smartnhappy Posted January 11 Posted January 11 My 2005 diesel has been unused and unstated for almost 6 months. All was ok when last used late August. Garage kept, on a battery tender. A broken hip ruled out any use. Tender was accidentally unplugged 3 months ago. Battery went completely flat. Plugging in mid-Dec showed dual lights on tender. Battery remains completely dead as of Jan 10. I know I should have tried starting car on a regular basis, but physical inability ruled this out. I know I'm facing a new battery and oil change asap. Brake fluid and maybe transmission fluid aside, is there anything else I should be looking at to restore my car to roadworthy status? I'll be swapping summer tires on rims with snow tires on rims. Quote
mas Posted January 13 Posted January 13 I park mine for the winter, remove the battery, before reinstalling it in the Spring, I give it a 4 hr. charge, install it and turn the key. I also change the oil when it tells me to. Quote
smartnhappy Posted January 17 Author Posted January 17 Absolute shout out and thank you to Glenn for his assistance. He picked up a battery at Costco, came to my place , installed it (started right up), loaded up my snow tires on rims, went back to his shop to swap wheels, do oil change, check running gear (brakes, fluid levels, etc) hen back to my place. I have no mobility due to broken hip, so my appreciation to Glenn. After all this, I hope I remember how to drive. 😃🚗🦽 Quote
smart142 Posted January 17 Posted January 17 Bill was lucky! A new battery installed and she started first try. The scan gauge showed that the alternator kicked in and was charging. Luckily the parking brake wasn't used (tendency to seize) and all the wheels turned freely. I was able to drive her to my shop where I changed the oil, serviced the brakes and installed the winter tires. Runs like a charm! 2 1 Quote
smartnhappy Posted March 5 Author Posted March 5 Many thanks to Glenn for great service. I just rec'd a mid-April consult with an ortho surgeon re a full hip replacement. Movement and flexibility has slightly improved since Glenn's service, so I plan to take my first drive (with my daughter) since my mishap. I look forward to an improved level of freedom. My car seems ready to go. 1 Quote
smartnhappy Posted March 7 Author Posted March 7 Took my first drive in roughly 7 1/2 months. I remembered how! Freedom !!! Glenn tested car during driving following new battery install mid-January. All appears OK. Not sure if it's a promo, but Glenn installs a new battery, then leaves his hand tools he used in your car. I found them about 2 months later. I'll check with him on this one.😁 1 Quote
cloggedb Posted March 8 Posted March 8 On 3/7/2026 at 5:27 PM, smartnhappy said: Took my first drive in roughly 7 1/2 months. I remembered how! Freedom !!! Glenn tested car during driving following new battery install mid-January. All appears OK. Not sure if it's a promo, but Glenn installs a new battery, then leaves his hand tools he used in your car. I found them about 2 months later. I'll check with him on this one.😁 Install and free tools! Thanks Glenn! Lol Quote
smartnhappy Posted June 13 Author Posted June 13 Nipped into Glenn’s shop this morning to swap the winter tires for my summer set. And returned the tools Glenn left in my car when he installed the new battery. Not putting many miles on the car as I’m still laid up with hip trouble. I should note that a Smart car is one of the easiest vehicles to get in and out of. i really don’t know what I’d replace it with today. 1 Quote
smartnhappy Posted June 25 Author Posted June 25 Took car into Glenn’s shops so he could pop off the front grill. Needed to remove to have access to A/C. Taking car into a shop for a system recharge. It was ‘topped up’ in 2018, but weakened last year to nothing now. i hope it just needs charging. I’ll keep y’all posted. I tried for a hour+ sitting in a chair in my garage to remove grill. I have limited abilities due to broken hip. My efforts brought me as close to crying as when I was passing kidney stones years ago. 🥵 Quote
smartnhappy Posted June 30 Author Posted June 30 Took car in to Mr Freeze. Sounds specialized but it’s a full service auto repair shop. I show up for a/c service and, of course, it’s the hottest day of the year so far (34C) and he’s swamped. But he fits me right in partly due to the fact it’s a Smart car and his son drives an ‘06, partly due to the fact I have the front grill removed, partly due to the fact he knows Glenn quite well and partly due to my ability to look sorrowful and helpless. 🥺 This was a full evac/recharge of the system rather than a top up as I had in 2018. He also added dye to the coolant to make it easy to find a leak(s) should the need arise in the future. Now it’s like a meat locker in my car. Hasn’t been like this for several years as the refrigerant slowly faded/leaked. Many, many thanks to Bob, owner of Mr Freeze. He seemed quite knowledgeable in the eccentricities of Smarts, and I recommend anyone check him out. FYI… Glenn, everyone’s favourite Smart repair guy, will likely be out of the picture for a while with a hip replacement next week. Hope im not telling secrets, but this may be a service path in the short term for anyone with a problem. Stay cool everyone !! Oh and btw, my driver’s side front turn signal doesn’t work now. Loose bulb? Just another little problem. 1 Quote
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