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So you're saying you had the head rebuilt, installed it, and now the car is losing oil?

Yes, the timing belt broke at 96813 miles, bent all the intake valves we had them and the guides replaced, put everything back together, and now the check engine light flashes and they have had to add sometimes up to 2 quarts of oil at a time, they now have 100637 miles on it

Pull the codes and post them. They don't fix the belt when they should, doubt they took care of it any other way either. Bet this used oil before and they're trying to screw you into giving them a new motor. If no external leaks and head is all good the customer is the only part needing replacement. We've all dealt with them. Good luck.

They've been awarded the coveted Massengill award for being a complete and total douchebag. I have an artist carving it from marble as we speak.

Ah - those are just for decoration

T

Small wonder they are called idiot lights.

That wouldn't be a surprise on a high mileage car when the new head increased the compression. Probably should have thought better about doing that head and just replaced the motor in the first place.

I can smell that situation. Belt was ignored long enough to break so what else on the maintenance was ignored. Lower end may have been marginal before.
Any way to find out how much oil it is using now and trust that info?

Is this the type customer that just spent some bucks and now YOU own everything ever wrong with the car type?

Never mind your technical/mechanical skills you need to be a mind reader as well,

T

Might want to have the battery tested again. Make sure your battery terminals are clean and tight. No corrosion. When you get it running, check the charging system voltage with a volt meter at the battery terminals. When it is charging it should be around 13.5 volts. Also make sure your belts are in good condition and properly tensioned.

After jumping and starting, the voltage is about 12.77 volts.
I want to try disconnecting the battery while running to see if the alternator keeps it running, but one website said the battery could blow up. Why would it blow if disconnected? Anyway, what do you think. I will wear goggles, even my motorcycle helmet.
What do you think about the alternator? The alternator indicator indicates it is charging.

The alternator isn't charging. You may need to have the alternator tested. There also could be a problem outside the alternator, such as wiring or connectors problems. On the back of the alternator is a large stud where the battery cable connects to. Check voltage at the stud also. Some alternator circuits have fuses, so be sure those fuses are intact.

The battery won't blow up if you disconnect it while the engine is running, but if the alternator is functioning and you disconnect the battery while the engine is running, you'll stand the chance of frying solid state components such as an engine computer. The reason is because the alternator is sensing battery voltage. When you disconnect the battery, the alternator's regulator senses the extreme drop in voltage, so the regulator full fields the alternator. This generates a very large voltage spike into the electrical system. The spike (surge) is what can take out solid state components. The battery acts as buffer against these spikes, but since the battery is disconnected the buffer is non existent. Some modules have protection, but there is no guaranty damage can't be inflicted.

The best tool that you have to check to see if the charging system is operational is the volt meter. 12.77 volts is near battery voltage and isn't enough. Charging system voltage should be in the vicinity of 13.5-14 volts.

Hi discretesignals:
Well, before I read your post I cleaned the posts better. I thought I cleaned them pretty well before. But I finally broke down and paid the $10 for a cleaning kit. I guess my kid put so much pepsi on it over and over that it built up quite a thick layer of corrosion. Then I replaced the cable and it started right away. I tested with the voltmeter and it read about 14.7 volts. Hope that's not to high.
But like the others said, and I admit, I am not that smart with this stuff. I am over 63 years old and haven't worked on engines since our John Deere tractor back in the 60's and our Allis Chalmers which used a magneto. We didn't have to worry about all the high-tech back then.
So anyway, now my pontiac engine light is on all the time. Wonder what I did to it.
One time I did accidentally make a big spark when I touched the terminals between the two cars backwards while using the Pontiac to jump the Hyundai. Trying to hurry, working on Sunday, etc...., well now what?
I checked the Pontiac voltage. It's about 12.5 with the engine off and 14.8 running.
BTW, what voltage is considered over-charging?
Also, curious, but what about amperage? I guess it shouldn't be deadly, but would it blow my little VOM?
Well, I am happy I don't have to take my Hyundai in. A year ago I took it in, asked for a simple fix and they talked me into a whole bunch of stuff. It was Christmas, so I gave them $600 for stuff I could have done. But now the Pontiac could cost me even more. I am just a teacher in a school where my salary has been cut $6000.

You charging voltage is just fine.........................

I wish I could say the same for your truck. You seem to do more damage every time you touch it. Apparently, your idea of cleaning battery terminals was to pour Pepsi over the battery. We aren't in the 60s any more.

