*C5 AVANT STYLE*

My volt meter usually stays at 14, 2 days ago it was up to 15. I turned off the engine and restarted then it went back to 14 and has stayed there since. Should I be concerned about this?

socalclimber

Keep an eye on it. Overcharging (>14.5 volts) for extended periods can damage your battery. Maybe voltage regulator on alternator is starting to go? Battery condition and temp influence charging voltages.

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=246770

How old is battery? Are you in cold climate?

Just Me

Dunno. Could be a fluke ( hold the jokes), could be a meter malfunction, or it could be a failing voltage regulator.

If the regulator is putting out too much voltage, it could damage the battery - or the alternator (se below).

truth is though, that a battery as it charges is nearly a dead short to higher voltage being applied. So even if your alternator put out 20V - it would typically not show up until the batter charged up to that higher voltage - which would require quite a bit of time.

So i'm thinking something just read wrong.

Others?

G

eCoastAudi

Sounds like a meter problem. But why not get out your hand held voltmeter and measure the batter voltage with the engine running to make sure?

*C5 AVANT STYLE*

My car is in the NYC area and the battery is about 3-4 yrs old. The climate has been mild thus far this fall. However, the car is in storage 10-11 months of the year. While in storage the battery is disconnected.

Just Me

i'm not following the context of this post.

*C5 AVANT STYLE*

I was asked how old my battery was and if my car is in a cold climate.

Just Me

i missed that. No mind, mostly irrelevant. If its constant, check vs a hand-held voltmeter opn the battery terminals or similar.

G

Zuffenhausen951

Sorry to revive a dead thread - but A6/S6/allroad voltage gauge actually reads 14.5v, when the needle is directly at the white line, between 12v and 16v. As you can see, Audi did not intentionally center the line on purpose....meaning the positive voltage line between 12v and 16v is exactly where proper alternator charging should be....no more, no less.

Anything between that white line and 16v should be verified and if overcharged, the alternator and/or battery should be replaced.