ar393

Sorry to cross post, I also posted this on Audizine.

Car is a B6 V6 6MT quattro avant, 235K miles

So I was out of town for two weeks. Car was sitting in my driveway the entire time. I come home and go to start my car and I get nothing. I check and my crappy bluetooth OBD reader (different from my ross tech) was still plugged in, so im thinking that might have drained the battery.

I check the battery with a meter and its dead. I try my trickle charger, and the battery is too dead for that to work. I get my friends 15-amp charger/starter, hook it up and I get some electrical response after about an hour. I get the usual clicking of a very low battery. I switch the charger to starter mode; turn the key and she started right up.

I disconnect the starter/charger, close the hood and go inside for a few minutes to grab some stuff, I hear the revs go up and down a little bit (which isn't too out of whack since I have a hole in the exhaust, not like it redlined or something, but maybe swung from 500-900 instead of sitting at 750) ....then I hear NOTHING. I go back outside, and the car is off with the key in the run position still. I go to try the key and I get zero electrical response again, try the hazards, and nothing.

I go to pop the hood and put my meter on the battery, and there is very light smoke of some sort in the engine bay. Like electrical fire type smoke (im a volunteer firefighter). I pull the battery completely, take it out, multimeter shows some life in the battery and so I put it on my trickle charger overnight. overnight it charges fine, I test it the meter and get good voltage. I connect the battery with a set of jumper cables instead of fighting to get it back in its spot, I turn the key, and get nothing. I hit the hazards, I get nothing. when i go to disconnect the jumper cables, they are WARM too. The smoke didn't come from the driver's side a pillar where the ECU/computer is, but from around and under the motor. after a day or so I could still smell the smoke and it was strongest at the air manifold, but also I was limited to where I could put my nose.

thoughts?

ar393

UPDATE

So after a week, on a whim I was like let me go and put the battery in again and see what happens. I reinstall the battery fully, open the car door, and its responding like it should.

hazards work, lights work....wtf....
I go and smell around the engine bay, no smells. I turn the key to the on position. everything is acting normal. radio works. still no smell coming from the engine bay.

I go to start it.....nothing. hmmmm. thinking about where the smoke was most seen, and zero happening even though there is power, im thinking the starter burnt out? The starter was replaced about 15 months ago, unfortunately that mechanic closed shop and moved to the west coast, so I can't go back to him.

Is there an easy way to test the starter? is there a safe way to put 12 volts to it directly? Where would that be if its possible?


link to other thread:
I think she's dead jim....zero electrical after car shut off randomly (audizine.com)