Our Cali Ocean has not been used since the lockdown, but has been regularly put on hookup, and now has the battery light lit.

Alan Andrews · Jun 5, 2020

Hello,

I'm after a bit of advice.

My 2017 Ocean has not been used during the lockdown. Everything was good beforehand.

I have regularly put the Cali on electric hookup for a couple of days each month.

I have today gone to start the Cali and notice that the battery warning light is lit.

I suspect the battery may be the problem, so I have just put a spare battery on charge. I will swap it over tomorrow to see if it makes a difference. Although the Cali has started without issue throughout.

What other items could be the cause of this?

Does it point me towards the engine battery only? Or does the battery generation light also cover the leisure batteries?

I guess that the other prime suspect is the alternator.

What about the battery shunt on the battery negative terminal?

Are there any fuses that could have blown?

Does anyone have a Battery Generation circuit diagram I can refer to please?

I do have a solar kit to install, but I want to get this sorted beforehand.

Any wisdom will be much appreciated.

campandfly · Jun 6, 2020

Have you had anything drawing charge eg. Trackers,Dashcams or anything sitting in USB sockets?

Alan Andrews · Jun 6, 2020

campandfly said:
Have you had anything drawing charge eg. Trackers,Dashcams or anything sitting in USB sockets?

nope. dash cam is only activated when ignition is switched on.

flying banana · Jun 6, 2020

did the engine start ? the battery warning is lit before the engine starts and is normal. once started it should go out which indicates the alternator is charging. if it stays on you have a charging issue such as a belt off.if the battery is flat check its charging on hook up by putting a multimeter across the poles before and after plugging in and check the voltage rises (it does on mine 204 ocean). if you have a flat battery as said check nothings plugged in to the sockets . check your glove box and interior lights. and double check that dash cam really is dead when ignition off.

WelshGas · Jun 6, 2020

Alan Andrews said:
nope. dash cam is only activated when ignition is switched on.

1. Modern vehicles with Stop/Start require the battery to be coded to the vehicle to function efficiently.
2. What make is the engine battery. If it is Moll then VW are exchanging them as they are faulty.
3. If you are still in Warranty then make use of VW Assistance. The service is run by AA but if you phone insist on a VW technician as out of hours you may get just the AA attending. If it is a faulty battery then VW Assistance can change and code the new battery on your drive.

Alan Andrews · Jun 6, 2020

WelshGas said:
1. Modern vehicles with Stop/Start require the battery to be coded to the vehicle to function efficiently.
2. What make is the engine battery. If it is Moll then VW are exchanging them as they are faulty.
3. If you are still in Warranty then make use of VW Assistance. The service is run by AA but if you phone insist on a VW technician as out of hours you may get just the AA attending. If it is a faulty battery then VW Assistance can change and code the new battery on your drive.

Many thanks. I have no idea make of battery. Just waiting for the rain to stop so that I can get outside.

The 3 years on VW warranty expired at the end of March, and has been on lockdown since. I have extended the warranty with MotorEasy but the battery is excluded. If the battery then an easy fix that I'm happy to bear the cost of.

I have a good AGM battery from an Audi that I have put on charge, and I plan to swap this over as soon as the rain stops to see if it is a fix. Yes I'm aware of the coding requirement.

I have seen elsewhere that the earth shunt on the negative terminal might be an issue. If I disconnect it, will this prove that the shunt is the problem?

The alternator belt is definitely still running the alternator. This was the first thing I checked. The alternator is covered by the MotorEasy policy, and MotorEasy will cover costs at the VW Van Centre.

I also wondered if there are any other components that can be checked?

GSX1300R · Jun 6, 2020

When the vehicle is on hook up doesn’t that just charge the leisure batteries?

GSX1300R · Jun 6, 2020

Alan Andrews said:
nope. dash cam is only activated when ignition is switched on.

This all depends on which socket it’s plugged into..If it’s the one on the top of the dash that’s the leisure batteries..The one in the ash tray is the vehicle battery..

Alan Andrews · Jun 9, 2020

OK resolved. I changed with a fully charged spare battery and the battery warning light has gone out.

I'll now keep an eye on this to see if the spare needs to be replaced.

Old battery make is Varta - Will this have been the original or perhaps changed?

I'll have a look at the markings for dates etc.

As has been advised,, I now need to update the battery details with vcds for correct function of the charging system.

Alied · Jun 9, 2020

Alan Andrews said:
Many thanks. I have no idea make of battery. Just waiting for the rain to stop so that I can get outside.

The 3 years on VW warranty expired at the end of March, and has been on lockdown since. I have extended the warranty with MotorEasy but the battery is excluded. If the battery then an easy fix that I'm happy to bear the cost of.

I have a good AGM battery from an Audi that I have put on charge, and I plan to swap this over as soon as the rain stops to see if it is a fix. Yes I'm aware of the coding requirement.

I have seen elsewhere that the earth shunt on the negative terminal might be an issue. If I disconnect it, will this prove that the shunt is the problem?

The alternator belt is definitely still running the alternator. This was the first thing I checked. The alternator is covered by the MotorEasy policy, and MotorEasy will cover costs at the VW Van Centre.

I also wondered if there are any other components that can be checked?

Found this on the VW commercial website. It might help?

If your new vehicle warranty expired between 1 March and 31 May, but any repair for a valid warranty claim could not be completed before the expiry date due to government measures related to COVID-19, we will automatically extend your warranty period by three months. If you need to make a warranty claim during this extended period, you can book your vehicle in with your Van Centre as normal. Please note that any mileage restrictions to your warranty continue to apply.

VW Commercial Customer Service UK | FAQs | VW Vans

View frequently asked questions including product FAQs, used vans FAQs, service and maintenance FAQs and much more. Find the answers to your questions.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk

Alan Andrews · Jun 9, 2020

Alied said:
Found this on the VW commercial website. It might help?

If your new vehicle warranty expired between 1 March and 31 May, but any repair for a valid warranty claim could not be completed before the expiry date due to government measures related to COVID-19, we will automatically extend your warranty period by three months. If you need to make a warranty claim during this extended period, you can book your vehicle in with your Van Centre as normal. Please note that any mileage restrictions to your warranty continue to apply.

VW Commercial Customer Service UK | FAQs | VW Vans

View frequently asked questions including product FAQs, used vans FAQs, service and maintenance FAQs and much more. Find the answers to your questions.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk

Most helpful. I'll see what they say.

Alan Andrews · Jun 25, 2020

Update:
Cali went in to VW Birmingham van centre, to see if battery or charging system has a fault.

After putting the battery under an overnight soak test, they discovered that the battery is good, but there was a current leak from the Towbar controller.

The towbar controller was faulty and has been replaced FOC via the extended VW warranty.

Whilst at it I asked whether the front door seals can be replaced under VW warranty too. They agreed. So another FOC fix.

I had also noticed that there was water dripping on to the passenger floor mat. This was discovered to be a blocked drain tube which had also become dislodged. Again fixed FOC.

So a huge thank you to Alied on here for advising about the 3 month extended Covid-19 VW warranty. My actual VW warranty expired on the 27th March. So the extra 3 months has allowed me to get these issues fixed.

There is some discussion about VW dealerships on here. I only have good things to report about the VW Birmingham van centre.

Note that the club has negotiated a 10% discount here also.

I'm now ready to finish the Solar panel install!