2003 Jetta 1.8T Battery light?
I recently purchased a 2003 Jetta 1.8T. and so far I could not be happier. However…. I have noticed over the course of the past few days that occasionally and briefly the Battery light will flicker and go off. Well today it actually blinked, as in it stayed on for a good second and went off. I think it blinked twice and I turned all accessories off and it did not come back on. Could this be a bad battery? I live in Iowa and I run the heated seats/defroster(s)/ heater on high almost daily.
The car has not given me any trouble whatsoever with starting or running the accesories….. I am going to put a gel-cell battery in it because the one that is in it is about 6 years old. Should I still have the alternator checked out?
Or is there a way for me to check the alternator myself without unhooking stuff?
3 Responses
VW Man
25 Feb 2010
Bradley
25 Feb 2010
possibly, it’d be easier to tell if you had a volts gauge..does your car have trouble starting in the morning? It’s most likely nothing to worry about, you can always get a new battery for relatively cheap though, trading that one in and getting a 20 dollar one
Mike F
25 Feb 2010
Well, Ur alternator belt is slipping ar there is a faulty connection in the charging leads, the batt light ONLY comes on if there is an interruption in the alternators chargeing process. Get it checked, a faulty alternator leads to all kinds of hilarious scenarios, driving at night in the dark and rain with lights and wipers running off the battery with not much time left, its not funny, believe me! been there, done that, got the T-Shirt which is now WET from walkin in the rain to the nearest garage!!!
First check both of your positive and negative connectors on the battery. Maybe the connectors are not tied to the battery good or there can be acid on the battery and the connectors.
Start your engine. Then turn on all of the accessories. Next open the hood and unhook the positive or the negative cable from the battery. If the engine stops that means that the alternator is in bad shape and is not working good.