My e-4 sat for a year in the garage, tried to charge it yesterday for 24 hours, turn key on, nothing…any ideas? thankl you
if it sat unplugged for a year batteries will be destroyed. You can try charging them individually but even if they charge the range will be minimal.
ok thx…what are you supposed to do if it sits? Disconnect the batt’s? turn off the main power switch? I bought this with zero prior knowledge of Gem’s. Read the manual, but thats allI know. What type of Batt’s do I need for this? Looks like there are 4 original “polaris” batt’s in there. Any suggestions without conversions, and new chargers, and changing settings? Thank you
Yo! - slow down a bit.
First thing is you need to figure out what this car will be to you. I’d hate to see you to fix it all up again and have it sit for another year.
Along with that, figure out your budget.
Your issues
As LG pointed out, if your batteries are dead then you will probably need to change them. Put a meter on them and see what they are.
Just for your info, you probably didn’t see the two batteries tucked all the way back under the rear spat. You should have 6 batteries making 72v.
Hopefully you turned on the little flip switch on the bottom of your fuse panel before attempting to charge the car. Yes- that needs to be on.
When you plug the car in to charge what is the charger display on your charger doing? Locate your charger. it is yellow with black fins. It may be visible from the driver side if you look towards the center of the car over the top of the tire.
Normal use of the car calls for shutting off the battery disconnect when you don’t plan on using it.
When you intend to charge the car the switch needs to be on. The charger can be plugged in and left on without worry of overcharging.
Long term storage is tough call.
If you are leaving it unattended for long periods of time(3 months) it would be a good idea to charge the car and switch it off.
Longer periods of time would be good to have someone switch it on and charge it every now and then.
Hey, thank you for the great tips. I bought this GEM last year for a second home I was purchasing up in Northern AZ. The deal fell through, and it has been sitting in my 3rd garage in Phoenix ever since. I drove it around when I first got it, but noticed it wouldn’t last long between charges. That seemed normal because these were original Polaris batt’s that came with the car in 2015. The original owner told me they needed to be changed, and priced it into the sale. But from time to time, I would plug it into the wall, and the dash would light up, showing the charging bars charging, and I could go for a spin. This last time, it probably say for 8-10 months without a charge, and now when I plug it in, everything is dark, no charging bars, lights, nothing. The master on/off switch in the fuse box compartment is on, and was never turned off. Thats where I’m at today. I still don’t have the second home, and really have no need for it down here, so I was going to just take a spin from time to time, until I moved it up north. Then I was planning on getting 6 new batt’s. Is there anyway to bring these back to life, or are they gone 100%? Should I take them out, and or, disconnect them? I don’t want them to leak, burn, etc, Have little ones running around the garage. Any suggestions would be helpful, my name is Greg. Thank you again.
Seeing as how the original owner mentioned that there was not much life in them, then they are probably on their way out. You might be able to encourage one or two more runs around the block(where’s the fun in that?), maybe not. Make sure you bring someone that can help push the car home.
You didn’t mention what the display on your charger was doing (not the dash display). Is your car even plugged into an active outlet?
Leaving the master switch ON leaves a slow parasitic drain of the minor systems to remain active and this probably drained your pack. Chances are that the V in the pack has fallen below the lower threshold of the charger. Next time, switch off that main disconnect if you are not going to use the car. There are specific scenarios that need to have this switched ON, but this is not one of them.
Get a meter and see how low they are. How low did they go?
If you feel lucky and want to see if there is any life in them you need to put an external charger on them one at a time and see if they will come back up. It’ll take a while. Give each one a couple hours and see if anything sticks. Don’t just hit one or two and see if the car will kick in, you gotta give them all a hit.
If there is any life at all in the batteries there is value in them to the next owner to verify that the car is working. Do not just throw in a cheap new set of “whatever is on sale” just to sell the car. If you do decide that you want to keep the car we could point you in a few directions but not until you are ready.
Ok, My plan all along was to purchase new batteries, as these are from 2015. I was waiting until I moved the car up north, but that may not happen for a year or two. I located the charger panel, this is what its doing… when I plug it into the wall, the 2 opposite arrow’s light blinks red twice, over and over, and the sake symbol, squiggly symbol, is solid yellow. When unplugged, the triangle symbols blink red a few times after pulling the power, then all symbols from top to bottom are blank…no lights.
