Start up problem

[cocat2517]

Hi

Had a problem with the Fabia this morning, it wouldn't start.

Put key in, left it a second for dash lights to go out etc then tried to turn it over, it stuttered and tried to start but failed. Left it a bit then tried again, same thing. Tried it a few times and it was making less & less attempt to turn over until eventually it gave up and wouldn't do anything.

Got my wife to jump start me, started straight away, drove to work (1 hour on motorways), parked up, turned engine off & tried to restart, no luck, same thing. Also I turned all the lights on & radio and the battery is struggling to power it all (and the PAS light came on after a minute too). So the battery is definitely flat and hasn't charged on my drive to work?

Any thoughts? Heading to Halfords the weekend for a new battery, although I checked the battery indicator on existing battery and its green inside?

Had a new alternator about 2 years ago and had the load sensor wire issue at the same time, which was fixed.

One thing that may be related, it struggled to start in the cold weather this year, especially after a frost. Had to wait for the little orange coil light on the dash (glow plug light?) to go out, otherwise it wouldn't start, or would really struggle. It's never struggled in previous winters, so I guessed maybe the battery was getting a bit old. My wife suggested it may also be the glow plugs that need replacing?

Any suggestions to cause & fix?

Thanks!

Pete

Edited 24 March, 2016 by cocat2517

[theezenutz]

Check the condition of your battery first then check to see if your alternator is charging the battery.

Sounds like battery to me don't go by the little green you need the voltages checked.

Edited 24 March, 2016 by theezenutz

[cocat2517]

Quick update. Just hooked it up to a work van with the jump cables, left the van running 20 mins (with a little revving) to put some charge into my battery. Disconnected it all & tried to start my car by itself. Nothing.

Is it fair to assume my alternator is pro ably ok and its that the battery isn't accepting charge at all? I would've though 20 mins charging from another vehicle would've given it enough power to at least start?

(Wife has a multi meter in her garage at home so will check voltage with that later)

Edited 24 March, 2016 by cocat2517

[wiredsoftware]

I assume you've checked the alternator load wire? Pick any post on the forum and there's a 50% chance it'll mention it.

[cocat2517]

I had the issue with the load wire about 2 years ago. It was fixed and a new alternator was also put on.

There is a possibility it's that again, however I tried charging my battery through a work van & jump leads for 20 mins but it didn't charge it, so guessing it's the battery that's not accepting charge rather that the alt not giving any or the sensor wire telling it not to.

[Breezy_Pete]

Quick update. Just hooked it up to a work van with the jump cables, left the van running 20 mins (with a little revving) to put some charge into my battery. Disconnected it all & tried to start my car by itself. Nothing.

Is it fair to assume my alternator is pro ably ok and its that the battery isn't accepting charge at all? I would've though 20 mins charging from another vehicle would've given it enough power to at least start?

(Wife has a multi meter in her garage at home so will check voltage with that later)

 

Get the missus to jump start the car again, or leave it running when you get home and grab the multimeter.

Measure the voltage at the alternator (both probes local to it, one on the output stud where the thick wire attaches, the other on the body of the alternator on a bit of aluminium you've scraped clean).

Then measure the voltage with both probes right across the battery posts. 

If both of those numbers are 14+, I think it would be fair to conclude the battery is history. Any idea how many years old it is?

[cocat2517]

Thanks. Yes I'll get her to check them with her multimeter and see what the readings are.

Not sure about battery age. Car is an 04 plate, I got it in March '08. Don't remember putting a new battery in myself, so it's potentially it's an 8 year old battery, but could be the original that came with the car?

[Breezy_Pete]

Look for a VW-group part number on the top of it.  That would tend to indicate that it's the original, as fairly few people would replace with a genuine battery, I think. It's done very well if it's original, and quite well if it's 8 years old.

Edited 24 March, 2016 by Wino

[cocat2517]

Fitted new battery late last night (old battery didn't have enough power for my lights to drive home!), no issues so far, but will give it a few days to see if the new battery is getting charged, fairly sure it will be ok.

Will check old battery voltage when I can find the multimeter.

Next question... the battery clamp be was a bugger to get off, very corroded, same as the clamp plate itself, managed to get it off with a little wd40 & brute force, but it's rounded the edges of the bolt a bit. Where can I get a replacement from? I've searched fleabay but not finding much? Is it a standard size bolt I can pick up in Wickes? X

[cocat2517]

This is the old battery by the way, don't think it's an original, is it?

 

Edited 25 March, 2016 by cocat2517

[Alexandru]

IIRC, those are OEM, made by Varta and you have pretty good chances to have the original one. 

[theezenutz]

If it's a 10mm head (spanner size) then it's probably a M6 bolt so just measure the length and buy a suitable bolt. You'll want to remove the corrosion from the battery clamp with a wire brush or some emery cloth to make sure your getting a good flow of current going through your cable, then give the clamp and battery terminal a good coating of Vaseline to ensure that it doesn't corrode again.

I would also check as many cable terminals as you can relating to the alternator, battery and earth points for corrosion, it'll usually show up as a green oxidisation.

Edited 25 March, 2016 by theezenutz

[Breezy_Pete]

This is the old battery by the way, don't think it's an original, is it?

 

That 1J0 915...part number is an original VW Group part number, so quite a good chance that that is the original battery.

 

Excellent tips above from theezenutz.

[cocat2517]

Thanks for the help everyone. Will have a look at the bolt head size and scrub up the clamp.

Cheers!

[sepulchrave]

If that's the original battery then it's almost certainly toast after nearly 12 years.