power wheels battery charged but not working

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Your kiddo’s power wheels battery charged but not working? This repair guide looks at how to fix the fault

Imagine waking up to a fully charged power wheels that won’t work?

Well, it’s very, very annoying to put it mildly (I don’t even want to imagine how bad your son/daughter will feel on learning that the whole day of fun they were looking forward to may not be happening after all).

Fortunately, what is causing the battery not to work may not be a big problem and the battery may work after you correct the minor issue behind it.

Here is what you should try if your fully charged power wheels battery is not working.

Your power wheels battery charged but not working? Try these fixes

Is it really fully charged? Check this and ensure it has been fully charged

Is the battery really fully charged? These batteries will again and again “act” charged, but end up not providing any power.

So you may think the battery is 100% charged while in truth it is not hence it cannot work, no matter what you try.

Please note that most new ride on cars batteries attain full charge after being plugged in for 18 hours (so you should leave it to charge for 18 hours) before initial use.

Still there, 12 hours is the average recommended charging time to attain full charge for most power wheels battery after every use (be sure to check what the manual says).

Now, a good way of verifying if it is completely charged – if there is no indicator light- is using a simple voltmeter to measure voltage.

Below are the readings that you should be happy with, depending on the battery type:

12V batteries-6+ volts (under 11.8 volts won’t work)
6V batteries-6-7.0 volts (anything below 5 volts won’t work)

So check and charge it fully.

Check the battery connection- they could be loose

Another reason why a seemingly fully charged power wheels battery wont work is a loose connection somewhere in the circuit running from the battery or in the compartment.

So inspect the connections and make sure everything is tight (also look for a broken terminal and fix it, if found).

Check the electric system for corrosion

Like any electrical system, corrosion prevents a power wheel’s electrical system from working properly.

You see, moisture may get in there and cause power supply from the battery to be blocked.

So the next thing you should do is take a close look at the circuitry for signs of corrosion and try to remove it.

Check if the battery is too aged or dead
As your power wheels battery age, it will correspondingly be holding lesser and lesser charge and it may ultimately be unable to power the car.

Also, the battery may have died from persistent mishandling (like overcharging it).

Either way, you’ll need to shop for a replacement though you’ll want to be sure that it is dead before you order for a new battery.

Here is what you can do (have a voltmeter with you):

Fully charge your power wheels battery.
Next, connect it to your power wheels.
Now, to test the battery, do something that uses power in the car (you need a load for accurate results). You can, for example, turn on the motor or lights and check the voltage reading while doing that.

What the results mean

Now, you should only note a slight voltage drop (not a massive one) when you use the battery so if the voltage goes significantly down (and no fuses/circuit breakers fail), then your power wheel’s battery is probably the culprit.

You can as well test your 12 volts battery with an automotive light bulb- The battery shouldn’t drop more than a volt when the bulb is connected and the bulb should have full brightness.

If you notice no voltage drop (on stepping on the gas), then look for issues like a broken wire/connection.

A word on power wheels battery life

It is important we mention something about these battery’s life.

Now, it is an open secret that nearly all reach the end of the road after 3-5 years (and we mean pretty much all).

For this reason, if your battery is that old, especially if you are not good at maintaining batteries, you can be reasonably sure that it is not good.

To add, if it has been sitting discharged all winter, there is a big chance of the battery having gone bad.

Replacing the battery- useful tips

Do not replace a 6-volt battery with a 12-volt battery

You cannot replace a 6-volt battery with a 12-volt battery.

If you do that, it will likely short out the circuit and might even cause a fire!

How to identify the correct replacement battery for your power wheels

Winding up with a power wheels battery that wont work is easy and obviously nobody wants a battery that won’t work for their toy.

To avoid this scenario, first read your power wheels model number (it is typically listed on the car and is most often found near/within the battery’s compartment).

You should then provide the number to the seller of the model you have in mind- simply contact them and request that they confirm if the battery will work for your specific toy.

To point you in the right direction, here is an excellent 12v replacement battery and here is a good power wheels 6-volt replacement battery.