Leisure Battery gauge stuck at 100%

[Tom Downie]

Hi, this forum has already been very helpful - hoping someone may already know this…

The battery gauge on our Grand California (the one on the panel stuck outside the bathroom) is constantly stuck at 100%, permanently showing 0 amp draw regardless of actual draw and 0hrs and minutes remaining, and constantly showing a “charging” status if on hook up (ie it still shows “charging” even having been on hook up for >2 days).

The battery must be charging and holding a charge to some extent, as we can “off grid” for a night and still have some power the following morning (albeit with an apparent drop of voltage eg the water pump seems less strong), but this means we never have any idea how much charge is actually in the battery or what kind of condition it’s in.

Does anyone know how to reset this or what may be the cause or the solution? Turning the red “master” switch off in the electrics locker for >10 mins did not solve, albeit I tried this during the day so possibly solar (which we have as an option) was providing some voltage??

I’m guessing pulling one of the fuses may do it, although I’m reluctant to do anything too “risky” as we’re in the middle of a trip and as it’s working-ish I don’t want to risk making anything worse. I suspect the battery may not be in great condition (we purchased second hand, and the gauge has been reading like this since we got it) but it would be more than useful to at least know what the charge status is. I don’t have a multimeter to hand to directly check but am going to try to pick one up while on this trip (quite remote at the moment).

(note, I have already searched and read in full every battery related post for the GC600 & GC680 on this forum, and didn’t find anything related to this).

We had a problem with the control panel which affected the ambient lighting. Mentioned it at the 12 month service and they reset the control panel. When asked how do you do that the mechanic replied "disconnect the leisure battery wait the obligatory 10sec and reconnect it". The leisure battery is the one under the bonnet, the one under the rear seat is the car battery. Being that way round is counter intuitive but I was assured that was the case. I would think that was easier than taking the control panel out. Hope that helps.

 

[Simon1]

We had a problem with the control panel which affected the ambient lighting. Mentioned it at the 12 month service and they reset the control panel. When asked how do you do that the mechanic replied "disconnect the leisure battery wait the obligatory 10sec and reconnect it". The leisure battery is the one under the bonnet, the one under the rear seat is the car battery. Being that way round is counter intuitive but I was assured that was the case. I would think that was easier than taking the control panel out. Hope that helps.

I had my control panel replaced(buzzing and certain buttons not responding), didn’t seem a big job for them, ie no panels had to be removed, it must just pop out or unscrew. This fixed the buzzing but unfortunately not the intermittent unresponsiveness where a reboot is needed via the red main switch. Must be bugs in the hardware.

 

[far.landscape]

I don't believe the GC comes with a Jack and Wheel wrench in the UK. As there is no spare wheel I assumed there would be no jack or wheel wrench. There is a pump and temporary repair kit supplied instead of a spare wheel.

Ahh, thanks for this. I found in the passenger footwell a space where a bottle jack and wrench would fit, so assumed it was just “missing” as opposed to “never there”!!

I thought I’d scanned every nook of the van now but haven’t found a pump or repair kit (although I brought my own of those). A tyre repair kit (plug style) would be pretty hard to use without taking the wheel off, so just assumed there must be a jack on board…

…funny enough, I had brought 2 tyre repair kits with me (different types, just in case)… and saw one car with 2 punctures in one of the most remote parts of Harris, so gave them one of them

(apologies for delayed reply - for some reason had stopped getting notifications so had assumed the thread had gone cold)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[far.landscape]

Correct, although I had one fitted and the Jack and associated tools are located in the passenger footwell locker.

…i managed to find a 5 tonne bottle jack and 19mm wheel wrench that were a perfect fit for the passenger footwell locker foam cutouts… in Stornaway!!

 

[far.landscape]

Well done.

Spare wheel and tools not standard, but can be fitted.

Thank you!

(apologies for delayed reply - for some reason had stopped getting notifications so had assumed the thread had gone cold)

 

[far.landscape]

We had a problem with the control panel which affected the ambient lighting. Mentioned it at the 12 month service and they reset the control panel. When asked how do you do that the mechanic replied "disconnect the leisure battery wait the obligatory 10sec and reconnect it". The leisure battery is the one under the bonnet, the one under the rear seat is the car battery. Being that way round is counter intuitive but I was assured that was the case. I would think that was easier than taking the control panel out. Hope that helps.

Thanks for that. Unfortunately I had the leisure battery (in engine bay battery on GC600) disconnected for over 2 minutes and no joy. Have been measuring regularly with multimeter since and have a Bluetooth volt monitor waiting for click and collect on Skye.

 

[far.landscape]

I had my control panel replaced(buzzing and certain buttons not responding), didn’t seem a big job for them, ie no panels had to be removed, it must just pop out or unscrew. This fixed the buzzing but unfortunately not the intermittent unresponsiveness where a reboot is needed via the red main switch. Must be bugs in the hardware.

