Vehicle: '09 V8 Vantage coupe, manual trans.

I talked a bit about this issue in a different thread but now it deserves its own.

Symptoms: sometimes the car will start perfectly, sometimes it will stutter while starting, sometimes I just get a click and it takes a few tries. At one point I couldn't get it running at all and had to jump-start it with my Volvo. The battery was reading about 12.7V, so I bought a new AGM battery and swapped it out. So the battery is brand new, two weeks old.

I'm still having the same symptoms. Today it stuttered while starting and I got the red triangle with "electrical system service urgent". After running the car for a while it went away. But now I also have a "DSC service required / Traction Control Temporarily Off" message that does not go away. I don't know if it's related to the electrical issue or not.

The car throws no DTC codes at all, so this is going to be hard to diagnose. I drive it at least twice a week, but it seems my battery drains while it's just sitting in the garage for a day.

Since I already replaced the battery, where should I start?

 

There is a YouTube video by Bamford Rose about the anti-theft tracker going wrong which sends erroneous signals on the messaging bus causing all sorts of gremlins.I believe battery drain is a symptom. Trackers, which are subscription based, are a thing in the UK (not sure about Europe or the US) and according to the video, trackers were fitted to all cars, regardless if the purchaser wanted or not. I don't know if that refers to all cars in the UK or all cars produced. The video states that all cars with the tracker will experience that problem eventually and the solution is to replace to module or disconnected it and have AM reprogram the body module to skip over the 'is tracker present' check.

 

Interesting, thanks. I'll have to do some research on that. My car is US spec, so I'm not sure what the situation is with the tracker. I definitely don't have any type of subscription for one.

 

I'm not sure where the ground points are for the vantage, but on my 06 DB9 they are on the RH side where the fuel rails come up the back of the firewall. They were horribly corroded - no surprise they are subjected to pretty harsh conditions, even with the belly pans.
I would check those - both the positive and negative (mine grounds to the torque tube).

As always, YMMV!
Larry

 

Will do, thanks!

 

Your not going to see codes for a battery draw. You need to check for a battery draw and also check battery to starter voltage drop. Do you have any aftermarket equipment? 2-3 days of a large draw could cause your fault.

 

I wanted to put out an update to this issue in case anyone else has a similar problem.

I called my local indy shop and asked about the tracker issue posted above by mthdr. They told me that on the US spec cars the alarm module has an integrated battery inside it that can die, causing the module to draw power from the car's main battery.

I wanted to test it, so I took a voltage reading after a 90-minute drive and got 14.2V. Then I locked the car and let it sit in my garage for two days and checked the voltage again. 12.7V.

I took the car for another 90-minute drive, checked the voltage, got 14.2V again. This time I let the car sit, unlocked, for three days and got 14.06.

So it seems that the alarm system is definitely causing the battery drain. The module is expensive so I can't replace it right away, but I'll be doing the same test after I get a new one and I'll update again with the results.

 

If you don't have a message on the dash saying alarm system fault, your just guessing it's the alarm. To have 14.07 volts after 3 days you need to start selling that energy back to the power company. Or get a better volt meter. 12v batteries don't store 14volts after 3 days. You can disconnect the alarm module and retest. You will definitely have a message saying alarm fault when unplugging it.

 

A good Digital Multimeter will measure current (which is done in series with the battery and not in parallel!!!). Disconnect the battery, put the current meter in between the battery and the wiring harness. turn the car on (but don't start it), and read the current draw once it settles down. Turn it off and continue to monitor. Should drop down to 20-50 milliamps max. If it stays up in the 250 milliamp range (.25Amp) there is something drawing power that shouldn't be doing it. You can try selectively removing fuses to figure it out.

 

I recently had a dead battery (owner error). Put my charger on it and it came up. I had a couple of faults that my friends on this site guided me through. I wound up with the alarm fault and read here how to replace it.

I called my local dealer in Cleveland and asked him to order the high line module. There are two, and you can find which one you have by your vin or window sticker. I called after a couple of weeks, and he told me that the part is back-ordered at the factory. They ordered them from their supplier and were sent the base model in error.

So, we wait!

 

I started getting DSC, Traction Control Disabled messages yesterday. Will call the dealer and see the next step is. Often, messages are not on all the time, so crossing my fingers the message is not there today. I am out of town with the car, so it's the worst time for it to happen.

 

Interestingly, I had failed to leave my DB9 on my trickle charger for 3 days and came back and the one year old battery was essentially dead. I have a voltmeter / usb adapter in the cigarette lighter and it reads 14.2 with the ignition off/on charger and 14.7 once the car is running so the alternator is working fine. I charged the battery and I'm keeping it on the charger but I'll be tracking down the problem. I have an ampere meter so eventually I'm going to do a long term current draw study.

Your efforts are what I saw when I had a bad primary ground...

 

Update - Aston Martin's "self healing" engine codes disappeared this morning when I started the car to check. First time the car has been outside for a couple of days.

 

Updating a recent experience. Car's been sitting for a month.

Started up fine, no struggle. But the infamous DSC Service Required, Traction Control Temporarily Off, ADS off came on.

Couple of observations:

• Obviously traction switch does not work with no red light illuminated on switch.
• Sport switch works with "sport" indicator in dash but no red light on switch. AMSHIFT still works through this switch (press and hold), confirmed on dash message.
• Sport suspension switch does not work and no red light on switch.
• Media system does not detect Android Auto or CarPlay.
• No OBD fault codes.

I tried restarting the car right away, all symptoms still there. Drove around the block, restarted the car and still the same.

This is what worked for me: drove a bit longer for 30mins, let it sit with engine off and doors locked for about 10 mins. Restarted car and all symptoms gone.

hope this helps someone down the road.