A relaxed ride over the country, pure sun and no traffic. But then: shock moment, the engine stalls and strangles. The complete electronics fail. It is just enough to roll out on the shoulder. Hazard warning lights? Wrong! And the ignition does not want more, in short: he does not start anymore!
Unfortunately, breakdowns like these often occur, but often this is not due to defects in the engine. According to current ADAC statistics is the electrics in the car Cause number 1 - And has been almost 20 years, with rising tendency.
Problem zone battery
The heart of the electrical system in the car is the battery. Car batteries have an average life of 5 years, but even young batteries are prone to failure. Even before the breakdown, these are often damaged, for example by complete discharge in case of long standing time. If you frequently travel shorter distances, you should occasionally drive a long distance to allow the battery to recharge. Every few months the battery should be fully charged. The layman can also read the current charge with the aid of a voltage indicator.
Caution: If a battery completely discharges, it is often permanently damaged and can show power drops after jump starting. Good battery management can easily double your lifetime!
General electrics
The main reason for empty batteries is the electronics around them. The more modern the vehicle, the more consumers are connected to the internal power supply - hi-fi system, seat heating, headlights, windshield wipers and heated rear windows or exterior mirrors, to name just a few. Control devices in particular, which control the energy management of the individual consumers, are themselves also power guzzlers. The tricky thing here is that many of these controls continue to use power for a period of time after the key is removed. A solid mid-range car has about 20 such control units, while over 80 of these parts are installed in a luxury-class model. Not only does this put a high load on the battery - the high complexity of the internal electronics of modern motor vehicles is also becoming more susceptible to failures and errors. The problem may be in the programming of the on-board software, or in the several kilometers of line or in the tabsthat connect multiple elements.
Pioneer BMW
According to the ADAC statistics, especially BMW is prepared for problems in the electrical system. This is due to the standard for several years energy management system as part of BMW EfficientDynamics technology, This monitors the charging and discharging of the battery, warns the user in case of overload and switches off consumers on their own to ensure a basic charge of the battery at all times.
In addition to BMW, the Mini and Audi brands have particularly few failures due to defective or discharged batteries. There is a particular need to catch up at Fiat and Honda. The bottom line is that the electrics should be given special attention to avoid the most frequent breakdowns.