Sorry to hear that… so far (touch wood) my panel is responsive… just a fault with the leisure batter volt meter / IBM / something…

(apologies for delayed reply - for some reason had stopped getting notifications so had assumed the thread had gone cold)

 

[far.landscape]

Enjoy your holiday!

…I’ve been measuring the voltages periodically since the battery replacement. On the voltaic, the left pair (panels) is giving 18-20v consistently in overcast conditions, and off hookup for a few hours (fridge running on power level 3) the right pair (battery) on the voltaic seems to always be in the high 13’s during the day and high 12’s if dark.

So I’m guessing… all good… but I haven’t run it low to see if systems will cut off if voltage gets into risk territory… that is back to the original problem, but it seems so long as I “nurse” it it will survive

This might be horribly misleading, but assuming no solar input and not on hookup, I’ve cobbled together the following “rule of thumb” chart assuming a battery under light to medium load…
Thought??

12v battery under load guide voltages…
> 12.7 = “full”
> 12.5 = “fine”
> 12.4 = “ideal minimum”
> 12.3 = “start to limit use”
> 12.2 = “limit use”
> 12.0 = “stop (20-40%)”
> 11.8 = “may damage”
> 11.6 (small load) - 11.3 (medium load) = “will damage”
< 11.6 = will kill

 

[yossarian]

…I’ve been measuring the voltages periodically since the battery replacement. On the voltaic, the left pair (panels) is giving 18-20v consistently in overcast conditions, and off hookup for a few hours (fridge running on power level 3) the right pair (battery) on the voltaic seems to always be in the high 13’s during the day and high 12’s if dark.

So I’m guessing… all good… but I haven’t run it low to see if systems will cut off if voltage gets into risk territory… that is back to the original problem, but it seems so long as I “nurse” it it will survive

This might be horribly misleading, but assuming no solar input and not on hookup, I’ve cobbled together the following “rule of thumb” chart assuming a battery under light to medium load…
Thought??

12v battery under load guide voltages…
> 12.7 = “full”
> 12.5 = “fine”
> 12.4 = “ideal minimum”
> 12.3 = “start to limit use”
> 12.2 = “limit use”
> 12.0 = “stop (20-40%)”
> 11.8 = “may damage”
> 11.6 (small load) - 11.3 (medium load) = “will damage”
< 11.6 = will kill

You look in good shape. Enjoy the rest of your holiday!

 

[far.landscape]

Thought about posting this as a new thread but posting here as it’s in context and might be helpful, even if the issue I have with the battery state of charge readout on the GC control panel is rare / one off…

As I can’t see the voltage or infer state of charge without getting the multimeter out, I ordered this:

QUICKLYNKS Battery Monitor BM2 Bluetooth 4.0 Device Car 12V Battery Tester Diagnostic Tool for Android iOS iPhone Digital Analyzer Battery Measurement Units https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07MY1B3DY/?tag=eliteelect-21

and this:

CTEK Battery Sense 40-149 - Monitors the Status of Car Batteries https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0188TGF6W/?tag=eliteelect-21 from Amazon for local collect here on the Hebrides.

The QuickLynks one is better, only really for the fact that the graph is easier to read due to the fact y axis scale on the CTEK one.

The result is I can now see utilisation trend over time at fairly high resolution, and get notifications on my phone when the battery drops below a configurable state of charge. Both draw
I’ll get the issue with the built in sensor sorted at some point, but this definitely takes the pain off for now, and in some ways is perhaps an improvement and useful thing to have regardless.

I was off grid last night and left the fridge running (~14 degrees outside, no heating on inside overnight). In the chart, you can see the progressive voltage drop from the fridge, a dip as I turned the gas heating on ~07:30, and then a voltage levelling off and slight rise as the solar as the solar starts to contribute.

I’m not sure I’d trust the % state of charge reading, so I’ve set the notification levels conservatively, but I’m impressed with the app and device for £30!!

[edited to add installation and app pictures - the sensor units are attached to the battery with 3m high strength adhesive Velcro - will see if that holds up with engine bay temps - however I’ve also looped the cables with a backup zip tie so even if the adhesive fails they won’t fall far]

 

[Jester]

Loo

Thought about posting this as a new thread but posting here as it’s in context and might be helpful, even if the issue I have with the battery state of charge readout on the GC control panel is rare / one off…

As I can’t see the voltage or infer state of charge without getting the multimeter out, I ordered this:

QUICKLYNKS Battery Monitor BM2 Bluetooth 4.0 Device Car 12V Battery Tester Diagnostic Tool for Android iOS iPhone Digital Analyzer Battery Measurement Units https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07MY1B3DY/?tag=eliteelect-21

and this:

CTEK Battery Sense 40-149 - Monitors the Status of Car Batteries https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0188TGF6W/?tag=eliteelect-21 from Amazon for local collect here on the Hebrides.

The QuickLynks one is better, only really for the fact that the graph is easier to read due to the fact y axis scale on the CTEK one.

