Mercedes Battery Draining in winter only a couple weeks

[indiana]

Is it normal for the battery in my 1997 E300D to drain so fast without driving for 2 weeks?
It won't turn over after a couple weeks of sitting.
If I drive it daily it seems fine.
I had the battery replaced with an OEM battery about year ago.
Thanks!...
Indi

[whunter]

How old is the battery?

[Brian Carlton]

Originally Posted by whunter

How old is the battery?

.....ahh......I'm going to guess that it's one year old.
ROTF

[whunter]

Originally Posted by whunter

How old is the battery?

Check the date on battery...
I have encountered too many that set upon the parts room stock shelf for years, then where installed, only to fail, and leave the customer stranded.

[Brian Carlton]

Originally Posted by whunter

Check the date on battery...
I have encountered too many that set upon the parts room stock shelf for years, then where installed, only to fail, and leave the customer stranded.

OK, you got me. There was a way to check the manufacturing date from the stamp on the case. Used letters and numbers in some fashion.

Edited: see post #7, below.

[whunter]

Originally Posted by Brian Carlton

OK, you got me. There was a way to check the manufacturing date from the stamp on the case. Used letters and numbers in some fashion.

You remember how this went?

Can't find my MB battery date pocket card, was going to scan it.

The first digit is a letter which stands for the month of the year.
A = January; B = February; C = March, etc.
The second digit is the year that the battery was shipped from the factory.
4 = 2004, 5 = 2005, 6 = 2006, 7 = 2007, 8 = 2008, 9 = 2009, 0 = 2010, etc..


What causes car batteries to fail early?
http://www.buchmann.ca/article26-page1.asp

How to Replace a Car Battery: Tips From eHow Users
http://www.ehow.com/tips_512.html

Battery Basics
http://www.autoshop101.com/trainmodules/batteries/127.html

DEEP CYCLE BATTERY FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
http://www.marine-electronics.net/techarticle/battery_faq/b_faq.htm

Car battery guide, ConsumerReports.org
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/tires-auto-parts/car-batteries/car-battery-buying-advice/car-battery-getting-started/car-battery-getting-started.htm

How to Buy a Car Battery
http://buy.lovetoknow.com/wiki/How_to_Buy_a_Car_Battery

[Brian Carlton]

Originally Posted by whunter

Car Batteries
http://www.allpar.com/fix/batteries.html

"The code is a string of letters numbers, but all the real information you need is in the first two characters. Usually, the code starts with a letter that corresponds with the month--'A' for January through 'L' for December (some manufacturer's codes omit 'I'; for them, 'M' indicates December). The second character of the code is a numeral that stands for the year. Thus, a code starting 'A2' indicates that the battery was shipped in January 1992; 'B2' indicates February 1992, and so on. (Delco reverses the letter and the number; a Delco code starting with '2C' indicates the battery was shipped in March 1992.)"

[t walgamuth]

if i drove it pretty much every day it was fine. b ut let it set for a week and poof! low battery. did regulator, battery, and floundered. my indie found it right away. maladjusted trunk light switch. it wasnt turning off.

duuuuuh....

tom w