Jaguar Repair: Dead Battery/Jaguar xke 1967, jaguar xke, test light

Question
The battery was working before it was transported 1,800 miles by truck.(It sat awhile, maybe 3 weeks)  Tried charging it - I ran it for 20 min.  When I turned off the ignition and tried starting it again it was completely dead.  By the way the battery is about 7 years old.  I hope you could give some insight. Thanks

Answer
Hi Kt,

I would charge the battery and have it load tested. Then connect it up and leave on cable off and put a 12v test light between the cable and the post (with everything turned off in the car) the test light should not light. Then connect the cable and put a volt meter across the battery posts and read voltage (12.5 +) and then start the engine and set the RPM at about 1500 RPM and read the voltmeter. (13.8 to 14.5 volts)(this is the charging system test)

Your battery will probably fail the first test (load test) as 7 years is past the normal life span of most batteries.

Howard