The result is I can now see utilisation trend over time at fairly high resolution, and get notifications on my phone when the battery drops below a configurable state of charge. Both draw
I’ll get the issue with the built in sensor sorted at some point, but this definitely takes the pain off for now, and in some ways is perhaps an improvement and useful thing to have regardless.

I was off grid last night and left the fridge running (~14 degrees outside, no heating on inside overnight). In the chart, you can see the progressive voltage drop from the fridge, a dip as I turned the gas heating on ~07:30, and then a voltage levelling off and slight rise as the solar as the solar starts to contribute.

I’m not sure I’d trust the % state of charge reading, so I’ve set the notification levels conservatively, but I’m impressed with the app and device for £30!!

[edited to add installation and app pictures - the sensor units are attached to the battery with 3m high strength adhesive Velcro - will see if that holds up with engine bay temps - however I’ve also looped the cables with a backup zip tie so even if the adhesive fails they won’t fall far]

looks great i use this.

Votronic 1430 Bluetooth Connector S-BC

<p><span style="font-size:14px;"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">This Bluetooth adaptor, enables you to see how your vehicle&...

www.roadpro.co.uk

 

[splitwee]

As I told you on the other topic, I've got exactly the same issue.
I've been to a VW garage to update the controler (it was already the latest version, but who knows...)
They've did it.
No changes.
They said to me they will investigate with VW headquarters, but since 2 weeks I've got no news from them...

 

[Bonoborider]

I now have a new battery fitted (80ah, 800 CCA, “Platinum” brand).

So far, all systems work*, and voltage measured at the battery terminals is maintaining constant at 12.55 with fridge load, so a huge improvement.

*in fact, the water pump has cut out once, but otherwise ok, and the truma control panel reset itself while the hot water was on and I was changing the brightness level on that display.

A voltage bridge battery wasn’t used when replacing the leisure battery, so all leisure systems should have depowered completely (assuming the system doesn’t draw from the vehicle battery).

The control panel battery gauge still reads 100% & 12.7v, 0amp draw, ie no change. I did manage to speak to a technician at VW assistance who checked a wiring diagram and believes that the sensor / gauge are independent of the charging system, so thinks the chance of damage to the new battery is minimal.

I have to get it to a dealer to diagnose the sensor issue, but otherwise now crossing fingers and tentatively optimistic…

Thanks to everyone on this thread for the help this far. Have learnt a lot about the van on this trip and will post a few how-to’s & tips in due course.

In the process, by chance I noticed the jack and wheel wrench was missing (!?!) so while I was in Stornaway getting the battery I picked up those parts too.

View attachment 82671

Hello far.landscape, any news about your problem?
I contacted my VW workshop. they have had a GC with exactly the same problem for a month in the workshop, and they can't find the problem.
Mine has the same problem and it only charges plugged into the 220v and does not charge solar or when the engine is running ..

 

[far.landscape]

Hello far.landscape, any news about your problem?
I contacted my VW workshop. they have had a GC with exactly the same problem for a month in the workshop, and they can't find the problem.
Mine has the same problem and it only charges plugged into the 220v and does not charge solar or when the engine is running ..

I haven’t been able to take it in to a garage but your info talks to exactly my concern… the thought of being without it for a month while something “simple” like this gets “fixed” is nuts. If this was well supported, that would not be the case. For now I’m still muddling through with a combo of the Bluetooth sensors and the additional 1000w/h battery pack.

 

[Simon1]

I haven’t been able to take it in to a garage but your info talks to exactly my concern… the thought of being without it for a month while something “simple” like this gets “fixed” is nuts. If this was well supported, that would not be the case. For now I’m still muddling through with a combo of the Bluetooth sensors and the additional 1000w/h battery pack.

It may not be a simple fix but it must be simple for a high tech Vw dealership to at least diagnose the problem whether it be the solar controller, battery, alternator or wiring etc.

 

[splitwee]

I've booked a week at my garage in 10 days, I'll let you know what he'll find...

 

[Bonoborider]

I think I will replace the original Leisure battery charging system with a Voltronic DC 1212-30 booster specially designed for euro 6 engines as on our GC and therefore redo part of the wiring.
I will also wire the voltronic solar regulator directly to the leisure battery.

 

[Bonoborider]

if that does not interest someone, I have the complete electrical diagram of the CG available!

 

[yossarian]

if that does not interest someone, I have the complete electrical diagram of the CG available!

That would be interesting and useful.

 

[Sven Ole]

hvis det ikke interesserer noen, har jeg det komplette elektriske diagrammet til CG tilgjengelig!

Også for meg.

 

[Sven Ole]

Også for meg.

Also for me.

 

[far.landscape]

if that does not interest someone, I have the complete electrical diagram of the CG available!

Would definitely be interested in a share of that.

 

[Bonoborider]

the only real problem is that it is in French! (I did not think about it!)

 

[Irothwell]

if that does not interest someone, I have the complete electrical diagram of the CG available!

Hi Mate, can you send me the wiring drawing please?

 

[Irothwell]

the only real problem is that it is in French! (I did not think about it!)

where did you get the drawing from? Could do with it in English