Malfunction Notice

[jdsouza]

I keep getting the following malfunction notice:
Electroical Consumers Off.
Any idea what this means?

Thanks and regards,

W211 E240, 2003 model.

 

[guydewdney]

i think that its shutting down 'useless' electrical stuff to peserve the battery....

basically - i think the battery is dying...

 

[RichardM]

I get that if the car has been left for a while (7 days+). Thankfully it always starts due to the dual battery. I believe there may be a recall for this though, speak to your dealer.

 

[television]

I go along wth Guydewdny I does sound like battery being 11volts or under.

Malcolm

 

[severn]

I get that if the car has been left for a while (7 days+). Thankfully it always starts due to the dual battery. I believe there may be a recall for this though, speak to your dealer.

The rear battery on a 211 Is the starter/supply battery. The battery under the bonnet is a back up battery for the SBC braking system in the event of an electrical failure of the main battery.It has no other function.

The electrical consumer warning is a notice in essence that the car has shut down non essential consumers ie Parktronic,heated seats etc when the battery voltage falls below a limit monitored by the battery control module.
(there is a service measure, not a recall to update the BCM with the latest software when the car is in the dealer for service or repair).

This warning notice in my view can be ignored if it comes on if the vehicle has been standing for a week as the battery voltage will fall due to the current draw (0.05A) from the cars electrical system memory's etc.

If it come s on every time you use the car then

1. if the car is used for short journeys the battery will not get fully charged and eventually the voltage will remain low. A good trickle charge overnight should restore the battery voltage and the notice will not appear.

2. If the car is used for long journeys then one could expect the battery to receive a good charge from the alternator, so either something is draining the battery overnight (greater than 0.05A) or the battery is faulty or the alternator is faulty.

Hope that helps

 

[pascal]

Well this shutdown feature was in older MBs but just did not give you a warning. The 'rest' feature of the climate control is one example.

 

[television]

Well this shutdown feature was in older MBs but just did not give you a warning. The 'rest' feature of the climate control is one example.

This was the case when a single battery was used.
Running the engine 30amps
Lights heating etc 30 aps
AC 30 amps

The car runs on the alernator, not the battery. most MB's have around 80 amp alternator, so with 60 amps used for running and lights, only 20 amp to charge the battery when the AC is off,once the charge to the battery is complete the AC will turn on again

Malcolm

 

[pascal]

The 'REST' works from the battery. It keeps the car warm when your away. (in the cinema or the pub).

You press it after shutting down the engine (key '0' or key out).

It will keep the car nice and warm for you on your return, by the use of a low fan stting.

If the battery goes below a certain amount it swiches off.

 

[philharve]

Hi All

My MB suffered battery failure this week and was promptly replaced. My Indie diagnosed the problem correctly after I described the symptoms to him over the 'phone. It was during this conversation that the Indie related the action of the battery control module (BCM) and how to get the car going if it fails to start. His advice was spot on and I got the car started despite the failed battery (dead cell). I now know about the significance of 11V.

But what fooled me was there was no apparent warning that my car was never going to start. All I heard upon twisting the ignition key was a familiar 'click' as the starter motor tried to spin the engine into life. I did not know then that the BCM was never going to allow the engine to spring into life because the battery voltage had fallen to below 11V.

My initial diagnosis was a poor connection at one of the battery terminals but upon investigation I found the connections to be in A1 condition.

My interpretation of the forgoing replies suggests that some MBs signal they are not going to start using an indicator of some kind. My humble C-class is clearly not one of these models.

REGARDS Phil

 

[television]

My interpretation of the forgoing replies suggests that some MBs signal they are not going to start using an indicator of some kind. My humble C-class is clearly not one of these models.

REGARDS Phil

Don't worry, No cars have a warning saying that they are not going to start, you have that pleasure when you put the key in and it just goes click.

Malcolm

 

[benzo]

"the Indie related the action of the battery control module (BCM) and how to get the car going if it fails to start."

Can you please explain what he said, might be of use to someone here someday. I recently replaced a failed battery - it refused to start initially but got it going after repeatedly turning the ignition.

Thanks.

 

[philharve]

Hello benzo

The 'fix' to get my car to start was very simple. The Indie said the BCM has a voltage sensor and if it detects the car's battery is below a 'certain voltage' it will prevent more current being drawn from the battery. Consequently, the starter will 'click/clunk' but it won't crank the engine into life. Why? The BCM protects the battery being flattened by repeated attempts to start the car. It reserves a proportion of current for life support, e.g. heat and light. Could be handy if you are caught in a snow drift, I suppose, but what if conditions are good? It can be a ****** nuisance.

The Indie said what you must do is to 'trick' the sensor into believing there is a good battery in the car and in order to do this you must raise its terminal voltage to above the 'certain voltage'. If you have a charger to hand you can trickle charge the battery for a few minutes, that might do the trick. I wasn't this fortunate as my car was parked in the road some distance from my home.

The Indie recommended I place another battery - a known good one - in parallel with my car's battery. In fact you use the very same process as for a jump start. The car's battery draws current from the good battery and the terminal voltage starts to rise. Once the 'certain voltage' is exceeded, the BCM with permit the car to start. It's not necessary to leave the good battery in parallel whilst you start the car because the car's own battery has sufficient current to crank the engine. It's the BCM that's the problem.

I asked my brother to run his car for a few minutes to raise its terminal voltage then switch of his engine. I then wired his battery in parallel with mine using jump leads: firstly +ve to +ve, then -ve to -ve. To reduce the risk of explosion the -ve jump lead comprised two jump leads. Firstly connect one jump lead to the -ve terminal of one battery then do the same with the other jump lead. You finally connect the batteries in parallel by connecting the free ends of the -ve jump leads. If they spark it will be well away from either battery.

I left the two batteries in parallel for a few minutes then disconnected my brother's battery. I jumped in my car and it started immediately using the current from my own battery. For a true jump start you would leave both batteries connected whilst starting the car.

So there you have it ... you need a second source of DC current to put sufficient charge into the car's battery to raise its terminal voltage to above the 'certain voltage'. Other members report in this thread that this is 11 Volts. I take their word for this.

Obviously the jump start method will work but it's not necessary to rely upon the good battery to provide part of the starting current. That's the difference.

I suppose if there is some other problem with the car, an ignition fault (say), the BCM with protect both batteries from being flattened. However, I want to keep on the good side of my brother as he needs his car for work too, hence my decision to disconnect his battery when I started my car.

Once my car had started I left it running a drove immediately to the Indie's garage where he diagnosed a dead cell. The battery was replaced. The Indie added that you don't need to supply much current to raise the battery's terminal voltage, just enough for the BCM's voltage sensor to believe the battery is good.

Hope this helps.

REGARDS Phil