Motor system failure

[Reptile]

Hi guys,i have a problem with my car where it doesn't start and then after few seconds it says "motor system failure"(it says it in german "motor system fehler" but its the same thing.The problem occured today after i tried to inflate my tire with a tire compressor yesterday,i had problems with the in car ligther 12v connector,it seemed that it stopped working a while ago but i still tried the tire compressor,my car battery was also weak for the past few months being that it is cold weather,i had to jump start it 2 times during this winter months already.Does it say "motor system failure" if the car battery is dead or when something else is gone bad as well?If so,i didn't notice it the last time my battery was empty.All the car does now when i try to turn it on is everything on the dashboard starts flickering and then after few seconds i get the "motor system failure" message,the car crancks but really weak,so what should i try first,maybe jump start it?or disconnect the battery connectors and leave it for a while then reconnect,could it by that the tire compressor messed up some electrical components and the car is "confused",last night it wasn't that cold that the battery would die just like that.Any advice or help would be much appreciated

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Sounds like you need a new battery to start with.

 

[Reptile]

Sounds like you need a new battery to start with.

Yeah,but there's no 100% guarantee that it is the battery's fault,right?Before i go and buy a new one while this one might be somewhat ok,is there anything i can try to troubleshoot or something to be sure it's the battery?I agree that the battery could be the problem since it is a really bad one,like i said already i had to jump start two times already but what i dont understand is the motor/engine system failure message,i dont remember seeing it the last time when the battery was dead or i just didn't pay much attention

 

[Mottie]

If it starts on a jump start, it’s a flat/fecked battery.

 

[Reptile]

If it starts on a jump start, it’s a flat/fecked battery.

I will try that first but i asked a friend about the error and if it can show the error on the dashboard when a battery is dead and he said no,it should not say that on the dashboard so im a bit worried here that some other electrical parts are bad.Can anyone of you guys confirm that the dashboard error can occur when the battery is dead?(the one i mentioned above,engine/ system failure)

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

I can say that having been on the VW forums, all sorts of weird electrical faults/error messages can occur with a faulty battery. I expect most modern cars are the same.

 

[Reptile]

I can say that having been on the VW forums, all sorts of weird electrical faults/error messages can occur with a faulty battery. I expect most modern cars are the same.

It's an now old ford focus 2006 1.6,what's weird i did try turning on the ignition few more times and it doesn't show me the dashboard error anymore,now its just like a dead battery but really dead,the crancking is really weak though.I will try to jump start it first but for now i can't do anything,i dont have any jumper cables and neither someone from who i could borrow them,so i will need to go and buy those first,i'm basically stranded for now,cant move the car anywhere nor can i drive it to a garage,nothing

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Get a battery delivered and fit it yourself, or the AA do a mobile fitting service, there are others who also offer mobile fitting.

 

[jj4091]

Get a battery delivered and fit it yourself, or the AA do a mobile fitting service, there are others who also offer mobile fitting.

Not sure the AA will go that far just to sell a battery, no matter how expensive they are.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Yes they will, I checked.

 

[Mottie]

The AA patrols are heavily into selling batteries. Even if you don’t need one…..

 

[carmanmemoranda]

The car may have more than 1fault.

But until you have a known good battery in place you will be just chasing shadows

 

[Avocet]

Just make sure your battery terminals are tight first! It sounds like either a dead battery or a high resistance somewhere. You could try putting a jump lead from the battery negative terminal to some good, clean metal on the bodywork, and another jump lead from the battery negative terminal to good, clean metal on the engine. If it is no different, (and the battery terminals are tight and free of corrosion), then it is probably the battery.

 

[Justin Passing]

"Fehler" just means "fault". The electronics senses the low voltage, but also won't work properly if the voltage is low.

YOu'll need your radio code (probably) to get that to work after changing the battery. Google is your friend.

 

[Reptile]

Just to update you guys,it was my battery.I charged it overnight and the car turned on at the first try but i will probably replace the car battery,i had problems with this one for the last few months,i had to jump start it two or three times during the last few winter months