hi my air con is not working and the climotronic display flashes for about 15 seconds when i turn on, i have read that this indicates a fault...has anybody else had thIs

2009 fabia 1.4 TDI

 

 

Edited 17 February, 20233 yr by markbsac

I had exactly the same symptom when my fan motor failed. I am by no means certain, but I think after the flashing the display shows a spanner, if the air con fails.

5 minutes ago, Jocko said:

I had exactly the same symptom when my fan motor failed. I am by no means certain, but I think after the flashing the display shows a spanner, if the air con fails.

thanks i have no spanner showing

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

Check your car battery's voltage at the battery posts, without the engine running, a couple of hours after the car has been parked up, if it's much below about 12.3V then fully recharge the battery with an appropriate battery charger (and maintainer) a lower amperage charger will take longer but do better, 4-amps over 6 and 2-amps over 4 but the recharging could take overnight, a day, or more, time and patience will be rewarded.

 

Your battery charge can still be too low for the computers even if your car starts and the lights seem fine and often just driving the car won't charge the battery enough let alone fully and might even drain the battery more, with a full recharge with an appropriate charger (and maintainer) you can be more certain.

 

Edited 17 February, 20233 yr by nta16
ETA: Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

5 hours ago, markbsac said:

thanks i have no spanner showing

Item 4 from the manual.

I have no spanner on the display

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

Rule 1, of course, RtFM.  😄

 

I almost put a link to the Owner's Manual but decided not to that time. - https://manual.skoda-auto.com/004/en-com/Models

 

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

On 17/02/2023 at 19:38, markbsac said:

I have no spanner on the display

 

ETA: A battery in a low state of charge can cause all sorts of unexpected issues even before warning lights or messages are given.

 

It might be other things but I'd start with checking the car battery voltage and that the battery posts clamps are both secure and clean and the earth body connection is clean and secure.

 

I'd even disconnect the battery and with it disconnected [ carefully bridge/join the positive and negative battery leads post clamps together to complete a circuit ] turn the ignition on and press and hold the brake pedal down for about a count of ten to get the brakes lights on if the battery wasn't disconnected, as a "turnin' it off 'n' on agen" sort of reset, switch ignition off and remove key before reconnecting battery.  Also consult Owner's Manual before to check what might need resetting after battery disconnection.

 

With the car battery disconnected I'd take the opportunity to fully recharge the battery. 

 

It's very easy to check and/or fully recharge the car battery, even if the battery being low isn't the cause having the battery in a good state of charge is very useful when you have electrical or starting issues and a battery in low state of charge can hinder or even prevent diagnosis or resolution of electrical (including computers) and starting issues.

 

A battery in a low state of charge can cause all sorts of unexpected issues even before warning lights or messages are given.

 

It's your car and your issue you decide how you want to go on.  It'd please some if you could report that you fully recharged the battery with an appropriate charger (and maintainer) and it didn't sort this issue (and possibly prevent further issues).

 

A recharge with with a 4-amp charger would be better than 6-amp and 2-amp better than 4-amp but any might take a good while depending on how low your battery is, hours, overnight, a day or more but time and patience will be rewarded with a better recharge.

 

Failing all that plug in a higher level scan tool search for error codes and do a air-con reset - be a waste of time if the car battery is low of course. 😁  

 

Edited 18 February, 20233 yr by nta16
ETA: the bit I was kindly reminded I'd missed out, thank you.

3 hours ago, nta16 said:

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

 

ETA: A battery in a low state of charge can cause all sorts of unexpected issues even before warning lights or messages are given.

 

It might be other things but I'd start with checking the car battery voltage and that the battery posts clamps are both secure and clean and the earth body connection is clean and secure.

 

I'd even disconnect the battery and with it disconnected turn the ignition on and press and hold the brake pedal down for about a count of ten to get the brakes lights on if the battery wasn't disconnected, as a "turnin' it off 'n' on agen" sort of reset, switch ignition off and remove key before reconnecting battery.  Also consult Owner's Manual before to check what might need resetting after battery disconnection.

 

With the car battery disconnected I'd take the opportunity to fully recharge the battery. 

 

It's very easy to check and/or fully recharge the car battery, even if the battery being low isn't the cause having the battery in a good state of charge is very useful when you have electrical or starting issues and a battery in low state of charge can hinder or even prevent diagnosis or resolution of electrical (including computers) and starting issues.

