charging Alfa Romeo 166 2008 Owner handbook (in English)

221
CHARGING THE BATTERY
IMPORTANT The description of the
battery charging procedure is described
only for informative purposes. This opera-
tion should be carried out by Authorized
Alfa Romeo Services.
Charging should be slow at a low amp
rating for about 24 hours. Charging for a
longer time may damage the battery.
Charge the battery as follows:
– If the car is fitted with an alarm sys-
tem, turn off the alarm with the remote
control and deactivate the system turning
the emergency key to “OFF” (see “Elec-
tronic alarm” in the chapter “Getting to
know your car”).– Disconnect the terminals of the elec-
tric system from the battery poles.
– Connect the charger cables to the bat-
tery.
– Turn on the charger.
– After charging turn off the charger be-
fore disconnecting it from the battery.
– Re-connect the terminals to the bat-
tery poles correctly.
– Turn the ignition key to MARand
leave it in this position for 30 seconds to
1 minute, then turn to STOPfor about 5
to 10 seconds, after which the engine
can be started.
– Remember to reactivate the alarm
system (if present) turning the emer-
gency switch to “ON”.
The wrong electric and
electronic accessory in-
stallation may cause se-
vere vehicle damages.When doing any work on
the battery or near it, al-
ways wear special protective gog-
gles.
Working with the fluid
level too low damages
the battery irreparably, even
breaking the body and completely
leaking the acid contained.
WARNING
WARNING

223
– If electrical welding is to be carried
out on the body of the vehicle the elec-
tronic control units must be disconnected
or removed if the work involves the pro-
duction of high temperatures.The total absorption of these accessories
(standard and installed later) must be
0.6 mA x Ah (of the battery), as shown
in the table below:
BatteryMaximum permissible loadless absorption
100 Ah 60 mA
You are also reminded that services with
high current absorption activated by the
user, such as bottle warmers, vacuum
cleaners, cellular telephone, mini refriger-
ator, etc. accelerate the battery drainage
process if they are powered with the en-
gine not running.
IMPORTANT It should also be noted
that improper branches on connectors of
the electric wiring for installing additional
equipment is dangerous, particularly if
safety devices are involved.
ELECTRONIC
CONTROL UNITS
With normal use of the vehicle no par-
ticular precautions need to be taken.
If interventions are to be carried out on
the electrical system or emergency start-
ing the following must be heeded:
– Always switch off the engine before
disconnecting the battery from the electri-
cal system.
– If battery charging is necessary dis-
connect it from the electric system.
– When starting in an emergency only
an auxiliary battery must be used and not
a battery charger.
– Check that the polarity is correct and
that the connections between the battery
and the electrical system are sound.
– Before connecting or disconnecting
the terminals of the electronic units en-
sure that the ignition key is not in the
MARposition.
– Do not check for current in the cables
by short-circuiting the ends.
If additional systems are
to be installed on the ve-
hicle the danger of incorrectly tak-
ing branches from the electrical
wires cannot be emphasized too
strongly especially if devices es-
sential to the safety of the vehi-
cle and its occupants are involved
(ignition, injection, ABS ...). The in-
correct installation of radio sys-
tems, electronic theft alarms, ra-
diotelephones etc. can interfere
with the electronic control units and
compromises the warranty cover.
For these interventions we re-com-
mend that you contact Alfa Romeo
Authorized Services.The loadless
absorption of all the accessories in-
stalled in the after market must
not exceed 20 mA (reading with
the vehicle stationary).
WARNING