Dash Warning Light on - with ignition off.

[garethrees]

Hi - I have a strange problem which I think is an electrical fault, did a search but cannot see anything like this on the forum.

Basically the little Wheel warning light is permanently on (a little yellow ish) even when the ignition if off. It's like there is an earth problem on the light.

Here is a pic with the ignition on:

And off with the key out:

I'm check for Engine Codes there are none.

Any help, pointers appreciated before I pop over to Audi.

Regards Gareth

 

[NHN]

If its under warranty, then dont bother with pointers, just goto them, but looks like either the led is getting some load even when not required, therefore faulty cluster or thats getting residual light in that area, you could remove cluster fascia, turn on so you can see the pcb/led direct to see what it is doing with nothing covering that area.

 

[garethrees]

If its under warranty, then dont bother with pointers, just goto them, but looks like either the led is getting some load even when not required, therefore faulty cluster or thats getting residual light in that area, you could remove cluster fascia, turn on so you can see the pcb/led direct to see what it is doing with nothing covering that area.

Thanks for the prompt reply, yes its under warranty, I was just interested if this was a common fault or just me I'll pop into Audi next week and post an update.

 

[garethrees]

So just to close this off, took the car into Audi to investigate:-

• They check for any engine codes there were none.
• I was notified that dash LEDs have some residual light which can sometimes show faintly. (like mine)
• They compared my dash with other similar models of the same age RS3, S3 etc they are the same - so classed as "no fault found".

Given that the faint light is very different from the Yellow Warning light which is obvious when it's on, I had no problem with the explanation. However I was a little worried that it might be a common fault or a undocumented feature of the dash lights. Either way I've reported the problem within warranty so they have a formal record of it going forward.

That being said, I think they must have tweaked something because when I got back in the car the problem was solved. So maybe they turned down the light just enough not to show anymore???

Anyone else have this issue please post and image I would be curious to see how common it really is.

 

[NHN]

Check the interior light dial setting on the headlight switch, probably wont do squat, but you never know as I always try to think of anything/everything that may affect a given issue.

 

[garethrees]

Check the interior light dial setting on the headlight switch, probably wont do squat, but you never know as I always try to think of anything/everything that may affect a given issue.

Yep wiggled that both ways no effect.

Update: one week later this glow comes and goes.. not bothered as it's not that obvious you have to really look for it. Would still be interested to see some pics of others if they have the same issue or not. Thank again for the help.

 

[NHN]

Ok found another person with same issue I directly had access to & it seems in part to be related to the light sensor thats on the speedo cluster area, below the fastest speed marker, as when I shone a light on this at various times, it affected the brightness of this icon, for me its a pcb fault, needs researching further as I advised this guy.

 

[garethrees]

Ok found another person with same issue I directly had access to & it seems in part to be related to the light sensor thats on the speedo cluster area, below the fastest speed marker, as when I shone a light on this at various times, it affected the brightness of this icon, for me its a pcb fault, needs researching further as I advised this guy.

Thanks very much, mine does flicker a little depending on the light so your diagnosis does sound spot on. I too believe it's a fault not an "undocumented feature" as Audi have stated. I'm sure at some point it will fail and then I'll have a chat with Audi again.

 

[Alk]

Apologies for digging up an old thread, but I've just noticed the same problem on my 09 A3. Did yours ever fail in the end?

I've found another forum thread with someone else that has an 09 and the same issue: http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/a3-s3-...g-light-dashbord-a3-tdi-170-ignition-off.html so I start to wonder if it is a common fault on 09 models as you stated that Audi also checked against models of the same age.

 

[garethrees]

Apologies for digging up an old thread, but I've just noticed the same problem on my 09 A3. Did yours ever fail in the end?

I've found another forum thread with someone else that has an 09 and the same issue: http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/a3-s3-...g-light-dashbord-a3-tdi-170-ignition-off.html so I start to wonder if it is a common fault on 09 models as you stated that Audi also checked against models of the same age.