 

A battery in a low state of charge can cause all sorts of unexpected issues even before warning lights or messages are given.

 

It's your car and your issue you decide how you want to go on.  It'd please some if you could report that you fully recharged the battery with an appropriate charger (and maintainer) and it didn't sort this issue (and possibly prevent further issues).

 

A recharge with with a 4-amp charger would be better than 6-amp and 2-amp better than 4-amp but any might take a good while depending on how low your battery is, hours, overnight, a day or more but time and patience will be rewarded with a better recharge.

 

Failing all that plug in a higher level scan tool search for error codes and do a air-con reset - be a waste of time if the car battery is low of course. 😁  

 

thanks i have an optimate trickle charger...ill put that on to start with

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

9 hours ago, markbsac said:

thanks i have an optimate trickle charger...ill put that on to start with

Good call.  Do bear in mind the trickle charger will take a long time to fully recharge the battery, especially if the battery is still connected, and if the weather is cold.  Depending on how low the battery is it could take a good overnight or 24+ hours.

 

If you have start/stop car and leave the battery connected to the car remember to connect the negative of the charger to the engine earth point so that the computer knows the battery is being charged and will respond to this quicker.

 

If you have a battery with the 'magic eye' remember you need to tap on the battery before looking at what it reads, before and after charging.

 

If you disconnect the battery before doing so make sure the electric windows are fully closed.

 

Good luck, let us know how you get on.

 

I have an AA0725 4A Intelligent Car Battery Charger permanently connected to my car via hardwiring and a plug and socket. The last thing I do before opening the gates of my drive is unplug it and plugging it in is the first thing I do after reversing back in. I do very short trips (a couple of miles) sometimes a week or so apart (75 miles so far this year), so this keeps my battery in tip top condition.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0856FKYQD/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

 

Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything.

 

The AA0725 4A Intelligent Car Battery Charger is obviously from before the time they added "and Maintainer" though it does this.  A very good idea to have this given your car use.  Suitable more for garage than outdoor use perhaps as it's "Operating ambient temperature" is "0°C ~ 40°C".

 

Perhaps it's just me and I am truly not an expert, but depending on the car's use and on it's parked up conditions, personally once a month or two I'd not connect the charger for up to a week or two and let the battery drop to about 12.4V so that the battery gets some cycling discharge / charging.

 

AA0725 4A Intelligent Car Battery Charger Manual pdf. - aa_4a.pdf

 

Edited 18 February, 20233 yr by nta16

6 hours ago, nta16 said:

Good luck, let us know how you get on.

 

He is charging his battery not going to the moon 🙄

 

And he is only doing that because of your obsession with the subject.

 

 

On 17/02/2023 at 16:26, nta16 said:

often just driving the car won't charge the battery enough let alone fully and might even drain the battery more,

 

That is nonsense regarding any Skoda produced in this century and no matter how many times a day you type it  will not change that.

 

I very recently posted the most conservative calculations based on the smallest of alternators fitted to our vehicles and it showed that the battery would recharge from a cold start in less than a minute, it may even have been 30 seconds of the engine idling and that included pre and post start glowplug activation.

 

I invited the forum to peruse my figures in case I had missed anything and the only response was Varoom who was inspired to do a physical check using VCDS measuring blocks.

 

His vehicle was at 60% SOC after having been left for over a week, after starting the alternator charged at less than 50% of its capacity and dropped back to a maintenance charge after 2 or 3 minutes, that was with an idling engine not driving and starting from a 40% discharged battery.

 

I'm sure you read the thread, nothing that might be vaguely connected to a vehicle battery would escape your view.

 

You have got to stop trotting out stuff that might have been relevant 50 years ago repeatedly as fact.

 

I am heartened and reconnaissant that you have ceased telling people to take their battery off the car for a long low slow charge, posting videos encouraging them to disconnect their battery to reboot their ECU or asking them to post photos of a kleenex after wiping their dipstick.

 

I spoke too soon

 

 

19 hours ago, nta16 said:

'd even disconnect the battery and with it disconnected turn the ignition on and press and hold the brake pedal down for about a count of ten to get the brakes lights on if the battery wasn't disconnected, as a "turnin' it off 'n' on agen" sort of reset, switch ignition off and remove key before reconnecting battery. 

 

Edited 18 February, 20233 yr by J.R.

