I have a Skoda Octavia 2.0 TDI Elegance which I bought new in September 2005. I have had to take the car back to the dealer on a number of occasions as, if the car isn't used for as little as three days, the battery goes totally flat. On each occasion I get a different reason for the problem and an assurance that it has been fixed. A new battery was fitted just prior to the expiry of the warranty but still the problem exists. The last time it happened the excuse was that they had found corrosion on the back of the alternator and that it must have been there from the very beginning!

I got back from holiday this morning and the battery is flat as a pancake. Even the key wouldn't work.

Obviously I realise that the dealer is at fault in failing to find and eliminate the fault long ago and on my part I have been far too trusting but it still remains that I have a car that is totally unreliable.

Has anyone else had this experience and found the answer?

Edited 15 March, 200917 yr by skodaoct
Typo error

have you tested the battery etc with a volt meter to see if its giving out a charge? also checked to see what its at when everything is turned off? you have already ruled out a new battery, but with what you saying it sounds more likely to be the alternator unless something in the car is not powering down when the car is off.

As above or maybe a bad earth connection somewhere!!!

Thanks for the responses.....am pretty sure that neither of the batteries have not been to blame. The fact that normally the car starts first time seems to point to either a bad earth or the alternator I can't understand why the dealer has been unable to rectify the fault.

I'm getting on to the dealer tomorrow but just wanted to find out if others had had the same experience.

Any further input would be appreciated.

Welcome to the forums Skodaoct, the search function is your friend: http://briskoda.net/search/

A few I found for you.

http://briskoda.net/octavia-ii/battery-going-flat/134835/

http://briskoda.net/octavia-ii/dud-battery/133123/

http://briskoda.net/octavia-ii/battery-drain/121061/

http://briskoda.net/octavia-ii/battery-keeps-dying-1-9tdi-2005estate/92222/

http://briskoda.net/octavia-ii/octavia5rs-flat-battery-fan-keeps-running/76898/

http://briskoda.net/octavia-ii/new-octavia-battery-discharging/54745/

If you have a stream radio, that can cause a battery drain if it's got a certain version of software on it.

Worth taking the radio out and leaving the car to see if the battery lasts longer than 3 days in that case.

if the car has been serviced in the past year then there shouldnt be a problem with the radio as the software would have been updated. personally i cant see the radio draining down the battery that quick.

Just a suggestion, try taking the car for a long drive of about an hour in daylight using as little electric (lights, a/c etc) and see if that improves/worsens things.

My car sat untouched for more than a month on two different occasions and started right up at the first try when I got back.

If you have an alarm installed, aftermarket parking sensors or some other chinese stuff I'd blame that rather than the car.

Thanks again for the advice. My car is as supplied by the dealer who has today fitted a new brake light switch to see if that is the problem. I am told there is no outstanding recalls on my vehicle. Am now going to leave the car unused for the next 5 days and see whether the fault appears again. Fingers crossed.

The radio wasn't a recall, it was a TSB.

If they checked for recalls only they wouldn't have found it.

I think I'd be giving your current dealer a miss - they are obviously not skilled enough to locate and fix the problem. If you don't have the electronic skills to suss out what is going on I suggest you take it to a reputable automotive electrician. A likely cause (as mentioned by others in this thread) is a current drain (sometimes the electronics don't switch off into "sleep" mode like they should).

Please keep us informed of how you get on (it may help some other poor soul).

Well, my car started straight away after five days. I'm still unconvinced that the brake light switch was the culprit all along as I think I or my neighbours would have noticed something whilst the malfunction was going on (unless, of course, the malfunction always happens in daylight......hmm...). Does anyone know whether the brake light switch fault occurs at any time, or during the night or during the day? How is it that the internal pressure can trigger the brake light switch? For now, I intend leaving the car unused for a further 7 days and then try it again.

The brake switch stays stuck on permanently from the last time you braked, daytime, nighttime and in between.