Alarm/Central Locking issues

[jaishaw]

Hi,

I am new to the Audi world and am having a problem which I hope is an easy fix (battery maybe?).

Basically, the car has stopped 'beeping' when I lock it (most of the time) and the boot sometimes sounds like its taking longer to lock than the rest of the car. Also, last night the alarm went off for no apparent reason (could have just been a cat or something I guess) which was odd.

The dial that shows a picture of a battery is constantly sitting at 4/5ths of the way towards full.

Any idea chaps?

 

[aragorn]

The battery guage shows the alternator output, and it should sit at 14v with the engine running.

The sierns are prone to failing, usually because the batteries inside leak, and wreck the circuit board. You might get lucky by removing it, cleaning the board and replacing the batteries, but if its too far gone you'll need a replacement siren.

 

[jaishaw]

Is that an easy job? I will crack te Haynes manual out tonight and have a go.

Do you think that the alarm going off randomly last night could be linked?

Thanks for your help

 

[olds_kool]

Going by your other posts yours cars a 97?
If so you won't have a battery siren so it's more likely the alarm isn't setting properly, check bonnet switch works that's the most likely cause

 

[jaishaw]

It is indeed a '97. Sorry to sound like a proper dunce but what exactly am I looking for and how do I check. I should have mentioned that although keen and quite handy, I am a proper novice with this stuff.

Cheers

 

[aragorn]

ah ok, earlier cars dont have a siern, just a simple horn which never really fails.

As olds_kool says, its likely a fault with one of the door/bonnet/boot switches, so the alarm thinks its open.

Vagcom might help you diagnose.

 

[jaishaw]

Aragorn- can you advise me a little more on vagcom? I know what it is essentially yet there seems to be a range of prices for leads & software between £18 and £250!? Incidentally, when I locked my car last night I got no 'bib' but this morning I did.

 

[aragorn]

Vagcom is a commercial package which comes with some software and a lead and costs ~£230.

The company however also release a free "lite" version, which can be used with cheap ebay leads but giving you a lot less functionality.

You also have the option of activating the Lite version, which ends up as a sort of half way house between the full version and free version in terms of functionality.

The free version will do what a lot of people need, which is read fault codes, so in that respect its limited but still useful.


Does your interior lighting work as expected when you open/close the doors? Same with the boot light?

If so, i'd try unplugging the bonnet switch and see how you get on.

 

[jaishaw]

I think you might be right with the bonnet sensor. The alarm went off twice for no reason. I don't know where to find the sensor though. There is no diagram in the manual. I'll check my Haynes as well. Might get the cheap leads and have a try at the free version of vagcom too.