help battery light d3

[Mickrutherford]

hi all
i got back from holidays a week ago and the battery light was flashing randomly and the yesterday after i had fueled up turned the car on and a suspension fault came up as well as the airbag light as i drove home more alarms came up one by one as i pulled into my drive way a limited gear warning came up i put the car into park and F came up in the information screen and i wasnt able to select any gear at all once i turned the car off it would not start again.
Was wondering if anyone has had any of these problems before or have heard anything like this happening before any information would be appreciated
cheers mick

[shorty]

Hi Mick,

There are many wiser than me on this forum but sounds like either a battery on the way out or an alternator issue?

You won't be going far if either of these are the cause. If you have a battery charger you could give it a long charge and see if that temporarily fixes the issue which would indicate you may need a new battery.

Matt

[Rich84]

Looks very much like your alternator has failed and then your battery drained. Very common issues on these cars, happened to mine around 160K.

Don't worry too much about all the faults - that's completely normal once the system voltage goes below about 9-10v and all the computers stop working. Everything should go back to normal once the battery is charged or a new one hooked up.

Get your battery on a charger and if it's not too old it will be able to charge back up ok. Then start your D3 and read the voltage with a multimeter - positive lead to the battery positive, negative lead to earth. Should be 14-15v. If it's approx 12 or less, your alternator is dead and needs replacement.

OEM alternator from Rovacraft set me back about $550.
I needed a new battery too as the negative terminal broke off mine as my mate was swapping it over with his spare. $200 for a Century DIN85L.

Let us know how you go.

[Graeme]

Disconnect the battery before putitng it on a charger in case the alternator has shorted, although from the events the alternator has just failed to charge rather than short-circuited. Allow for the possibility of a dead short from the alternator when reconnecting the battery too - sparks may fly!

[Mickrutherford]

Thanks to all for your help got it sorted new alternator on its way

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