The battery of your Audi A3 seems to be discharging on its own? But without a battery you are not able to light or even drive your car. So if this happens before going to work or dropping the little ones off at school with your Audi A3, it becomes very problematic.
Be aware that there are solutions to restart your battery temporarily. Indeed you have the possibility of recharging your car thanks to a charger provided for this purpose. You will find them in specialized stores but also on online sales sites. It should cost you between 40 and 80 euros, and it's always handy to have one in your possession for this type of problem.
Alternatively you can also connect cables to the battery of another car in order to recharge your Audi A3.
Finally you can also try to restart your car by pushing it downhill. This will give the vehicle speed then you will have to engage the gears and disengage slightly.
However, in the event that the battery of your Audi A3 is faulty, this will not repair it. On the other hand, it can help you to go to a garage or a specialized store.
So in order to find out why your battery is discharging, we will start by developing you how a battery works on Audi A3. Then we will help you analyze your battery discharge problem on Audi A3.
1-operation of a battery on Audi A3
Today vehicles are more and more equipped with electrical elements such as air conditioning; the audio player; lights… and it is also used when the vehicle is not moving. So the battery is used even more on the Audi A3. This is why your car should always have electricity available without being connected to a mains.
1.1-The operating principles of a battery
To meet this demand for electricity, the battery will conserve energy in chemical form. Then this energy will be used by different elements in electrical form.
So, a battery necessarily consists of a positive terminal and a negative terminal. Then to generate the chemical reaction, the two electrodes (positive and -) are immersed in the electrolyte. This is composed of a mixture of sulfuric acid and more or less liquid water.
This reaction will make it possible to transfer the electrons via a conducting wire which feeds a receiver.
To summarize, it is the movement of electrons between the two electrodes which will generate the electric current of the battery.
1.2-The battery a component of the electrical system
Be aware that the battery is part of a complex system. The purpose of the battery is to store energy in order to engage the starter. The latter will allow you to light your car. Once your Audi A3 has started, this will activate the alternator which will charge the battery when you are driving.
Therefore we will have to see this system as a self-managing cycle. Normally this operation is guaranteed for 2 years for Audi A3.
So this implies that if the battery of your Audi A3 discharges, it is possible that the source of the problem comes from elsewhere.
2-Analyze an Audi A3 battery discharge problem
Now that you have a better understanding of how a battery works and its system, it is important to analyze the potential causes of your Audi A3 battery drain.
2.1- Causes of an Audi A3 battery discharge
2.1.1-Sudden discharge of the Audi A3 battery
First of all, you should know that the battery continues to operate with the engine off, however it will not be recharged. So a possible cause of a dead battery is that you forgot a lamp on in your car or the lights ...
In this case, your battery simply needs to be recharged with tweezers or a charger and you will have to drive approximately 10 km in order to fully charge your Audi A3. Normally assuming this is the source of the problem you shouldn't have any further concerns.
2.1.2-Slow discharge of the Audi A3 battery
If you only use your car for short trips, it may not give your battery time to fully charge. As indicated above, the battery is recharged using the alternator. But for that, we will have to drive a few kilometers. So if this is your case you may have a slow discharge.
To repair this you will have to charge your car for the first time using pliers and then drive approximately 10 km with your Audi A3 in order to charge it.
2.2-Test the battery condition on Audi A3
To make sure your battery is in good condition, you can check its condition.
It is necessary to evaluate it with the engine off and when starting your Audi A3.
2.2.1-Measure the volts of the Audi A3 battery when stationary
First of all locate the battery in your car. It is usually located at the front of your car, but in case you have any doubts you can consult the guide for your Audi A3.
Then, to measure the voltage, equip yourself with a multimeter, you can find around 10 euros on merchant sites.
To use the multimeter just put the black wire with the black terminal - and the red wire with the positive red terminal.
If the multimeter announces 12 volts engine off, this means that your battery is working properly. So the discharge problem does not come from the battery. We advise you to go to a garage to diagnose the problem.
2.2.2-Measure the volts of the Audi A3 battery at start-up
You will also need to examine the charging system. In this case keep the multimeter connected to your battery and start the engine. You should see between 13 and 15 volts. If you have more or less volts, we recommend that you go to a professional to have the charging system checked. Indeed if the latter does not work correctly it is likely that it has damaged your battery. So before changing it, have the alternator checked to see if the charging system is working properly.
Replace the battery on Audi A3
If your battery needs to be changed, you can consult the following article which will inform you about the prices of an Audi A3 battery: Battery change price on Audi A3.
In conclusion: Concerns about discharging an Audi A3 battery can have different origins. However, it is not necessarily necessary to change it, especially if your battery is not 2 years old. It is for this reason that it is important to understand the causes of unloading. Indeed, since the battery works with other elements, if one of them does not work, it can damage the battery of your Audi A3. So before changing it make sure that the system is working otherwise your new battery will be damaged prematurely.
To discover other tutorials on the Audi A3, we invite you to consult our other pages on the Audi A3.
