van now has 30k mi. three times this winter during a cold snap, went to start (morning) & battery was dead. called kia roadside assistance & they jump started. everything ok for about 2-3 weeks then it happened again. checked both times and nothing was left on. second time took battery to o’reilly auto parts. they charged and tested battery & said it was ok. then took van to dealer. dealer called later & said they tested battery and said it was bad. they only wanted $188.00 for a new one. when i got through laughing, i went back to o’reilly’s and bought a battery for $90. everything fine for two months and then on a cold morning it happened again. took new battery to o’reilly’s where they charged and tested and said it was ok, just discharged. this tells me that kia was trying to sell me a battery because they didn’t have a clue what was wrong. any ideas?
Has a complete charging system test been done(complete with parasitic draw test)? I worked for Kia in 2005, we had a TSB that called for us to test charging systems on all Sedonas (looking for low charging voltage) 99% got a new alternator.
I had a few Sedonas with interior light issues(harness defects)but year model was 2005.
There are some auto parts stores which will test the alternator and battery at the curb-side —no need to remove parts. Ask.
Once you drain a battery to nothing, it never charges right in my experience.
I would question two things. Hellokit has some good advice but you can check it out yourself first if you distrust mechanics. Find a place with a wall in the dark. Put your car in park and step on the gas. If you alternator is not working, the lights will not get brighter. Batteries are 12 volt and the alternators can produce a couple of more volts. The lights should get brighter when you step on the gas.
Second, something could be causing a drain on the battery when it is shut off. It could be a short or a faulty switch. I had a car that had a faulty trunk light switch. For whatever reason, it turned on when I shut the trunk and off when I opened it. I only happened to notice it when I took the back seat out to put a stereo in the car.