Can't use Pepsi. Has to be the real thing....




LMAO,

T

Operating voltage: ..............................

Voltage regulators control the charging voltage that the alternator produces, commonly keeping it between 13.5 and 14.5 V, to protect the electrical components throughout the vehicle

I recleaned the terminals and posts with stuff from the autoparts store. I think I cleaned it better, because it started without jumping. I put on gloves, motorcycle helmet and removed the positive terminal. It kept running. But I replaced the terminals and tested with the voltmeter. It read out 14.42 volts. So now I wonder if the alternator is over-charging.

Ya, the gloves and helmet idea should of tipped me off.

I guess you didn't read what I typed or maybe you didn't understand what I typed.

Maybe I should use pictures. Disconnecting the battery while the engine is running can cook circuit boards or those small tiny electrical components that are on the circuit boards. Those circuit boards are inside the computers that controls the functions of the engine and the transmission and other electrical items throughout the vehicle.

In the picture below are tiny little solid state components. They are designed to operate on low voltages. When you induce a higher than normal voltage into one or more of the components they tend to cook. This higher than normal voltage occurs when disconnecting the battery from a working charging system. Those components are repairable up to a point, but very very expensive and time consuming to diagnose and repair. I guess you are willing to take your chances of seeing if a module has overload protection and if it is functioning properly. Not something I would gamble with.

Depending on the cost of the reman axles, that would probably be the best way to go. Here the price has come down so much that the price is close either way you do it and changing an axle is less work plus you get 2 new boots & grease.

Changing the boots only is labor intensive and while not real hard there are a few tricks to doing it, so if the prices is good, go with the axles...

Thanks for your post!! I am right there with you!

I have a 2006 Hyundai Tucson (4WD, V6) with the same battery drain problems. The first 2 times I brought it in they told me the battery was testing fine (Of course it did after I drove it 20 minutes to get there!).

I decided to take matters into my own hands!
I dropped the Tucson off on Friday afternoon and let it sit there all weekend +Monday, Tuesday. When I came to the Dealer with my keys on Tuesday afternoon the battery was so dead the key fob wouldn't even unlock the Car! I said congratulations we have "Duplicated the problem"! Call me when it's fixed...

Well they called today and told me the battery would not even hold a charge enough to test the drain. They told me that I would need to purchase a New battery for "Only $140"! I immediately got on the phone w/ Hyundai Customer Service and they contacted the Dealer on my behalf.

Big surprise... the Dealer had a battery available that they could use to test the drain at no cost... Genius!! Glad I thought of it!! After all I'm not an expert... just a 30 year old unemployed single mother!! I'll keep you posted on the outcome.

Your responding to a thread that's over a year and a half old. If you have a question, you should start a new thread.

just doing some thinking here.....i would take to a different hyundai dealer for another opinion....
i worked for for a chevrolet dealer and we were sent all the vehicles that couldn't be repaired by other dealers...
then and only then if we couldn't fix the concerns they, (gm), would sent out engineers to help......i can say we only had an engineer come out once for something we had trouble with (water leak ,cavalier convertible..jeez...who didn't..lol..

i know at gm we would have times where there wouldn't be an electrical draw then something would intermittently stick or go haywire and cause a draw.......these things can sometimes be a nightmare to find....

just for kicks...what have the others had done...and are theirs fixed????

we also had a technical asst center to call and document concerns and get tech help from....they sometimes would have other cases on file from dealers around the country and offer those fixes...
if all else fails .....we did have times when gm had to buy back....lemon laws....
good luck

Hi:

I've tried to find out if other owners with this problem had it resolved, but so far no luck. Most of us have gone round and round on this issue! On another site I read that the 2006 model has "bad alternator charging capability". Is that something that could be fixed or upgraded?

Here's a link to a dead-battery protection device I found when I was Googling battery info:
http://www.batterystuff.com/battery-restoration/switches/PS12Vauto.html

Since there's a drain somewhere I thought this item might be something to look into.

I think I will take it to another dealership for them to look at.

Thanks for the advice!

Karin

any device that would help is always worth looking into....BUT>>>>> i wouldn't install any aftermarket device on the vehicle especially now that you might go into litigation/lemon law stuff.....don't jeopardize anything....
i know the first thing gm tech asst and engineers would ask of is when trying to trouble shoot a concern like this
is "has the vehicle been modified in any way"...."any aftermarket devices on the vehicle...including alarms/remote starters...etc" because sometimes it can turn out that its not a defect in the vehicle but a defect with the device and /or installation.....seen many incorrectly wired in...

just my thoughts.....good luck to you.....hey.....post back with results.............