I am not selling this Gem, as its in pristine, showroom condition, not a single scratch. 1 owner prior to me, purchased it new and took unbelievable care of it. I don’t need it to run at this time, but it would be nice to cruise around from time to time, but not needed. Winter coming, etc. I just don’t want to damage anything on it by letting it sit with these old Batt’s. Should I remove them, and just wait until I need to drive it before I buy new ones? Should I replace them now? Would like help with which new ones to put in. Cost not an issue, as this Gem will be with my for as long as I’m alive. I would prefer not to modify it, as its in such nice condition. I don’t want to change settings, replace parts, its fast enough for me as is.
2 blinks from the red light means the charger does not see an servicable pack on it’s output leads.
Either the disconnect switch is off
-or-
the voltage has dropped below the ability of the charger’s desire to deal with it. Much like my feelings about this thread.
You would do well by reading suggestions a bit closer.
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Well, not sure what your response means, but it sounds like you’re not wanting to deal with this thread any longer. I appreciate your input, and will look elsewhere for help.
If there is anyone out there that would be willing to help a Gem newbie with my power issue, I would appreciate it…thank you
Sir, I have given you all the info you need, and have asked you to do several things to try, many of which seem to have been ignored.
I am trying to help and giving you personal tailored info to get your issue solved.
Yet, you just keep ignoring them and keep asking the same things.
But ok. I have my own things I need to take care of.
I now point you to the magnifying glass in the upper right of your page. It is a search function that will connect you to almost two decades of posts by other people with the same issues that you are having today that may explain things in a different way that you may understand.
Apologies for wasting your time.
Going back to LG- original assessment in post 2 of this thread
Your batteries are toast.
Sir, I have done everything you asked me to do. I told you what the charger was displaying, and it sounds like the batt’s are shot, based on your response. I turned off the master switch as you suggested. I found the 2 batt’s under the rear spat, as you mentioned. Not sure what else you suggested I do that I didn’t. I’m now looking for some guidance as to how to get this Gem moving again. I guess I need new batt’s. That being said, I am looking for some guidance as to what type goes in these vehicles, that are the best. You didn’t waste my times I said, your tips were very helpful. You said in your last message that you were tired of dealing with this thread. I said thank you, and I would look elsewhere for guidance…not sure where I didn’t do as you suggested, or what your even talking about, but thank you again for your tips. I have used this website 3 times, and am not very savvy with it yet, but I will try the search function…thank you again
Let me try and help. As ou know your batteries are dead. You can leave them in there until you want to replace them and it wont hurt anything. If you want to replace them you have a few options. Your Gem is set up for Gel 31 series batteries, they are expensive, about 300+ ea. direct swap nothing technical at all. You can also put in less expensive 31 series deep cycle batteries. about 100/ea and should give you 3 years of service. Any auto parts store will have them. direct replacement but your charger is set for gel. If you dont change the setting it will ruin the batteries in less than a year. Changing the setting is frustrating but there are videos on how to do it. If you can do it, $600 of batteries will have you back on the road.
Thank you, I think I saw your name was Mike? I appreciate your help. Since i don’t need to use it on a regular basis now, I will just let it sit until I move it to where it’s going. Prior to the move I’ll replace the batt’s. I switched the master to off, not plugged in to anything, and will let it sit until I move it. no problem with charger damage, fire, leaks? I appreciate the help, will do some research on the batt’s to replace, per your suggestions. I thank you, and the other gentelmen for your input.
Is there a specific brand of Gel 31 series Batt’s you would recommend ?
no leaks or problems letting it sit as is. Deka Gel Dominator is the battery that came in it. 31 size
I think I read that you have a lot to do with Lithium conversion on these Gem’s. How involved is that, and what ids the cost. I’m going to be spending @ $1800 for 6, $300 dollar Gel’s. Is the lithium batteries more expensive than that?
yes. they are 2500 for the current packs we have available
Easier to install and worth every penny.
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