davewill Posted July 26, 2009 Report Posted July 26, 2009 Hi all 2 weeks ago i had the Cambelt changed on my 06 Mkll Gal at 60,000 milesA VW garage did itNext day car wouldn't start, recovery company came and said battery was flat Ran the car round for 10 miles and after this all seemed OKLast thursday car failed on main road, went into limp mode and warning lights came on dash (ABS, Airbag lights)Recovery attended again and said battery dead. Replaced battery and car started drove around 250 miles that day no problemsToday warning lights came on again (ABS, Airbag and Battery) and strange ticking noise was coming from under dashboard. Got car home but after switching off and then trying to restart it there was no life and it wouldn't turn engine over. Another ting is that i have the 6 CD changer unit it the dash, and everytime i started the car over the last two days, the 6 CDs would all be loaded by the unit, as if it was the first time it had been switched on or it was doing a reset Never had a problem with the car in 3 years until this cambelt change, any thoughts as to whether it could be this that has started the problmes, or just coincidence. Anyone recognise the symptons and any suggestions? Thanks Quote
big_kev Posted July 26, 2009 Report Posted July 26, 2009 Alternator not charging the battery ? You would expect big red fault on the dash if the alternator was not outputting voltage. Therefore it sounds like the connection from the alternator to the battery.What is the voltage accross the battery when the engine is running ? Has the big fuse in the battery junction block blown ?Is there a connection missing loose at the battery ? Quote
davewill Posted July 26, 2009 Author Report Posted July 26, 2009 Alternator not charging the battery ? You would expect big red fault on the dash if the alternator was not outputting voltage. Therefore it sounds like the connection from the alternator to the battery.What is the voltage accross the battery when the engine is running ? Has the big fuse in the battery junction block blown ?Is there a connection missing loose at the battery ? Kev forgot to say that the recovery guy tested the alternator when he checkit it over and said the Alternator was running fine and sending the correct voltage/ampage (whatever it is) to the batteryDon't know where the battery junction box is? Could you advise please Quote
icecoolpsycho Posted July 26, 2009 Report Posted July 26, 2009 Alternator not charging the battery ? You would expect big red fault on the dash if the alternator was not outputting voltage. Therefore it sounds like the connection from the alternator to the battery.What is the voltage accross the battery when the engine is running ? Has the big fuse in the battery junction block blown ?Is there a connection missing loose at the battery ? Kev forgot to say that the recovery guy tested the alternator when he checkit it over and said the Alternator was running fine and sending the correct voltage/ampage (whatever it is) to the batteryDon't know where the battery junction box is? Could you advise please Couple of things i could think. i) battery not holding its charge. How old is it? ii) Short Circuit in a live circuit which is discharging the battery. iii) Tempremental fault with alternator. May be charging but may be tempremental. I had a similar problem and it turned out to be the battery. Got a new one and the problem didn't arise again Quote
Mirez Posted July 27, 2009 Report Posted July 27, 2009 Whats the condition of the aux belt? I believe they'll have removed that to change the timing belt so its possible if its old its been stretched a little upon removing and refitting. If its slipping it won't drive the alternator properly and poor charging will occur, when the engines not under load (ie at idle) it may not slip which is why everything will look ok on a meter. Put the meter on the battery and get someone to rev the car - measure the readings at 2K, 3K and 4K rpm. The regulator should hold the voltage at a reasonably stable voltage of around 14V. If it reduces as the car revs up then the alternators not being driven properly and either the belt, tensioner or alternator has got trouble. If the voltage rises significantly as the car revs up then the regulators not working properly and you'll be killing the battery with an over-voltage. Quote
turk90210 Posted July 27, 2009 Report Posted July 27, 2009 Classic symptoms of an alternator not charging properly (warning lights coming on when driving,lights dimming ,wipers going slow ect) the radio/cd resetting itselt are typical of low power in the battery caused by the alternator/poor connectionsbecause yours has been checked ??? I would say that the alternator is poss charging intermittantly which can be hard to determine or not charging properly under load (ie start car turn everything on,Lights heated screens wipers heater hold the revs at 2000rpm and check across the battery) you should see 13.5-14 volts anything lower than 13 and the alternator/associated wiring is at fault Quote
davewill Posted July 27, 2009 Author Report Posted July 27, 2009 Whats the condition of the aux belt? I believe they'll have removed that to change the timing belt so its possible if its old its been stretched a little upon removing and refitting. If its slipping it won't drive the alternator properly and poor charging will occur, when the engines not under load (ie at idle) it may not slip which is why everything will look ok on a meter. Put the meter on the battery and get someone to rev the car - measure the readings at 2K, 3K and 4K rpm. The regulator should hold the voltage at a reasonably stable voltage of around 14V. If it reduces as the car revs up then the alternators not being driven properly and either the belt, tensioner or alternator has got trouble. If the voltage rises significantly as the car revs up then the regulators not working properly and you'll be killing the battery with an over-voltage. Guys thanks for the info The battery is brand new, it was changed last thursday after i had broken down and was told that the old battery had failed I am just waiting for a recovery truck to take me to the local Fraud dealer who can have it and do a thorough check I am sure it is a fault thats discharging the battery as the brand new one in now flat, hence the breakdown truck comngThe comments on alternator/belts etc seem to fit the fault, although when i stuck my head under the bonnet just, and even though the car won't start i could hear a "whirring" noise that seemed to indicate something was continually on so don't know if this has anything to do with it?? Any more thoughts gratefully received Quote
seatkid Posted July 27, 2009 Report Posted July 27, 2009 Whirring noise on 1.9 tdi is the coolant afterrun pump (I think thats what they call it). Read somewhere on this forum of problems of this not switching off and causing the battery to go flat. It normally runs for up to a minute or so when the engine is hot after switch off. Quote
davewill Posted July 27, 2009 Author Report Posted July 27, 2009 Just had an update from the garage Apparantly there is a wire connection to the fusebox within the engine bay, and it is this that has become frayed and is shorting out causing the problem The guy says they need to order parts - total bill approx Quote
seatkid Posted July 27, 2009 Report Posted July 27, 2009 Thats expensive to patch a frayed wire! Quote
gregers Posted July 27, 2009 Report Posted July 27, 2009 do a search on here,iirc there has been problems posted about this. Quote
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