My GTI morning start problem

[kaikor]

Yesterday and this morning, I noticed that my 6 mths old, only done 7300km GTI feels like a nit struggle to start, seems like not enough battery, another problem is my CD starts all the way back to the 1st song of the current disc, but not the memory location, does this mean a going to die battery now ??? this only happens in the morning start ... anyone share some light that I can claim free warranty replacement if this is the battery problem ???

[Guy_H]

If you are loosing radio settings, thats a pretty good sign of a low voltage condition.

If you are in a garage for the cold start up, try to turn the headlights on fully & even hold the high beam in the on position with the stalk. Then start the engine - there should be little to no dimming of the lights when starting.

Sick batteries are even sicker when its cold

[kaikor]

will it be not enough water in my battery, by the way, where is the battery locate? front or in the boot ...

[Lams]

kaikor I would certainly speak with VW - get them to at least do a check up of your battery and charging system's conditions seeeeeen. Good luck lah

[kaikor]

ha, this morning, nothing wrong at all, everything starts normal, car and stereo, WTF then ??? but one thing i notice, will some tell me its ok, when i turn the key, you should see a hell lot of lights comes up, but i realise the red steering wheel icon also comes up too, which i remember i didn't see this before, but of course after i start the car, it goes off, is this ok ???

[datracer99]

Have you heard the argument that most recent car models, regardless of brand (ie VW, non-VW), have alternators sized and controlled such that full recharging of the battery is almost impossible under routine use?

The argument goes that in stop/start urban traffic, especially if using a CD player and headlights, the alternator does not crank out enough excess amp.hours to recharge the battery. So many driving sessions, especially those less than 25 km, end as a net drain on the battery. Extensive use of in-cabin entertainment (GPS, CD/DVD, etc) guarantees the net drain on the battery.

A long highway run, on the other hand, does recharge the battery.

The solution is obvious: buy a smart multi-phase battery charger (eg CTEK; the CTEK Multi XS 3600 is a good match for a Golf battery) and fully recharge the battery once a month.

I've never heard any such thing. On the contrary, most modern alternators have to put out quite a whack becasue there are so many electronics in the cars.

My usual drive is 10km each way to work - not a long trip by any standards.
Sometimes a few little trips (2-3km) either on the way home, or to do things after I get home.
I always have the radio on and the lights on auto, which means they come on a fair bit on both trips at this time of year. Open and close window to swipe card for acces to the work carpark. Climate control on auto most of the time. i.e normal use of the electrics I think.

At the moment I only manage a longer drive maybe every few weeks, and after 12000km my battery has never become depleted.

If you do less than 10km trips most days then maybe you should have a top-up battery charger, but if you regularly do trips over 10km then your battery should be charged properly. If not, and it's a consistent problem, then your battery may not be healthy.