the Polo broke down...

[RhysQ]

Not having much luck with the little guy at the moment.....a recent break in and now this

Well, i hadn't driven my car for about 4 days as it has been left under my work building over the indy weekend. i jumped into it just before and was really happy that it ticked over instantly, and off i went. i then drove for about 5 mins, turned the car off and jumped out.....and when i got back in to head off......NOTHING. it just wouldn't start.

i called VW Gold Coast and they referred me to VW Assist which updated my details and our heading out this afternoon to replace the battery under warrantly. he gave me the option of jumpstarting my car and then taking it to VW where they can replace it under warranty with a 'genuine' VW battery the following morning (which he said is the same battery VW Assist use with just a VW sticker on the top...lol), or just replacing the battery this afternoon when VW Assist come out. i opted for the latter (he advised me that this would not void warranty)!

i was actually very happy with the way that both VW Service and VW Assist handled the situation, and it was being attended to straight away. i guessed that in todays market conditions car dealer and their divisions have been told to put that 'bit extra' in to get a good word spread to prospective buyers.

Cheers,
Rhys

[Spec83]

Sounds like the service was very prompt which is a plus...

I am surprised they are replacing the battery under warranty as usually things like this are considered 'consumables'... Unless the dead battery is related to a mechanical fault which leads me to... It would be wise to get your alternator checked out by the dealer as it may be faulty and not charging the battery. This could explain why it started first and then the next time was nothing (as your battery has been running all of the cars electronics for the last 5 mins).

If the alternator is faulty then both items should be covered by warranty

[philthy]

What was the build date of your car Rhys? I thought batteries usually last 2-3years. Mine's probably due to kick it soon.

[RhysQ]

Sounds like the service was very prompt which is a plus...

I am surprised they are replacing the battery under warranty as usually things like this are considered 'consumables'... Unless the dead battery is related to a mechanical fault which leads me to... It would be wise to get your alternator checked out by the dealer as it may be faulty and not charging the battery. This could explain why it started first and then the next time was nothing (as your battery has been running all of the cars electronics for the last 5 mins).

If the alternator is faulty then both items should be covered by warranty

yeah they are going to do an alternator test on the car this afternoon. i didn't think the battery was covered under warranty either but i rang my mate (used to work in VW Service) and he said that they are. then when i called VW they didn't even question it.

What was the build date of your car Rhys? I thought batteries usually last 2-3years. Mine's probably due to kick it soon.

September 2006.

[Spec83]

yeah they are going to do an alternator test on the car this afternoon. i didn't think the battery was covered under warranty either but i rang my mate (used to work in VW Service) and he said that they are. then when i called VW they didn't even question it.

I have got my money on a faulty alternator in that case.. I have had two go on me in other cars with exactly the same symptoms

[Blitzen]

Sounds like your battery just dumped a Cell...These things happen...This is when one or more of the batteries cells just fails to provide enough charge to turn the car over and provide power...It can happen very suddenly if the vehicle is used alot, of if the battery is getting on in age.
If you were to open up each of the 6 cells, and dip the Pos(+) prob of a multimeter into the wet cell, and the Neg(-) probe on to the Neg terminal of the battery, you could determine which cell or cells have failed.

[RhysQ]

Sounds like your battery just dumped a Cell...These things happen...This is when one or more of the batteries cells just fails to provide enough charge to turn the car over and provide power...It can happen very suddenly if the vehicle is used alot, of if the battery is getting on in age.
If you were to open up each of the 6 cells, and dip the Pos(+) prob of a multimeter into the wet cell, and the Neg(-) probe on to the Neg terminal of the battery, you could determine which cell or cells have failed.

yeah my mechanic said straight away that it probably has dropped a cell. i'm hoping its just that and my car can be fixed on the spot this afternoon.

[Jmac]

Load test the batt, that will rell you in an instant, If VW are doing it they have a Tester with printer built in. This printed copy then goes with your battery for warranty.
Jmac

[RhysQ]

well, VW Assist came on time this arvo and he immediately hooked up his battery tester (pretty tech looking thing, not something you'd find at supercheap) and it showed up on screen "caution - do not jumpstart". he said this means that the battery has dropped a cell and needed replacing. i noticed that the battery still had the green light showing and he told me that although the battery is useless, it is still full of power, it wil just never start your car, so needs to be thrown out.

he also said that a battery can drop a cell at any time, no matter what the age of the battery. apparently cheap batteries are more likely to do it but mine did it because i use my car for only a short spurt morning and afternoon.....and being over 2 years old.

we spent 10 mins trying to get damn battery cover off! he said he had done plenty before and the Polo's are usually the easiest but my battery is a different design to the ones he has done......maybe a change in design at some point??