MBP - not powering up after Apple replaced battery

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Level 4

2,361 points

MBP - not powering up after Apple replaced battery

My mid-2009 17" MBP went dark dramatically this AM while I was using it. There was a crackle and a puff of smoke!! It look like the wisp of smoke was coming up from the power port (the computer was plugged in). No liquids involved at all. Laptop had been in use for about an hour before this happened. Now it won't start up - although if I wait a little while and then try, it starts to start up, but goes dark again after showing the apple (and before getting to the login screen). This laptop is out of Apple Care but it had the swollen battery issue which I paid to replace at the Apple Store. They installed the new battery. The powercord is plugged into a surge protector and that is doing fine (it wasn't tripped). Nothing else in house or plugged into that surge protector "surged", so I think this is a local issue (local to the laptop itself). The power cord does not show an indicator light (the light is dark) when I plug it back in (yes, I did this despite my trepidation, to try to rescue some files to a disc).

I will be taking it to the Apple Store today (the same folks who replaced the battery) - and I am wondering if the two could be related in any way. The battery was replaced months ago - how long is that warrantied? The issue does seem to be with the power port BUT shouldn't the battery be working to start it up again? The brief startup then flickering off seems to suggest that there is not power in the laptop. If the battery failed, shouldn't it be covered by Apple?

Has anyone had this happen before? I know that the computer is a few years old (I got it new in 2010), but should parts of it be swelling up and sparking and emitting smoke? I am a longstanding Apple user and I have never had serious hardware issues like this - a logic board failure here and there, but nothing so strange as this.

And did I mention, ARGH?

Any help/comments welcome.

Thanks - Liese

Posted on Jul 13, 2014 9:18 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

clintonfrombirmingham

Level 7

30,100 points

Jul 13, 2014 9:28 AM in response to Liese Schwarz

I've read - here - of crackles and puffs of smoke coming from the power supply, but I've never experienced it.

The best thing you can do is keep your appointment and see what the techs have to say. Apple usually only warrants replacement parts for 90-days, however it may be longer on a battery replacement.

I've had my own ARGH! moments with my machine, but no magic puffs of smoke!

Best of luck,

Clinton

MacBook Pro (15-inch Late 2011), OS Mavericks 10.9.4, 16GB Crucial RAM, Crucial M500 960GB SSD, 27” Apple Thunderbolt Display

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Answer 2

Jul 13, 2014 9:30 AM in response to Liese Schwarz

No promises, but if it's emitting smoke and poses a safety risk, they may be more inclined to replace it at no charge.

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Answer 3

Liese Schwarz Author

Level 4

2,361 points

Jul 13, 2014 12:11 PM in response to Liese Schwarz

Thanks, guys. I took it to the Genius and indeed the battery is not working. He replaced the fried cable (down to the brick) at no charge, said they'd replace the battery at no charge, and is keeping it overnight for tests. Sigh. I am wondering if it's a message telling me to get a new laptop, but I just upgraded the RAM and replaced the HD with an SSD in hopes of prolonging this one's life. I like the 17" screen and the thing is really working very well otherwise. Other than the puff of smoke that is. 🙂

Not sure how I got a bad battery from Apple, but that seems to have been the case. Sigh.

'Preciate your cheery words! Fingers crossed that the behemoth comes through the "testing" well...

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Answer 4

Jul 13, 2014 12:16 PM in response to Liese Schwarz

Best of luck - if I were you, I would hold onto that 17" as long as possible - I doubt that Apple will ever produce a 17" notebook again...

Clinton

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