He is charging his battery not going to the moon 🙄

 

  20 hours ago, nta16 said:

'd even disconnect the battery and with it disconnected turn the ignition on and press and hold the brake pedal down for about a count of ten to get the brakes lights on if the battery wasn't disconnected, as a "turnin' it off 'n' on agen" sort of reset, switch ignition off and remove key before reconnecting battery. 

He may be going to the moon if he get a shock off all that voltage/amperage accumulated in the electrical system ⚡😂. Were would any phantom current go - the bulbs negative terminal returns via the wiring to the battery earth terminal to complete a circuit - but battery disconnected.

4 hours ago, nta16 said:

Suitable more for garage than outdoor use perhaps as it's "Operating ambient temperature" is "0°C ~ 40°C".

Mine has regularly been operating at temperatures down to -7°C this winter, but as it generates a little heat it keeps itself warm. It is screwed to the back of the non-opening half of my workshop door, through which the cable passes to the car.

3 hours ago, KeithCheetham said:

the bulbs negative terminal returns via the wiring to the battery earth terminal to complete a circuit

😄  Oh yeah, I've missed a bit, forgot it once and repeated the mistake since, that's why I have to use hyperlinks, videos and photos so often.

 

I don't mind you taking the **** out of my mistake but I'd sooner you didn't start or join in on a plie on against me, please, pretty please.

 

You have made your point, thank you, and I've accepted it.

 

33 minutes ago, Jocko said:

Mine has regularly been operating at temperatures down to -7°C this winter

Well the 0°C might be a typo or other error or just being cautious.  Some electronics seem to dislike the cold more than others.  My 20+ year old Carcoon (Accumate) was stored in the shed and one time when we had minus double digits (which is rare here) it had to warm up before it would operate, mind the shed always seems colder inside than it is outside.

 

One of the reason I got my new "smart" charger was because it had it worked down to minus 20°C, and up to plus 40°C, we had +40.2°C here last summer, but I see others go to plus 50°C.

 

6 minutes ago, nta16 said:

we had +40.2°C here last summer,

But I live in Scotland. 😆

I have a garden weather station and as I use the workshop as a potting shed as well, I have a thermometer head in there. During the winter it shows the same temperature as outside, first thing in the morning, but as the day warms up outside it doesn't. Always a few degrees colder.

I'll be in trouble for thread drift next, better than snow drift though.

 

I can't take too much heat and decades back I was in Scotland hoping to avoid too much heat, Dingwall way at that time IIRC and it was 80+°C, too hot for me and negating the reason for the mileage and petrol a bit but still had a great time as it was a one-off extra hot day.

 

I live about 3 miles from Pitsford (school) weather station, and at one time we had another weather less than half-mile away, but we seem to often be a degree warm here but I've no real equipment to back this up let alone to certified standards.  My shed is single brick and concrete floor it feels colder in winter but the wooden shed is like a sauna in summer.

 

The climatronic has a self diagnostic feature. The flashing display indicates a fault and could be something simple like low gas pressure.  

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://pics.tdiclub.com/data/517/Climatronic_Self_Diagnostics.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwirlt-Bsqv9AhVSPcAKHRErAV4QFnoECA0QAQ&usg=AOvVaw2ip3Q98Pl8uvFkB6iJXonX

That Hella Climatronic control is not the Climatronic unit fitted to my Fabia.

On 23/02/2023 at 10:08, snacr63 said:

The climatronic has a self diagnostic feature. The flashing display indicates a fault and could be something simple like low gas pressure.  

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://pics.tdiclub.com/data/517/Climatronic_Self_Diagnostics.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwirlt-Bsqv9AhVSPcAKHRErAV4QFnoECA0QAQ&usg=AOvVaw2ip3Q98Pl8uvFkB6iJXonX

hope its just a regas that will be good

battery fully charged now but i wont know if air con is working till the summer when i need it on as its not flashing at the moment as that was intermittent

1 hour ago, markbsac said:

battery fully charged now but i wont know if air con is working till the summer when i need it on as its not flashing at the moment as that was intermittent

 

You can still run it up to test it, it's perfectly safe to do so.

@markbsac don't you use the air-con in winter to further clear the windscreen, we have to in my wife's 2015 Mk3 if we want to drive the car in the same hour after the engine was started.  I exaggerate but it's a good few minutes plus to clear the screen and that's after using dehumidifying bags, synthetic-chamois, angled sunvisors and the (very noisy) heater blower on full - ours is not a climatronic type though.