battery recharge FIAT DUCATO 2006 3.G Owners Manual

134GETTING THE BEST OUT OF YOUR VEHICLE
VEHICLE STORAGE
The following precautions should be
taken if the vehicle will not be used for
several months:
– park the vehicle in covered, dry and
if possible well-ventilated premises;
– engage a gear;
– remove the cables from the battery
(first remove the cable to the negative
terminal) and check the battery
charge. If the vehicle is to be stored
for long periods the charge of the bat-
tery should be checked every month
and recharged if it falls below 12.5 V;– make sure the handbrake is not en-
gaged;
– clean and protect the painted parts
using protective wax;
– clean and protect the shiny metal
parts using special compounds readi-
ly available;
– sprinkle talcum powder on the rub-
ber windscreen and rear window
wiper blades and lift them off the glass;
– slightly open the windows;
– cover the vehicle with a cloth or
perforated plastic sheet. Do not use
sheets of non-perforated plastic as
they do not allow moisture on the ve-
hicle body to evaporate;– inflate the tyres to 0.5 bar above
the normal specified pressure and
check it at intervals;
– do not drain the engine cooling sys-
tem.
IMPORTANTWhere relevant,
switch off the electronic vehicle alarm
with the remote control and deacti-
vate the system by turning the emer-
gency key to OFF (see “Electronic
alarm” in section “Getting to know
your vehicle”).

157IN AN EMERGENCY
IF THE BATTERY
IS FLAT
IMPORTANTBattery recharging
procedure is given as information on-
ly since this operation shall be only
performed at a Fiat Dealership.
RECHARGING THE BATTERY
You are advised to recharge the bat-
tery slowly for a period of approxi-
mately 24 hours at a low amperage.
Charging for too long could damage
the battery.
Proceed as follows:
1) disconnect the electrical system
from the battery terminals;
IMPORTANTIf the vehicle is fit-
ted with the alarm system, deactivate
it by the remote control (see “Elec-
tronic alarm” in chapter “Getting to
know your vehicle”).JUMP STARTING
See “Jump starting” in this section. 2)connect the charger cables to the
battery terminals;
3)turn the charger on;
4)when you have finished, turn the
charger off before disconnecting the
battery;
5) reconnect the cables to the bat-
tery terminals. Make sure the polari-
ty is correct.
The liquid in the battery is
poisonous and corrosive.
Do not let it touch the skin or eyes.
Recharging the battery should be
done in a well-ventilated area away
from naked flames or possible
sources of sparks: explosion and fire
risk.
WARNING
Do not attempt to recharge
a frozen battery. Thaw it
first otherwise it could explode. If
the battery froze, make sure the in-
ternal elements are not broken
(short-circuit risk) and that the cas-
ing is not cracked (risk of spilling
the poisonous and corrosive fluid.
WARNING