closed the back. After paying I came back to the car to find they had taken it out and closed the door behind them! I got it back and gave it to my gardner so he could sell for a little extra money for himself. Last time I went to a little shop on 1001 near Mae Jo and the nice young guy offered me 400 bht for my old battery, so like people all over the world there are good and bad, just nice to find the good ones.

[trainman34014]

I had a battery replaced on Super Hiway 11 and 1006 and told them I wanted to keep the old one. They took it 4x, basically every time I looked away, and finally I had them put it in the back of my SUV and closed the back. After paying I came back to the car to find they had taken it out and closed the door behind them! I got it back and gave it to my gardner so he could sell for a little extra money for himself. Last time I went to a little shop on 1001 near Mae Jo and the nice young guy offered me 400 bht for my old battery, so like people all over the world there are good and bad, just nice to find the good ones.

Yep; a nice little earner for the battery boys. Our local recycle man is offering 600 Baht for a used battery this weekend.

[DekDoi]

thanks for the feedback ..

Totally agree .. the big mistake - not confirming a price before turning off the engine .. doh !

Anyway, lesson learnt and here is a pic of the battery being fixed safely in place thanks to the battery shop on Mahidol Road

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=609851589040197&set=a.609851495706873.1073741848.304757919549567&type=1&theater

[Gsxrnz]

Very true about battery heights. We use to use RL Bedford trucks in the Kiwi Army many years ago and one of the inheriant faults was with its battery. The battery compartment was under the passengers seat and over time the metal seat base would sag and end up touching the 2 terminals. Believe me, vehicle batteries can contain a fair charge.... in this case we usually flew out of the seat rather quickly from a burnt arse.

I have also seen vehicle batteries to arc weld metal together, powerful stuff. So you can imagine what may happen should the 2 battery terminals touch the bare metal of your car bonnet/hood.

I hope your car is safe!

Regards

Cheers fellow Kiwi - had the same problem with an old VW bug that I was a passenger in. Overweight mate shorted the battery under the rear seat, smoke and fumes, only a 2-door, funny as a fight at the time but we were only just out and the VW became an inferno.

An RL Bedford ay......probably still being used

[Mousehound]

Is the Mahidol Rd place a bright yellow all over with a vacant block next door - has 3K battery advertising all over it?

[CMKiwi]

Very true about battery heights. We use to use RL Bedford trucks in the Kiwi Army many years ago and one of the inheriant faults was with its battery. The battery compartment was under the passengers seat and over time the metal seat base would sag and end up touching the 2 terminals. Believe me, vehicle batteries can contain a fair charge.... in this case we usually flew out of the seat rather quickly from a burnt arse.

I have also seen vehicle batteries to arc weld metal together, powerful stuff. So you can imagine what may happen should the 2 battery terminals touch the bare metal of your car bonnet/hood.

I hope your car is safe!

Regards

Cheers fellow Kiwi - had the same problem with an old VW bug that I was a passenger in. Overweight mate shorted the battery under the rear seat, smoke and fumes, only a 2-door, funny as a fight at the time but we were only just out and the VW became an inferno.

An RL Bedford ay......probably still being used

Well I was going to say the Bedford seat sagged due to fat bastards, but didnt really want to let on that some army types are overweight! And yes a lot of those RLs are probably still running around the middle of the North Island. I remember delivering and towing quite a few to a government disposals auction in Turangi.

I use to swear by the RL, that is until I had my fam course with the new Mercedes Unimog. Changed my mind pretty quickly and boy they were a lot warmer to drive in the winter, just a pity you couldnt warm up cans of baked beans on the manifold while driving down the road. That was one good thing about the RL..... and probably the only one come to think of it.

Catch you around

[Tywais]

Post removed. If you find it boring you can always find another topic somewhere else.

[kaptainrob]

Is this the place mentioned by OP > http://goo.gl/maps/wnpHY ? If so, they also have a very poor rep for NOT knowing what they're doing.

A good battery supplier on Hang Dong Rd who DOES know his product(s) and speaks excellent English, is the Cockpit franchisee up past Tesco Lotus on the airport side heading north toward Central Plaza.

[Berkshire]

I've never had difficulty finding a battery for my car. I buy it at the same place I get my tires. It seems to be pretty generic and readily available. And the thing last 3 to 4 years. Just need to put in some battery water every now and then. But I never wait until it dies out completely. If I get any hint that it's fading, I replace it pronto.