Hi Jim:

I'm still waiting for the Huyndai rep to contact me; called them today again to tell them to get a move on, since when I went out this morning the car was a little hesitant to start, just like the battery was getting ready to die...again...sigh...

So I drove it to the local Auto Max and had the battery and alternator tested. The tech said that the battery was definitely not charging all the way. Also, he said that although the alternator was reading as ok, it was running a little high. Normal should be 1.6 amps/12.4 volts, and it was 2 amps/14.4 volts.

Maybe it needs a new alternator anyway??

I'll keep you posted!

Thanks!

The guy told you wrong. If an alternator is charging properly, it will have 14 +or - 1/2 volt. The amperage will vary as to how discharged the battery is. The less charge in the battery, the higher the amperage will be.

Agree with way2old - alternator is fine. What's the deal with this car? Are you going after the buyback or do you want to keep it?

A drain that takes out a battery in 4-5 days is still slow but should be able to isolate. This battery should be replaced. Taking a regular (should be) car battery to dead several times will destroy their reserve. A 2006 could have a battery made in 2005 - check on that. Look at the door jam to see when it was built.

I know of just one Lemon Law buy back with a friend. Car needed to be jumped right in front of him when brand new and blew more major items right away than I've ever heard of. It was still a total PITA but he did settle - minus a chunk for the miles he did manage out of it which wasn't much!

T

Hi:

I'd like to get a buy-back, or at least trade-in assistance (full value of what I paid for the car) because I want a 2008 Tucson.

The battery was replaced in early 2007, along with a new radio (drawing too much power).

The Huyndai dealership has twice checked it for all possible drains (they say) and can't find anything (they say!). Would a deep-cycling battery, like the Sears platinum diehard (recommended by a friend) help solve this problem?

Karin

If you are going for a buyback I wouldn't touch the car except for going to another dealer who might fix this problem. The now just a year old battery has still had too much thrown at it. From what you are saying that it's dead to the point of not starting in 4-5 days is draining it about half way down every 2nd day and that's a lot of deep cycling on this. There are batteries made just for that and say so in the sales pitch. These are mostly for use in battery powered devices and frequently in marine uses.

Even those need to be recharged again as none of the "wet" batteries I know of tolerate freezing (if that includes your use) or staying left dead for extended times. Perhaps if you did get a new battery on your own that was lots more powerful and more reserve it would effectively solve the problem or rather cover it up.

Where so you stand with the buyback? I bet at this point you'll be real disappointed and they'll charge you so much for the time and miles it has behaved it would be just like trading in for a new one. If this exact car is known for this then I think Hyundai knows it.

What's with the air bag light? Did that get resolved? That's a real issue and if that can be seen by them they should be climbing all over this car to fix that.

By chance - do you park at a high angle or put something on the passenger's seat routinely? That could explain a lot of this!

T

Hi:

The problem with the Passenger Airbag Off light is that when it's on it flickers slightly in time with the turn signal clicker; I think the airbag sensor is working properly because when I have a passenger the light turns off and when I don't it comes on. The fact that it flickers when I use the turn signal is what's making me think there may be a short somewhere in that area that might be causing the drain?

So far all the checks have been done at my dealer for free, but I'm really tempted to take the Tucson to my local car mechanic for his opinion. He's done great diagnostic work on my other car and my car-savvy guy friends all think he's really good.

Bet you're right about the buy-back...but even some trade-in assistance would be fine. When I was googling cars with AWD this weekend I saw an X-type Jaguar...drool...

All the battery info that I've learned on this forum is really helpful!! You guys are great!

UPDATE!!

Just was checking on another Tucson site and found this post:

http://tucsondrivers.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2363&p=21812#p21812

The guy had my same exact problem (dead battery; dealership said radio was bad, new radio, still had a dead battery) and it turned out that the 'new' radio Hyundai put in was a remanufactured radio with the same faulty interior component. His dealership pulled it out and had the interior component replaced. I've emailed him for the specifics on this.

Maybe this is what's going on!!

It went up in flames!

T

Pyromanics

Nope. A deep cycling battery will just allow you to charge it up more times than a regular battery. The current draw will still be there and will still run the battery down.