"TCL OFF" has come on - why???

[vrfan]

I was heading home yesterday in quite heavy rain (what a surprise!).

About 4 miles from home my alternator warning light came on and so did the TCL OFF one. I got home and switched the ignition off and then on again. They came on as per checklight sequence, then off - like normal.

I thought it must have been a sensor overwhelmed by the amount of standing water. I went to work today, all was fine. But on the way home, in the dry..... back on they came. This time the alt. light went off after a bit but the TCL one is on permanently now.


Any ideas what is going on??

[Wouter]

I had this once with a loaner from Mo, the Battery was on its way out, changed the battery and the problem was solved.

If you have a volt meter, then check the battery.

[Kieran]

Uh-oh.... That can be a sign that your alternator is giving up. Check the running voltages across the battery, especially if the alt. light comes on.

The TCL system will switch itself off if the engine vacuum drops too low (can happen in a low-volt situation) or if the TCL ECU isn't getting enough voltage to operate correctly.

[vrfan]

I'm hoping it's not the battery, it's only a year old.

Alternator possibly on it's way out is worrying. I guess it could have been worked quite hard with the old battery that was in the car, yeah?


I will keep an eye on charging voltage with the RSM, handy gizmo that.

[Catalan]

and look it error in table

ABS/ASC/TCL systems is a big customer of electrical power, and if any trouble with power the system is going off

If after ignition off/on this error is not repeat, that's all ok, but error still in ecu and you can read from.

I can write how to read diagnostic codes if you need.
it's easy