Hello Alk, I think it's a common fault with the 09 model, mine is the same as it has always been, Audi refused to accept it was a fault stating that it's a feature of the car. However it's now 1yr on and not failed if that helps.

 

[Alk]

That is good to know - thank you. It hasn't caused issues with draining the battery has it?

 

[NHN]

Not a chance with such a low draw from the minor led pulse its putting out.

 

[NHN]

Welcome to the site Alk, yeap its not going to cause an issue, although we've changed a few out for members because warranty paid for the job & was fine with replacement.

I think its batch of dodgy clusters tbh & the fact they QC'd the cars with that issue does beg the question.

 

[Alk]

Welcome to the site Alk, yeap its not going to cause an issue, although we've changed a few out for members because warranty paid for the job & was fine with replacement.

I think its batch of dodgy clusters tbh & the fact they QC'd the cars with that issue does beg the question.

I understand - thanks Nigel you've been very helpful. I may well make enquiries to see if I can also get it repaired under warranty.

 

[garethrees]

I understand - thanks Nigel you've been very helpful. I may well make enquiries to see if I can also get it repaired under warranty.

I asked Audi Reading to replace under warranty, they refused stating it was normal! Needless to say I did not renew the warranty with Audi. This is clearly a fault.

Does it effect the battery nope, not that I have found.

 

[Alk]

I asked Audi Reading to replace under warranty, they refused stating it was normal! Needless to say I did not renew the warranty with Audi. This is clearly a fault.

Does it effect the battery nope, not that I have found.

Thanks garethrees - Mine is not with Audi, but where I bought the car. Very much appreciate everyone's help!

 

[akis]

Any update for this fault?I have the same problem on a 2009 S3.

 

[garethrees]

akis, nothing from Audi, I have no other issues with mine, just living with it... however I might be a Volvo next time my wife's C30 T5 (same age) is faultless I have to say.

 

[akis]

In my case it stated after cleaning with distilled water and all purpose cleaner around the earth cables,it was some oil from itg cai.After applying contact cleaner and letting it without out battery for two days the light went away.Now a month after this it showed up again without obvious reason.Very annoying "feature" I would say.

 

[Alk]

akis, nothing from Audi, I have no other issues with mine, just living with it... however I might be a Volvo next time my wife's C30 T5 (same age) is faultless I have to say.

I nearly went for a c30 before my first A3, but I kept getting my clutch foot caught on the surround due to how the steering column is positioned. It is a problem that I experienced even in my old volvo 440 as well! I went for the A3 because I knew that I could get it serviced easily and there is plenty of room in the footwell (the steering column is in a different position).
I digress...

Akis; in my case I made a petition for repair to the used car dealer that I purchased my A3 from. I explained that it was an MOT failure and provided various evidence to this effect. I was quoted (over the phone) ~£750 for a new dash from Audi, but the used car dealer didn't want to pay this. So I took a week off work, removed my dash and sent it to Cluster Repairs UK. They were able to recreate the issue in their workshop and found some corrosion, due to condensation, in the area around the LED. They cleaned it up and tested it again and the problem seemed to have gone so they sent it back to me. I sent if off on the Monday and I got it back on the Saturday (paid extra delivery) and it cost ~£76. This was in February. It is a lot better now than it was; it no longer glows with varying intensity with the ignition off and it is only just noticeable sometimes at night....but you really have to look to notice it (previously it was even visible in low light eg. dawn). The used car dealer covered the cost of this repair and it seems to be holding up so I'm happy with it now (it passed the MOT).

 

[akis]

Alk,thanks for your reply the instrument cluster was the last thing to look for as it's very expensive to replace and I don't want to spend more money on the car as a had already have a haldex failure not covered from the dealer.Is your car having also the hazard switch issue,if yes it got any better after the cluster fix?

 

[Alk]

Alk,thanks for your reply the instrument cluster was the last thing to look for as it's very expensive to replace and I don't want to spend more money on the car as a had already have a haldex failure not covered from the dealer.Is your car having also the hazard switch issue,if yes it got any better after the cluster fix?

