Car had issues starting. Then "DSC Service Required"

[klee168168]

I have a 2013 v8v manual coupe. I had an issue starting the car today. I usually use the crystal key but used the plastic key today. The car felt like the battery was dying or something. I tried starting the car about 4-5 times. The windows rolled down about 1 inch on both sides. The analog clock rolled forward 12 hours. Then finally it started. There was a "DCS Service Required" then "Traction Control Temporary Off" messages. I have no idea what happened.

I drove the car home. Shut it off and tried restarting the car. Messages all went away. That was a scary phenomenon. Has this every happened to anyone?

[bogie]

It sounds like the battery was a bit low. Perhaps get it tested (free at Halfords) and look at getting a replacement.

...the cold mornings bring out the weakness in a battery, more so if its not driven daily in this weather ...if it lasts 5 weeks between drives in summer, it might just be 2 weeks in the cold.....

[klee168168]

I left my car with the tint shop today for a touch up. They had the car for 45 minutes. Could it be that they left the key in there while doing work, and that causes the DSC message and trouble starting? They drove my car back toward the front of the shop for me and turned off the ignition and gave me the key. I had the issue when I tried restarting the car.

How long or how many miles do you have to drive the car per week to NOT have a battery tinder?

Edited by klee168168 on Tuesday 22 January 21:56

[anonymous-user]

In relation to how much use is required to maintain the battery I’d say thats an impossible question to answer as it depends on the health of the battery. If the battery is losing the ability to maintain a charge then its going to become less reliable and will get worse, probably very quickly. Get your battery tested and hope that is the problem, cheapish fix if it is. I keep my car on a trickle charge if I know I am not/have not been driving it for more than 5 days but that is probably overkill. I try and ensure I never need to put it on the charger by using it a lot.

[bogie]

Yes, that could have been the issue e.g. a couple of cold starts without going anywhere is going to drain the battery more than its been charged, and if the battery is on the way out, it will become more obvious

They symptoms you describe as pretty much what happened last time I needed a new battery....

With a healthy battery I would guess you want to be driving for 30-60 mins a week to keep the battery charged, depending how fast you drive.

[klee168168]

Do you guys have a particular brand - AGM or non AGM battery?

[morty1961]

The DSC Service and traction control temporarily off on my V8 was the Yaw sensor had failed.....the message wouldn't go away though. It also triggered the emission service required message as well !!
Changing the Yaw sensor fixed both issues

[bogie]

klee168168 said:

Do you guys have a particular brand - AGM or non AGM battery?

In my previous Vantage when the battery went, it was replaced with Yuasa with 5yr guarantee, about £140 ish

[Ken Figenus]

They get very doddery on low voltages! Standard.

[Minglar]

I keep mine on the battery conditioner all the time when it’s parked up in the garage. There are plenty of well documented issues associated with battery problems, so I think it’s best to do whatever you can to prevent anything happening. The original Eurowatch tracker caused a battery drain in my car a few years ago, and it turned out to be a bit of a pain at the time. So lesson learnt, keep it on a trickle at all times. The conditioner is designed to be used for long periods of time and self diagnoses any discharge so it shouldn’t be a problem. Just have to make sure you don’t forget to detach it before starting the engine and driving off!

Best Regards

Minglar

[bogie]

Ken Figenus said:

They get very doddery on low voltages! Standard.

agreed ...not an Aston specific thing, I think all new cars with dozens of computer controlled modules suffer the same. Certainly my Range Rover did not like cold weather when its battery was on the way out either, and it starts throwing up all kinds of strange error messages until the battery is well charged

[NDA]

Also worth adding that it's the 'cranking amps' that are key to a battery having enough 'woof' to turn over a big V8. Voltage levels can be a bit misleading.

In my experience, once a battery has started to go, then it's never really the same again - certainly not reliable.

The battery in my V8 Range Rover is on the way out - I get all sorts of odd stuff happening... much as you describe.

[klee168168]

Someone recommended this one

CTEK (56-959) MUS 4.3 TEST&CHARGE 12 Volt Fully Automatic Charger and Tester https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GODGN9E/ref=cm_sw_r_c...

Someone also recommend this one. I’m not sure the difference

CTEK (56-158) MULTI US 3300 12 Volt Fully Automatic 4 Step Battery Charger https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FQBWCY/ref=cm_sw_r_c...

So you just plug in the CTEK in trunk, behind the right side, after pulling back the carpet, into the cigarette plug in (9v)? Then do you just run an extension cord to a 120v wall outlet to power the ctek (AC Adapter)?

[Ken Figenus]

Try this one - no buttons; genuinely fully automatic! I have this and it is just plug in and switch on. Once battery is fully charged it just sits there pulsing it with small current keeping everything nice and tidy!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006CQ9BMO/ref=psdc_1570...