If The Battery Is Flat - Fiat Barchetta Owner's Handbook Manual

IF THE BATTERY
IS FLAT
First of all, read the "Car mainte-
nance" chapter for the steps to be tak-
en to avoid the battery running down
and to ensure it has a long life.
RECHARGING THE BATTERY
You are advised to recharge the bat-
tery slowly for a period of approxi-
mately 24 hours at a very low amper-
age. Charging for too long could result
in the battery being damaged.
Proceed as follows:
1) Disconnect the electrical system
terminals from the battery posts.
IMPORTANT If the car is fitted
with an electronic car alarm, use the
remote control to turn the alarm off
with the remote control and deacti-
vate the system by turning the emer-
gency key to "OFF" (see the "Elec-
tronic alarm" in the "Getting to know
your car" section).
2) Connect the battery terminals to
the charger.
3) Turn on the charger.
4) When you have finished, turn the
charger off before disconnecting the
battery.
5) Reconnect the cables to the bat-
tery posts. Make sure the polarity is
correct.
WARNING
The liquid in the battery is
poisonous and corrosive.
Do not let it touch the skin or eyes.
Recharging the battery should be
done in a well-ventilated area and
away from naked flames or possi-
ble sources of sparks: explosion and
fire risk.
JUMP STARTING
See "Jump starting" in this chapter.
WARNING
Do not attempt to recharge
a frozen battery. Thaw it
first otherwise it could explode. If
the battery froze, make sure the in-
ternal elements are not broken
(short-circuit risk) and that the cas-
ing is not cracked (risk of spilling
the poisonous and corrosive fluid).
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