Sorry to hear that. No, I am unaware of any issue with the hazard switch and I think that I would have noticed it from what you have described in your other posts.
Incidentally, I also had an auto-electrician look at the car concerning the steering warning light issue. They did a VCDS scan etc. and concluded that the LED was the issue and therefore that the instrument cluster was faulty and required repair/replacement.

NHN is very experienced in these cars, and like he says:

I think its batch of dodgy clusters tbh & the fact they QC'd (quality controlled) the cars with that issue does beg the question.

NHN has replaced a few instrument clusters for customers with refurbished units (he has the necessary equipment to recode the immobiliser) as it is obviously cheaper than a new cluster.

I don't think that you will find it to be a problem, as long it is not so bad that an MOT tester will think that it is actually illuminated. However, if it is very dull then I suspect that it wouldn't be noticed. If you can afford it and you can be without the car for a week and a bit, I would suggest sending the cluster for repair in the first instance as they can conduct some testing on it which would then be independent of the environment of your car.

 

[akis]

Alk,good news for me.Here in Crete,Geece today the temperature is about 38 degrees, zero humidity and south wind straight from Africa .A great opportunity for car sunbathing .I took it out from the garage and let it about five hours with the dashboard directly facing the sun.The result is no warning light at all,even In the garage which is very dark.So the problem is definitely from condensation.The night when the problem began I was coming from a two hour trip with air conditioner at about 18 degrees and high humidity in the atmosphere.The windscreen was very wet also.Alk thank you very much for pinpointing the source of the problem.

 

[Alk]

Brilliant! You're welcome and I'm pleased that you have been able to sort it out. Hopefully it will stay fixed for you and so hasn't caused any long term damage. Thanks for the feedback as it it doesn't seem that many folks have been able to get to the bottom of the issue.

 

[budgieb]

Hi sorry to fetch an old thread back up. I have a 2010 a3 tdi sportback an was out at night i put my fog lights on got home an noticed the same light its that dull it can only be seen at night an was woundering if any 1 has come across a deffinate reason for this or a fix i was gona clean the earth wires like the guy before said but it came back. But if that fixed it for a short time it makes me think thats got to have some sort of connection to the issue ive had it for about 2mnth an it has no effect but is an anoyance

 

[akis]

Hi, the light issue came back again right after washing the car.I removed the battery cables,touched the positive and negative cables together and reconnected them to the battery.Result no light for about 20 days.Then I washed the car again and guess, the light turned on.I think something is getting wet somewhere.
I will keep you posted with the progress.

 

[swp]

Hi, the light issue came back again right after washing the car.I removed the battery cables,touched the positive and negative cables together and reconnected them to the battery.Result no light for about 20 days.Then I washed the car again and guess, the light turned on.I think something is getting wet somewhere.
I will keep you posted with the progress.

Hi,
The exact same thing has started tonight on my 2011 sline, have you got it solved?

 

[akis]

Hi,
The exact same thing has started tonight on my 2011 sline, have you got it solved?

Hi swp unfortunately not solved yet.It stays on constantly. when the weather is hot is barely visible, but with high humidity , for example after washing the car, it gets much more visible even in day light.

 

[swp]

Hi swp unfortunately not solved yet.It stays on constantly. when the weather is hot is barely visible, but with high humidity , for example after washing the car, it gets much more visible even in day light.

I suppose I can live with it as long as it's just an issue with the dash light and nothing else.
Cheers for the reply.

 

[akis]

Hello again, after removing and opening the instrument cluster my self , i found some signs of condensation inside the cluster but not visible signs of corrosion around the faulty led or the circuits. The cluster was in fine condition but to be sure i cleaned with wd40 and after with special contact cleaner to remove the oil.Let it dry for 1 day by the sun.After fitting the cluster to the car the light was exactly at the same state as before.To make a long story short the culprit was inside the engine bay.There is a wire connector in front of the transmission,on the left of the earth points seperating from a harness and probably leading to the steering rack.It is not visible at first because of its position.After cleaning my engine bay it was soaked with water and oily deposits from itg cai.Contact cleaner on this connector solved the problem.So far so good, i will post with long term results.

