Weak Batteries: Cause of Electronics Malfunctions?

Hello,

If one

goettmann wrote:

considers the electrical systems today are significantly more sensitive than is widely assumed. The battery is the weakest component. from

a broader perspective, electrical and electronic problems in "modern" cars should occur more frequently once the battery has passed its prime, i.e., when it becomes weaker and therefore buffers voltage fluctuations in the vehicle's internal network (due to constantly changing loads such as air conditioning fans, electric power steering, blowers, etc.) less effectively.


What are your practical experiences with this?
Are you aware of any cases where malfunctioning electronics or even entire batches of defective electronic devices were suddenly resolved by simply replacing the battery?
Sometimes, this can even happen when the old battery wasn't actually that weak, and could still start the engine using its remaining reserves.
It would also be interesting to know if certain types of vehicles (due to the structure of their onboard electrical systems and possibly their age) are more susceptible to these kinds of malfunctions than others. Therefore, please specify the vehicle type and its respective age in each case.

Please also indicate if you have already replaced batteries that were nearing the end of their lifespan without observing any noticeable electronic problems, so we can get a rough statistical estimate – or at least include this information in the survey.

Perhaps readers can benefit from this and, for example, avoid having to buy expensive new storage tanks if their problems can be solved with a relatively inexpensive new battery.https://community.dieselschrauber.org/en/viewtopic.php?t=23697

2007 Suzuki Swift DDIS: Intermittent failure to recognize the immobilizer transponder. This was particularly noticeable during short trips with frequent starts. After several longer drives, the problem would often resolve itself for several days. Since the vehicle was still under warranty, it was taken to a workshop for diagnosis. After reading out the supposedly faulty immobilizer system, the master technician stated: "Let's replace the battery first, then we can continue troubleshooting!" He was right about that. For the past two years, there have been no more immobilizer problems.

2006 Ford Fiesta 1.4 (Gasoline): During the starting process, accidentally turning on the low beam headlights or simply pressing the brake pedal would trigger an error code (reading: "On-board network: Voltage supply to engine control unit faulty, intermittent"). There were no further effects other than the yellow warning light that would turn off after a few minutes. Despite this occasional and otherwise harmless error, the battery always managed to start the engine. However, it failed completely last winter.

The battery replacement happened when it refused to start during the winter. There were no previous problems or unusual error messages.

A year later, I forgot to turn off the radio. After 12 hours, it was still running and couldn't start the car anymore -> needed a jump start. All of this happened without any error messages.

Apparently, the AFN is quite sensitive in that area.

Hello everyone!

R.M. wrote:

... Apparently, the AFN is quite insensitive there.

I can confirm: The Audi A4 "earwax edition" could be started even with a nearly empty battery, despite the starter motor speed being significantly below 200 RPM. This occurred frequently, both when the engine was warm and cold.
The only thing that consistently appeared was an error in the airbag control unit with the message "Supply voltage - signal too low (intermittent)," but without a check engine light.
Otherwise, no abnormalities (except for the radio that occasionally craves code ).

"Since 2004, the original calcium-based battery (WIV) in my T5 has been working perfectly without any issues, despite being used exclusively for short trips."

Best regards from Munich!

EDIT: Voted for answer 2.

Not directly. I was able to fix two instances of engine stalling by replacing the alternator regulator. Once in a C4 and once in a Kadett E. In the Kadett, it was particularly easy to trigger this issue by turning on the radio while using the headlights.

Not exactly a Volkswagen group product, but still:


'A 2.5-liter VM diesel engine in a Jeep was driven for 3 days last winter (around -5 to 0°C) with a 17Ah Hawker Genesis AGM battery, and there were no problems. In my opinion, it started just as well as it would with a standard 55Ah car battery from a hardware store...'


When the engine is running, the alternator should provide power in 99% of cases; otherwise, it simply won't work. A reasonably healthy alternator with a good battery (and by that I mean not just the Ah rating) doesn't produce such significant voltage fluctuations. In my '6n,' I've been using a 17Ah battery (which was used for the Jeep in winter) for 2 years, and as long as you don't have any high-power consumers connected to it, it handles it easily, despite the 35A (or was it 45A?!) Daihatsu alternator .

ulf wrote:

... Are you aware of any spinning or even massively defective electronic devices that could be instantly fixed by simply replacing the battery? ...

Can you show me an example of a piece of electronic equipment that can be repaired simply by replacing the battery?

Sorry, Ulf... Your question is probably extremely confusing.

Quote:

... Perhaps fellow readers can benefit and, for example, save themselves the expense of buying a new

StGe (a type of device), if their problems can be solved with a relatively inexpensive new battery. }

If a piece of electronics has a "shock" or malfunction, simply replacing the battery is unlikely to fix the problem.

You're unlikely to get any helpful answers, as very few people will be able to correctly analyze an electronic fault. Therefore, what you're asking is essentially irrelevant.


