Scenic II 05 Electric woes

padlad

Hi,

we have a 05 Scenic that has been fairly reliable (for a Renault :rolleyes:) until the last few weeks. Basically we had a sensor warning message on and then the car started cutting out and the battery would be flat in the morning.

Now we have had it in the garage (x3) and they said the sensor warning is not a big deal and they eventually replaced the battery. All internal lights etc have been checked - they are going off and not causing the battery drain.

Okay that got us a few more days driving until the battery was flat again :mad:.

Has anyone come across this problem? what could be causing this drain?

blackbox

Has the faulty sensor been replaced?

padlad

no garage reckons it has nothing to do with it

junkyard

I know of three with similar problems and as usual Renault garages couldn't fix the problem, you'll probably end up trading it for something that works.

padlad

trading it in is looking like the best option.

But, I'm going to replace the sensor and see what happens. Didn't want to trade it until next year. Oh well

Scottie99

Alternator ?

jayok

What would make sense here is to measure the current draw from the battery when the car is all locked up and all lights turned off. This would be fairly straightforward with the correct equipment. Then you could determine if there's an inappropriate power drain from the battery. If there is not one, then it's the battery, if there is one I'd remove the fuses from each system until the culprit it determined.

To the OP don't know how handy you would be with this, but it could work for you. Know any Indy Mechanics?

gixerfixer

Dont know anything about that year model myself (have a 01 scenic) but herself's friend had a 04 model and had the same problem,in garage loads of times and they couldnt fix the problem.Ended up trading it in for a toyota.

snowman707

jayok wrote: »

What would make sense here is to measure the current draw from the battery when the car is all locked up and all lights turned off. This would be fairly straightforward with the correct equipment. Then you could determine if there's an inappropriate power drain from the battery. If there is not one, then it's the battery, if there is one I'd remove the fuses from each system until the culprit it determined.

To the OP don't know how handy you would be with this, but it could work for you. Know any Indy Mechanics?

Good advise

Remember you will have a very small current drain in any case but if it is over 100 m.a you have a problem , a simple multi meter is sufficient for the tests

A great way to spend the weekend LOL , Usually a faulty relay or maybe the sensor
Good luck!! but be prepared to spend sometime on this, A good auto electrion is a better bet, but most of them don't like this sort of work as it too time consuming

Mr.Diagnostic

In my experience the reason that some garages cannot fix problems like this is lack of knowledge of how the system works. Not every dealer has a tech who is capable.

The suggestion above to measure the drain with the car locked up is correct but pulling fuses will not work on that car. The fix for a problem like this can be expensive due to the time involved. The OP needs to find a specialist who understands the systems. Nothing is unfixable.

peasant

Scottie99 wrote: »

Alternator ?

That would be the first thing I'd check (if it hasn't been done already)

padlad

Alternator is good.

Garage has been on to a few Renault ones and they have no idea what could be causing it :rolleyes:

Much as I love the scenic - we need a reliable car so it's time to think about trading it in.

Potential replacements (in no partic order). Will probably go new/2007, and diesel. Looking a Senic like car with better reliability.
Citroen C4 1.6 HDI (Reliability?)
Reanult Scenic 1.5 dci (it's just a great family car)
Corolla Verso 2.2D
Mazda 5 2.0D
Any thoughts?

Rashers72

I have a 06 Grand Scenic ( 2 normal Scenic's previously, plus Megane).
All were good. But in the last few months suffered a flat battery 3 times.
Had the AA out, and they reckoned something was draining the battery. Had the radio replaced (2nd time), and that seems to have solved the problem (touch wood!).
The garage advised that some of the car batteries only last about 2 years.
During all these problems (had a problem with one of the aircraft style trays also), I thought about changing the car, and was thinking on similar lines to yourself. I thought the Verso had a big engine, hence had a big price + annual road tax (despite the diesel). I reckon they'll launch a 2.0/1.8 diesel by Xmas.
The Scenic 1.5 dci seems like a good option, but after 4 Renaults in a row, I'd like a change in brand (Plus don't like the way everything now needs to be run by Renault France, adding weeks to basic queries).
Have you thought about the Volvo v50, 1.6 diesel? Will be a good price, post July. Heard they depreciate though, which is surprise for such a premium brand.
Anyhow, if you go through a garage, and a brand change, I'd assume you'll lose a lot on the trade in. If you settle for the Mazda, I would suggest checking out Renault Sandyford, as they are also a Mazda dealer, hence trade in price should be better. Best of luck!