 

[swp]

Glad your finally getting it sorted, I could not find a fix so took back to where I purchased vehicle, they said it was not the first time they had seen this fault and agreed to replace the instrument cluster with a new one from Audi, no charge.
Good result for me, at least someone is admitting I'm not going mad!!

 

[Alk]

Thanks for the continued update akis.

Brilliant result for you swp - it is expensive to replace the cluster so that was really good of them.

 

[Alva78]

I have the exact same problem as posted previously and now 4 years into ownership have had no problems with car either with electrics or battery.So i have accepted it is a PCB issue that does not need any future investigation.Might be best advice to leave well alone IMHO.

 

[NHN]

Yeah its a pcb issue for sure for all the ones we've changed as replacements fixed the issue.

 

[akis]

Hi guys, after one year and more , in my case the problem is solved without changing the instrument cluster itself neither cleaning it made a difference.I doubt that the problem is the instrument cluster itself but the problem is just appearing in the instrument cluster.The instrument cluster it self is constantly on even if the car is locked(due to immobilizer i think).When there is a short circuit or a "bad earth" , the current follows the shortest and easiest path.A led light with almost no resistance is ideal. (There were many problems with "dodgy" clusters blinking and so on that finally ended up being a bad earth point.)
The best way to look for this problem is bottom up.Find an check the steering rack connectors.If you locate the steering rack you should be able to follow the cables up to the fuse box.There is one main connector separating some cables from the main harness and leading to steering rack.It's on the right side behind the radiator, under a hose.In my case spraying with contact cleaner solved the problem.

 

[Sambuca]

Hi Akis,

Have you got pictures of the contacts/connectors you cleaned?

I've got exactly the same problem on my a3 2.0 tdi 2009.

Fault appeared after a couple of days of very wet weather.

Also I've just had my car back from the body shop after a couple of weeks for a new bumper. I'm not sure if the bumper being removed and potentially being left outside could have had an impact.

Regards

Simon

 

[saq85]

I've just got this problem after doing the ashtray delete on my s3. Did a vcds scan and got a low voltage fault, cleared it but the dim light is still there.
Maybe it's something g to do with the connector that I left unplugged for the ashtray bulb. Will swap it over tomorrow and check again.

Annoying!

 

[miguel pinheiro]

Hi guys, sorry to dig up about the same issue.. but today my car Audi A3 2009 just started showing the same symptoms as yours...
So I just cleaned the ground connector mentioned.... without much help as the light is still present..
Has anyone found a solution or were to find the culprit of the problem.

Best regards to all.

 

[Karl FUNG]

Hi Akis,

I have the same problem with my 09 A3. I could not read your photo, might be the link broken after year of time. Could you share again to show the PCB issue. Furthermore, it is appreciate if you could share where is the "connector" in the engine bay that need to be cleaned to solve the issue.

Many Thx

Hi guys, after one year and more , in my case the problem is solved without changing the instrument cluster itself neither cleaning it made a difference.I doubt that the problem is the instrument cluster itself but the problem is just appearing in the instrument cluster.The instrument cluster it self is constantly on even if the car is locked(due to immobilizer i think).When there is a short circuit or a "bad earth" , the current follows the shortest and easiest path.A led light with almost no resistance is ideal. (There were many problems with "dodgy" clusters blinking and so on that finally ended up being a bad earth point.)
The best way to look for this problem is bottom up.Find an check the steering rack connectors.If you locate the steering rack you should be able to follow the cables up to the fuse box.There is one main connector separating some cables from the main harness and leading to steering rack.It's on the right side behind the radiator, under a hose.In my case spraying with contact cleaner solved the problem.

Some pictures of my "bad" cluster before cleaning
.

look at the area around the led , no signs of corrosion neither a cold solder joint.

And the PCB

 

[Dhar_2]

My A3 89PA has come up with the same problem.

Can someone repost the photos of the connectors that need checking, so i can see if i can resolve it.

thanks