yesterday i planned to take out our new beetle cabrio for a short run and a clean heading into the bugin weekend. went to start the car and motor would not even turn over.
have had the battery on trickle charge for a few weeks as the car doesn't get much of a run these days with bubs around.
jump started the car and took it out. returned home washed it etc and went to start it. again would not even turn over the motor. and then i noticed a god awful stench from the front of the car. popped bonnet and felt battery, was really hot.
called marshalls battery mob and they came out. guy said that he noticed the smell and that he bet the battery was cooked.
jump started and tested charging system, said it was ok not overcharging which is a common reason for cooking battery.
put in a new battery and started. restested the charging and it was fine.
tested the old battery and found the internal resistance was way too high indicating that it had dropped a few cells.
i left it outside to air and several hours later it was still warm to touch.
battery was new in october so took it back to mechanic that replaced it last service and he will do a warranty claim on it.