[masuk]

Why did you let the battery get fitted without asking and agreeing to the price first, or making sure it would physically fit the frame? The battery shops I've used in Pattaya have virtually every size battery known to man and if they didn't have the one you wanted one of their blokes will jump on the scooter and go and get one from somewhere.

Also, it was likely that with the drive home your old battery would have charged enough to give you another start or two the next day, so the "rush" to do something wasn't that urgent. It's rare that a battery just dies without prior indication of getting past its used by date. Unless of course the battery had been causing issues for some time and you had been ignoring it until it finally died for good.

EDIT - As the battery is oversize, make sure that it isn't over height as well and touching your hood/bonnet. There will be a sound proofing matrial on the inside of the hood - see if there are any indentations there. If it's touching then eventually the terminals will wear through their protective rubber cover and then the hood lining. The result will be a charred wreckage on the side of the road. Many people only worry about the depth/width when oversize and don't realise what over height can do.

A similar thing happened years ago with my VW beetle.

The cover of the battery had been left off, and the battery is under the rear seat.

All it took was one heavy passenger, one seat spring to short out the terminals, and a loud explosion!

Drove to the nearest source of water and washed out the remains of the battery, acid, etc. Those things really go pop with Hydrogen, as the label says.

The passenger recovered too.

[elektrified]

Does anyone have the telephone number for FB Battery on Super Highway by any chance? I see many listings with their address but nothing with a telephone number.

Thanks in advance.

[beau thai]

Interesting point about tyre pressures-talked to the gf about gas stations and tyre pressures-blank look. We checked at the gas station next refill-blank look.

Both thought this farang crazy expecting an airline and gauge at a filling station, so where do you guys go to check/inflate?

Seems a dumb question since every country I have lived/worked/holidayed in has air lines at gas stations! GF also found it a strange notion that anyone would EVER need to check motor bike tyres - but then she has only had bikes for about 10 years I think!!!

Batteries don't last long here if you don't look after them. Check the distilled water level frequently and get yourself a battery tester so you know when it's almost time to replace it. Keeping a set of jump leads handy is also recommended. Keeping the car covered or under cover when not in use does help make certain things last longer. You should also check your tyre pressures at least once a month too as rubber/nylon breaks down faster in tropical conditions.

I know some folks just don't understand anything mechanical but a little bit of common sense and care will keep your motoring stress free.

[elektrified]

Interesting point about tyre pressures-talked to the gf about gas stations and tyre pressures-blank look. We checked at the gas station next refill-blank look.

Both thought this farang crazy expecting an airline and gauge at a filling station, so where do you guys go to check/inflate?

Seems a dumb question since every country I have lived/worked/holidayed in has air lines at gas stations! GF also found it a strange notion that anyone would EVER need to check motor bike tyres - but then she has only had bikes for about 10 years I think!!!

Batteries don't last long here if you don't look after them. Check the distilled water level frequently and get yourself a battery tester so you know when it's almost time to replace it. Keeping a set of jump leads handy is also recommended. Keeping the car covered or under cover when not in use does help make certain things last longer. You should also check your tyre pressures at least once a month too as rubber/nylon breaks down faster in tropical conditions.

I know some folks just don't understand anything mechanical but a little bit of common sense and care will keep your motoring stress free.

You must not be looking around the filling station carefully. All of them (that I know of) have an area to fill the tires and check the psi. Many have both the automatic pump with LED's as well as the small tank with an analogue gauge.

[beau thai]

Thanks- I did have a good look around on a big site, and we asked the pump guy who denied all knowledge- maybe of everything.... I will try elsewhere.

Interesting point about tyre pressures-talked to the gf about gas stations and tyre pressures-blank look. We checked at the gas station next refill-blank look.

Both thought this farang crazy expecting an airline and gauge at a filling station, so where do you guys go to check/inflate?

Seems a dumb question since every country I have lived/worked/holidayed in has air lines at gas stations! GF also found it a strange notion that anyone would EVER need to check motor bike tyres - but then she has only had bikes for about 10 years I think!!!

