D-Lux 109 weird auto-focus issue

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I've had this camera for years and it always worked fine.  I last used it for a couple of days in April.  I decided to send it to Life Pixel for an infra-red conversion and noticed that the autofocus wasn't working properly.  It worked when I focused on objects pretty close to the camera but it wasn't able to lock onto anything at a distance.  I have 2 batteries for it, one Leica and one Panasonic, both many years old.  I was using the Panasonic battery when I discovered the problem so I charged up the Leica battery, installed it and the problem disappeared.  So I sent it off to Life Pixel.  The tech contacted me because he experienced the same issue using one of their batteries.  He swapped batteries and didn't have the problem again but I decided not to convert the camera because of this potential issue.  I got the camera back from them and it showed the same problem.  Once again, I swapped batteries and the problem disappeared.  

Anyone else experience this?  Should I buy a new battery?  Clean the contacts?  Any suggestions?

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[wda]

Do you have a test meter to measure the battery voltage at full charge and at the point of it giving you trouble?

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I may. I’ll look. 

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I ordered a new battery but I suspect it’s a more serious problem. If a new battery doesn’t solve it, I’ll contact Leica service. 

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Anybody else experience the autofocus problem?