ND battery under-spec'd?

[RBH58]

Certainly contrasts with the NA & NB Panasonic battery, which was usually good for 10 plus years in the standard application.

When you switched off an NA/NB they were "off". Not so with an ND...something is always "awake".

[bruce]

Make sure u park it near a down ramp for a roll start.

[93_Clubman]

Certainly contrasts with the NA & NB Panasonic battery, which was usually good for 10 plus years in the standard application.

When you switched off an NA/NB they were "off". Not so with an ND...something is always "awake".

Yeah, understood, was commenting from a 'fit for purpose' perspective.

[Mr Morlock]

Mazda have to do a problem solving analysis i.e. they have to find the fault. Its not credible that a newish battery is deddy bones after 2 weeks. The workshop at the dealer should know how to do a proper problem solving exercise and if they dont then complain to Mazda Aust. If it was a common fault you would have heard about it on the forum.

[RBH58]

Mazda have to do a problem solving analysis i.e. they have to find the fault. Its not credible that a newish battery is deddy bones after 2 weeks. The workshop at the dealer should know how to do a proper problem solving exercise and if they dont then complain to Mazda Aust. If it was a common fault you would have heard about it on the forum.

It's not uncommon stateside. A number of reports on miata.net

[JBT]

You might need one of those trickle chargers for when you go away. I know the owner's manual for our 2008 BMW says something about keeping a charger on the battery if the car won't be dríven for a month or so. The electrics even power down after about 5 minutes to save the battery if you are parked listening to the radio with the engine off. Must be a lot of "dark power" usage in modern (electrically complicated) cars.

[Mr Morlock]

A new car should not need a trickle charger attached if one is going away for a few weeks- if it does its a design fault by the engineers whose responsibility is to define the battery required for the vehicle. . Mazda must address it - its a new vehicle and this should not happen. Incidentally I get what PRR was coming from i.e. just to get a quick check from another source- albeit Mazda made the car and sold it to a customer. It might even be worthwhile contacting the local State car org like RACV or NRMA to see if this is a reported problem- they will know from call outs whether an MX-5 ND is figuring in higher rates based on sales.

The Mazda engineers would use an FMEA or like tool - suggest take a look on the net for info if interested.

[JBT]

It may very well be a design defect MM. So, flat battery, trickle charger or try to get a solution from Mazda? Your choice OP.

[RBH58]

It may very well be a design defect MM. So, flat battery, trickle charger or try to get a solution from Mazda? Your choice OP.

I am overseas on business for 2-3 weeks every two months and I've had and agenda like this for my previous 4 cars without a problem. So coming home to a dead BRAND NEW car everytime is unacceptable.

[StillIC]

I am not trying to be flippant, but what length of time should a battery last between starts? How long should a car be allowed to sit without being dríven without issues? 1 month? 6 months? For ever? At what point should a car maker be forced to change the design if they can't achieve what any one consumer believes is acceptable? What if one million owners of MX5s love the light weight of their car and the advantages it brings, but only a handful have an issue with the battery going flat over period of weeks? Should all MX5s be made with a larger, heavier, more expensive battery as a result?

For your sake OP, I really hope your car simply has a problem that can be repaired. But I fear otherwise....

As I said, I am not trying to be flippant, but consumer expectations keep on rising while the laws of physics don't change. People want more performance, more safety, more reliability, more room, less NVH, better fuel consumption, more electronic gadgets etc. etc. On top of that regulations are getting ever stricter. Car makers have to make all sorts of trade-offs to get their cars to market, and then deal with all the 'faults' customers complain about. There are all sorts of aspects of every car I have owned that I find annoying or 'unacceptable'. Unacceptable to me, that is. But most other owners probably don't feel the same hatred as I do to those aspects, although some might to some aspects. Some aspect of some cars do eventually become considered as 'faults' if enough people complain. Jerky gear shifts in automatic trannies comes to mind. In the 70s all cars jerky gearshifts (relatively)! I could go on, but to get something changed a groundswell of customer complains will be required.

[RBH58]

I could live with 4-6 weeks. I think 2-3 weeks is not long enough. I don't think that's an unreasonable expectation.

[davekmoore]

If it's really an issue should Mazda provide a suitable charger to fit a purpose-made socket on the outside of the car?

For what it's worth the only Mazdas I encountered on the yard or in storage with battery issues were CX5s where the tailgate had been left unlatched so the light was on, or BT-50s, of which a small number would randomly fail.

[RBH58]

If it's really an issue should Mazda provide a suitable charger to fit a purpose-made socket on the outside of the car?

For what it's worth the only Mazdas I encountered on the yard or in storage with battery issues were CX5s where the tailgate had been left unlatched so the light was on, or BT-50s, of which a small number would randomly fail.

That doesn't work for me. I am in a inner city apartment with a communal garage with no power points. A trickle charger is not a solution. I (not unreasonably) expect that my cars can sit undriven for a month.

[Red Dragon]

Have you had the battery checked?
I had to have the battery replaced in the wifes NC last year by R.A.C.V. used it that day and then not for a week, dead as a DODO rang the RACV they sent a bloke who checked the battery found a dead cell replaced it with a new battery good as gold since.

[Luke]

In my experience I wouldn't expect any more than 3 weeks in any car over Cold Winter months.
More than that should be considered a bonus.
2 weeks does seem short but then again my NB literally just cranked over tonight after sitting for 2 cold weeks. I even took the jump starter with me just in case as all I was doing was heading down the road to get fuel.

You say you live in an apartment in Melbourne.
Please elaborate on how you use the car as you have so far just stated that it has gone flat quickly and is not meeting your expectations.
Stating the battery is under sized by Mazda after reading some American complaints on miata.net is not a solution and will honestly get you nowhere with Mazda in Australia.

You either have a crook battery, some sort of electrical drain or have bad driving conditions.
Mazda has checked your car at least so you have a record to go back on under warranty if it is a fault.

However since you are in the city I would take a guess you are driving in heavier traffic, so more idling, and possibly shorter trips??? These conditions would kill a battery much quicker as it never fully charges. If it is not at full charge it will not be able to sit around as long.

Like I said please elaborate, especially if you can remember your last couple of trips before leaving the car to sit around.