Batteries don't last long here if you don't look after them. Check the distilled water level frequently and get yourself a battery tester so you know when it's almost time to replace it. Keeping a set of jump leads handy is also recommended. Keeping the car covered or under cover when not in use does help make certain things last longer. You should also check your tyre pressures at least once a month too as rubber/nylon breaks down faster in tropical conditions.

I know some folks just don't understand anything mechanical but a little bit of common sense and care will keep your motoring stress free.

You must not be looking around the filling station carefully. All of them (that I know of) have an area to fill the tires and check the psi. Many have both the automatic pump with LED's as well as the small tank with an analogue gauge.

[Daffy D]

CM KIwi wrote:-

I use to swear by the RL, that is until I had my fam course with the new Mercedes Unimog.

Unimog best go anywhere vehicle ever

[elektrified]

I had a battery replaced on Super Hiway 11 and 1006 and told them I wanted to keep the old one. They took it 4x, basically every time I looked away, and finally I had them put it in the back of my SUV and closed the back. After paying I came back to the car to find they had taken it out and closed the door behind them! I got it back and gave it to my gardner so he could sell for a little extra money for himself. Last time I went to a little shop on 1001 near Mae Jo and the nice young guy offered me 400 bht for my old battery, so like people all over the world there are good and bad, just nice to find the good ones.

Yep; a nice little earner for the battery boys. Our local recycle man is offering 600 Baht for a used battery this weekend.

Rather than start a new thread, can anyone recommend a place to sell a car battery? 600 sounds good of course. I bought a new battery and the battery dealer only offered 200 for the old one. Last time I sold one to a place near my house I'm sure I got double that. But that place has been leveled for development. Thanks in advance.

[Dante99]

I had a battery replaced on Super Hiway 11 and 1006 and told them I wanted to keep the old one. They took it 4x, basically every time I looked away, and finally I had them put it in the back of my SUV and closed the back. After paying I came back to the car to find they had taken it out and closed the door behind them! I got it back and gave it to my gardner so he could sell for a little extra money for himself. Last time I went to a little shop on 1001 near Mae Jo and the nice young guy offered me 400 bht for my old battery, so like people all over the world there are good and bad, just nice to find the good ones.

Yep; a nice little earner for the battery boys. Our local recycle man is offering 600 Baht for a used battery this weekend.

Rather than start a new thread, can anyone recommend a place to sell a car battery? 600 sounds good of course. I bought a new battery and the battery dealer only offered 200 for the old one. Last time I sold one to a place near my house I'm sure I got double that. But that place has been leveled for development. Thanks in advance.

Most of the recycle places will do. There is one on the MaeJo-MaeRim road, north side about 2 km from the MaeJo end, closer to the MaeJo end than to the river. That only helps if you live out there and I have forgotten where you live.

[Oscar2]

I had a battery replaced on Super Hiway 11 and 1006 and told them I wanted to keep the old one. They took it 4x, basically every time I looked away, and finally I had them put it in the back of my SUV and closed the back. After paying I came back to the car to find they had taken it out and closed the door behind them! I got it back and gave it to my gardner so he could sell for a little extra money for himself. Last time I went to a little shop on 1001 near Mae Jo and the nice young guy offered me 400 bht for my old battery, so like people all over the world there are good and bad, just nice to find the good ones.

Yep; a nice little earner for the battery boys. Our local recycle man is offering 600 Baht for a used battery this weekend.

Rather than start a new thread, can anyone recommend a place to sell a car battery? 600 sounds good of course. I bought a new battery and the battery dealer only offered 200 for the old one. Last time I sold one to a place near my house I'm sure I got double that. But that place has been leveled for development. Thanks in advance.

Most of the recycle places will do. There is one on the MaeJo-MaeRim road, north side about 2 km from the MaeJo end, closer to the MaeJo end than to the river. That only helps if you live out there and I have forgotten where you live.

that's very helpful as i live right there. much appreciated.

[MadMac]

Been to the shop mentioned, they overcharge by at least 1000B. 

 

Found a better one, further up Hang Dong Rd, opposite the geriatric hospital, small shop, has 3K sign on the road. Selling good value Panasonic, actually the cheapest I could find, 2500B.

[canthai55]

7.5 years later ...

Post made on old threads re: why are they not archived.

Now should maybe ask who responds to posts this old ?

[MadMac]

I actually found it quite helpful, so I added the update. Battery shops usually last longer than a Som Tum stand on the side of the road ????