My A3 e-tron died

[JBlige]

I was driving home when my car's alternator failed, "alternator failure - not able to charge battery" message suddenly came on. Then the headlights and steering stopped working, and the car died. What could be causing this?

 

[camille1228]

Could it be that the car’s standard 12v battery has died because the alternator’s not doing its thing?

 

[dlinkA3]

Could it be that the car’s standard 12v battery has died because the alternator’s not doing its thing?

The A3 Sportback e-tron does not have an alternator. It uses the 8.8kWh Lithium battery for alternator purposes to recharge the 12V lead acid accessory battery, which might be declining and now require replacement. If you are towing with the A3 e-tron, you do not receive the expected boost of up to 14V from an alternator, but only 12.6V max. We added a 175W solar panel to the roof of our small folding trailer to get the needed electric boost for our trailer refrigerator.