So I am pretty sure my old battery needs to be replaced. Just purchased the car a few months ago and found the water to be very low. Also, it has been found very dead after sitting more than a day or two recently. Oddly, I have also noticed that on occasion we have found the car either in the garage or parking lot with the parking lights on when they were definitely not left on (if you can even do that)??? The car sat all day yesterday and through last night with a charger on the battery, this AM my wife and I watched as the parking lights would come on for a few seconds then off and repeat for about 5 minutes?????? What the hell? We are talking no key anywhere near the car! I will be replaceing the battery tomorrow, but is the light thing a reflection of the dying battery or a cause of the drain? I plan to attempt to monitor the light thing after the battery has been changed, but I can't camp out in my garage all day either. I have been reviewing old posts and can't find this symptom mentioned anywhere? Does ANYONE have a comment on this? Thanks for any help.

erik

 

It sounds as though your parking lights are getting constant power, which technically they do (as they can be turned on without the ignition), but if they only come on at certain times (other than when you physically turn them on), something in the wiring could be damaged.

Before making yourself a nervous wreck about all of the potential problems it could have, I would simply replace the battery and go from there. It never hurts to have a new battery anyways. Once you have replaced the battery, I don't think it will be necessary to "camp" out in your garage monitoring the car; you didn't have to "camp" to realize it was acting funny before, right? You may also want to replace the battery in your keyless entry key(s). I would give that a try, and go from there.

Good luck.

 

just replaced the battery today. thanks for the keyless idea, will do that as well. bad news, as I removed the old battery I saw that it is only 1.5 years old. I went ahead and pulled the tailights as well, replacing all suspect bulbs and checking wiring. will monitor from there. thanks

 

So I have found the car with the parking lights on multiple times in a few days already after installing a new battery. I have noticed that by opening any of the doors then closing, the lights will go off as the door closes. Maybe that helps someone to diagnose. I am going to try calling a few German shops to see if that even sounds familiar to any mechanics. Would still love any imput, I am happy to do as much self repair as possible, even wiring if anyone has an idea where to look. thanks to all.

 

That's odd. I know that you can set the fog lights to come on whenever you are entering and exiting the car at night (when entering, they go off as soon as the door is opened). Try switching off that feature and see if anything changes. It's a long shot, but maybe it has something to do with that.

Also, when the car is off, if you switch on the turn signal lever, both "side marker" lights come on and stay on until you switch the lever off. However, they stay on regardless of the doors being opened or closed. Maybe somehow that lever keeps getting activated? The vibration of the closing doors could shut if off?

When you start the car, does the automatic system check display screen say "ok"...?

If it isn't any of those things, I am not sure. Unless someone else has experience with such an issue, you will have to take it to an Audi dealership or something of that nature.

 

So replaceing the fob battery seemed to cure the problem almost immediately, did that about 1 week ago... until this morning. Found the parking lights were on again, car started fine. The status screen always says "OK" when you start up. I am thinking maybe a new fob would be the next thing since clearly the fob (or the unit it communictes with) is a least part of this problem???? The current one (and only) is quite beat up. I will check the signal switches, and through my latest research have seen some similar grumblings about changing out the steering column cluster as a possible solution. I got this car from a close friends lot, have kept him up to date on the issues. A late model S4 that they have now is acting similarly. Will let him use his mechanics to help diagnose and post whatever they may find on that car as well. Thanks Subtlemastermind for all of the input.

 

so my buddy's mechanic says that the audi sources say that the light switch itself will often go bad and have these symptoms. At 200$ thats not too bad. Anybody changed one of these on their own?

 

if u plan on replacing the switch dont go buy it from the dealership. Trying sourcing parts on ebay for the light switch. i know some even use the vw passat switch and u can get it for alot less the then audi one.

 

Hi, having the same problem. Did changing the light switch work?

 

if they only come on at certain times (other than when you physically turn them on), something in the wiring could be damaged.