Hi all, i have a "Charging System Service Now error that came up on my way home from work this morning.

I have checked the battery voltage and im getting 11.60v with the engine off and 11.35v with the engine running. From my googling this means my alternator us not charging the battery i think, is that right?

Before booking in to have a professional look at it, is there any other tests, or checks i should do?

Thanks.

Hi, Yes this happened to me and it was the alternator that failed.  Please be very aware of this  I managed to drive it for about 5 miles after getting that error and then the car started to shutdown systems. The last messages displayed were along the lines of brake system failure and power steering failure and the car was basically dying very quickly. I managed to pull into a pub car park whereupon the engine stopped and nothing would work. AA were called out and swapped battery for a fully charged one so the car could be started and driven to get it my repair garage. Fault diagnosed as alternator failure. It was scary how quick systems started to shutdown down and thankfully I chose to take the B roads home and not the M25 route i normally take.  

44 minutes ago, ValdeFortis said:

im getting 11.60v with the engine off and 11.35v with the engine running.

Time to get a new alternator. Do not drive until the car is repaired.

Can i take the battry out and charge it? I have a charger but never used it.

No need to remove the battery. It is better to charge it while still fitted, unless this is just not possible to do so.

When charging the battery whilst fitted to the vehicle, make sure the positive charger lead (red) is connected directly to the battery positive terminal. The negative charger lead must be connected to the chassis earth point, not the battery terminal.

It will take a minimum of 12 hours to recharge the battery. Disregard any indication on the charger that might suggest that the battery is charged after only a few hours.

Even with a fully charged battery you will not be able to drive much more than 6 miles before the car will start shutting down.

hi 

i changed the altalternator and the battery but still getting the message but only when i plug my caravan into the 13 pin socket after driving about 1hr. garage done a obd check and found no faults any help

On 10/8/2025 at 10:42 AM, johnjip said:

hi 

i changed the altalternator and the battery but still getting the message but only when i plug my caravan into the 13 pin socket after driving about 1hr. garage done a obd check and found no faults any help

Did you find the issue