Omega Owners Forum
Omega Help Area => Omega General Help => Topic started by: SMD on 23 December 2013, 20:43:41
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Haven't driven my car 'properly' for a while which may be a contributing factor...first I noticed the ABS and TC light stays on for 3-5 seconds after starting which its never done before so i thought maybe ABS ECU is starting to go.
Then the car would not start after picking up passengers, wouldn't even turn over. Pedal trick revealed 0560 twice which indicated a voltage problem and managed to get it going with a jump start. Bought new GM battery in July 2011.
On the drive home, the car wanted to cut out when the fans were on so turned it off. Then the battery light flashed every 20-30 seconds and when stationary the ABS & TC lights come on and go out when on the move (speedo and tacho work). Even the air bag light joined in and started flashing! Reversing sensor is not working and the central locking sounds limp but just managed to lock the car.
So what is going on?
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sounds like a very tired battery .. stick it on a decent charger for 48 hours then try again ..
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Thanks Entwood. Can you recommend one? Battery is still newish though but I guess its suffered a little
What about the ABS and TC issue. Could they be related?
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You`d be surprised at all the idiosyncrasies of an Omega with a dodgy battery/alternator/regulator
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Yep, I'd be more inclined to say that the alternator output is low / high, or the battery is seriously flat.
Give the battery a full charge and then, if possible, measure the voltage when running and report back. :y
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Thanks for the replies guys
So can someone recommend a charger please :y
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I use a Ctek 3600 .. not the cheapest by a long shot, but very reliable and can be left on for long periods
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Thanks for the replies guys
So can someone recommend a charger please :y
Though it's no use to you now, but keep an eye out for offers Lidl/Aldi on their 'smart' charger. The last offer sold a charger for about £14 and although by no means is the b all & end all of chargers, is a worth while charger ..... I have a couple of them. :y
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If you can get down to me I have a good one you can borrow rather than running out and buying one.
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Thanks for the offer Pauls but I cant risk driving it especially with the weather and traffic situation. I might have to buy a halfords special like this one
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductMobileDisplay?catalogId=10151&storeId=10001&productId=894769&categoryId=255205&langId=-1
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Ctek definately, they've won awards a few years running.
MXS 5.0 is a middle of road good bet.
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The ctek XS3600 must be a pretty old model, not widely available. I need one today ideally and want to buy something decent. Is the XS3.8 capable of charging an Omega battery from flat?
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I have a Halfords battery charger which is OK. Does the job! :y
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The ctek XS3600 must be a pretty old model, not widely available. I need one today ideally and want to buy something decent. Is the XS3.8 capable of charging an Omega battery from flat?
Yep, it'll be fine. :y
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What the heck
Just bought the CTEK http://www.amazon.co.uk/CTEK-Battery-automatic-temperature-compensation/dp/B00FC42HAA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1387900521&sr=8-1&keywords=ctek+mxs+5.0
Getting sick of battery problems most winter
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Charger arrived yesterday and gave it a full charge. Out of curiosity I measured the battery terminals with multimeter and it read 3.7v. Before charge it was 9.7v
I was expecting a reading of around 12v ???
This is my el cheapo meter I'll be using tomorrow
(http://www.sinometer.com/uploadImage/2012-09-26/2012092616392048545720.jpg)
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www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_894769_langId_-1_categoryId_255205
This charger can be left connected forever, as it drops back to trickle charge when bulk charging is complete, but you MUST disconnect the battery fully as it is a pulse charger and the pulsing will affect the electronics in your Omega if the battery is left connected.
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I tried again but this time changed to the '200' setting and got 12.9v. Previously I was used 20v setting
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I tried again but this time changed to the '200' setting and got 12.9v. Previously I was used 20v setting
Sounds like the meter is suspect...
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Ok, fitted battery and took some readings
Voltage after fitting battery 12.7v
Voltage with headlights on and engine off 12.1v
Load off, voltage while cranking 11.5v
Voltage at idle 13.4
Voltage at 2,000rpm 13.4
Load + idle 13.0v
Load + fast idle 2,000rpm 13.0v
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Ok, fitted battery and took some readings
Voltage after fitting battery 12.7v
Voltage with headlights on and engine off 12.1v
Load off, voltage while cranking 11.5v
Voltage at idle 13.4
Voltage at 2,000rpm 13.4
Load + idle 13.0v
Load + fast idle 2,000rpm 13.0v
Should expect 14V minimum. Before condemning alternator have you checked earth cables and the crimped cables at battery terminals
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yes i would suspect the leads as well, if you can get to the back of the alternator to test,would prove it either way
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Thanks for the replies gents.
Rob, would this be a visual check and what would I be looking for?
Mr green, would your test would require the alt to be removed? Am I still checking the same cables as Rob suggested?
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no it needs to be tested by unplugging it and testing its output with the motor running , i don't know if that's feasable with this motor (i've done it on an old bedford i had!!), and yes i would check the cables that Rob was talking about as these can break down and cause those symptoms as it goes cleaning up the Earth points is never a bad idea, my father used to cover them in vaseline to protect them.
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I can check them tomorrow but can someone please give me a few pointers on what I should be looking for.
Does the earth cable run from the battery to the chassis and it this easy to trace all the way from the terminals to the earthing point?
As for the other terminal. Am I just checking wear and tear or feeling if it gets hot etc?
Ta :y
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yes just follow them back and lift the plastic covers to look at the cable going into the crimped terminal usually with vibration e.t.c is where they wear heat is another good indicator
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Ok, just been out to check the cables.
The crimped connection has a very slight play but otherwise (from my untrained eye) looks ok. The earth cables from battery to engine and chassis do not get hot after 10 mins running with load. So what else can I check with the wiring?
I have a few questions, in order to gain some basic knowledge so please bear with me :P:
(http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t440/Zaf_Yousef/20131229_141435_zps5f12614e.jpg) (http://s1059.photobucket.com/user/Zaf_Yousef/media/20131229_141435_zps5f12614e.jpg.html)
I can see two large cables are the earth to chassis and engine. What are the two smaller ones for?
(http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t440/Zaf_Yousef/2013-12-29142334_zpsb7441d2a.jpg) (http://s1059.photobucket.com/user/Zaf_Yousef/media/2013-12-29142334_zpsb7441d2a.jpg.html)
Is this the earth point to chassis?
(http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t440/Zaf_Yousef/20131229_141150_zps7477610f.jpg) (http://s1059.photobucket.com/user/Zaf_Yousef/media/20131229_141150_zps7477610f.jpg.html)
Where to these? I can see one goes to the fuse box above the battery. What about the other two?
(http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t440/Zaf_Yousef/2013-12-29142217_zps2144eae8.jpg) (http://s1059.photobucket.com/user/Zaf_Yousef/media/2013-12-29142217_zps2144eae8.jpg.html)
Is this the alternator?