But to answer your question:

-> Yes, I had some vehicles whose batteries were low. All of them showed "strange impossible" error messages.
Golf 5 TDI 77 kW without DPF (I believe it was a BKD engine).
"Intermittent temperature sensor failure -> "Exhaust shop" message displayed. Temperature sensor replaced, but the same error persists. During winter, the car experienced battery failure, and after that, the error never reappeared."
Multiple ABS failures in a 2005 Audi A6 -> Error code: Terminal 30 voltage too low. Battery replaced - error cleared. The ABS control unit then failed approximately 6 months later for "unexplained reasons" (analysis of the control unit was unfortunately not possible due to it being a replacement part).
My own G4 AXR 2001 - Multiple failures of various onboard systems, even with error messages that my car shouldn't be able to generate. Interior monitoring system defective ---- I had this listed in the comfort control module, but I don't actually have such a function. ... And several other "nice" things.




Okay, I won't say anything more about the topic since you already have all the possible information related to it. Unfortunately, I can't change the fact that the answers don't fit your theory because, in reality, theory and practice often differ greatly.

Hi,
Skoda Fabia Combi from 2001, engine code = ATD (???), anyway, the 74 kW common rail diesel. The battery failed suddenly after 5 years, with approximately 150,000 km on the clock. No error messages were displayed, and the fault memory was not checked. A new battery was installed by a professional, and it started working again.
haithamina

Bertil wrote:

ulf wrote: Are you aware of any spinning or even massively defective electronic devices that could be instantly fixed by simply replacing the battery with a new one? Can you show me an example of faulty electronics that can be repaired by simply replacing a battery?

Yes, that's actually illogical.
"Defective batches of electronics that could only be resolved abruptly by replacing the battery with a new one."
I have changed it in the initial post.

"Yes, there was an error message in the winter with our Ibi 6L ATD from 2004, specifically related to low voltage in the onboard diagnostic system. It was cleared sometime in May, and it's no longer showing up now (I just checked). It starts perfectly well in both summer and winter. It's still the original battery. Well, we'll see which control units will generate pointless error messages next winter."
Apparently, the battery still has some power left, but its voltage is too low for the control units (STGs), which indicates a software issue. These batteries that have been removed from vehicles still have about 5 years of life left and can be used in cars like VW Golfs without complex electronic systems, where they will continue to function properly.

Hi,

With the last two cars, I had to replace the original battery almost exactly after 3 years because suddenly, overnight, nothing would work anymore. Without any prior warning. And at least in the case of the G IV (with my previous car, I didn't have a diagnostic option), there were no previous error messages.

Peugeot 206 1.4 HDI (and practically all other 206 models with a CAN-bus system from the year of manufacture 2003 onwards):

A significant drop in the on-board voltage during starting is noticeable through flickering lights in the instrument cluster (likely completely LEDs). A gong sounds, and on the "large" radio display (with BC), it displays: "Battery - Workshop". However, the engine still starts without problems (for now). As a courtesy, "Energy saving mode activated" was then displayed. The rear window heater, seat heaters (if available), and radio cannot be switched on anymore. This energy-saving mode can only be deactivated using the OEM tester from .

Generally, based on the experience of , the game can usually be played for quite a while longer, but eventually, the battery will suddenly fail. A failed start attempt (due to insufficient starting current) may, in some cases, lead to the blocking of the WFS transponder used during the attempt (suspected manipulation).

My A3 would briefly display "ESP malfunction - refer to owner's manual" on the instrument cluster every time I started it. I replaced the battery, and the problem disappeared.

pschaefer wrote:

My A3 would briefly display "ESP malfunction - refer to the owner's manual" on the instrument cluster every time I started it. I replaced the battery, and the problem disappeared.

Similar symptoms are known to occur with the G VI model. In such cases, a software update is performed on the ABS/ESP control unit as a solution.

Hi everyone,

My battery in my 2007 Audi A4 Quattro (German market) has failed.

I've been experiencing flickering in my xenon headlights for about a year now, and I was already planning to replace the bulbs.
This flickering is a common issue with this type of vehicle.
Everything is okay now with the new battery.
I never had any error messages before, only after the battery was completely dead.

Sure, here's the translation:

"SG Christian" translates to "Christian Sports Group" or "Christian Sports Association." It could also be interpreted as a sports team or club named after someone called Christian.

Hello,

When the battery (or batteries) in a Touareg is weak, almost EVERYTHING lights up on the display, and you might think the vehicle is falling apart.

This is particularly noticeable in the case of large diesel engines, as both batteries are connected together for starting.

Greetings.
Unfortunately, I cannot translate the word "alevuz" because it does not appear to be a recognized word in German or any other language I am familiar with. It may be a misspelling, a made-up word, or a term specific to a very niche context that is not within my knowledge base.