DisappointedHorse
New member
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2009
- Messages
- 3
- Points
- 2
We just bought a 2001 Multipla and on our first family outing, bad things began to happen. 
First, the ABS warning light came on and beeped, telling us to see garage. We talked to dealer/garage and booked in for Tuesday. Was told it wasn't dangerous to drive in the meantime.
Later, after driving maybe 30 miles, we stopped for a snack. While the husband took the boys to the toilet, I was sitting alone in the car, ENGINE OFF, key not in ignition, nursing our baby, and I noticed a very faint ticking. It sounded like a ticking watch. NOT a mechanical/knocking noise... it really sounded like a stopwatch. I assumed the watch in my husband's jacket pocket was loud enough to be heard in a quiet car.
I started the car and then things got very weird. The ticking got LOUD. It was the same pitch and tempo, but now much louder. The sound was distinctly coming from the dash.
And, the dash died. I had no speedometer, odometer, or anything. Only the time was on the screen, and later we realized that that wasn't even the time. Oh, and the fuel gauge remained OK, (or at least was stuck on full). I pulled over and turned off the car. When I'd start up, all the lights were normal. It would stay OK for a few seconds/meters and then the ticking would grow louder.
I stopped the car and re-started numerous times. When the engine was off (key not even in ignition) the ticking was faint but audible. When I started the engine, all seemed normal. Then, I'd start to move and maybe in a few seconds/feet or maybe a bit longer (15 seconds/30 meters) the ticking would become loud at the exact time the dash would go dead.
The louder ticking always went with the dead dash.
The speedometer would freeze at whatever speed I was at when this happened. This wasn't any particular speed - it happened at 0, 10, 20, and 30 mph on different starts.
Also, merely reving the engine in neutral didn't seem to cause any problem. The dash would just die shortly after starting off down the road.
The engine and all mechanical aspects seemed just fine.
One thing that may be of note: the car battery was absolutely dead when I first came to the dealer to test drive it. It needed jumping/charging to get rolling that first time, so I know it's been completely dead recently.
Second thing: this wasn't the first time/day I'd driven the car. I picked it up yesterday and drove it around my town a bit with no problems, but the ABS beeping started after I stopped to fuel up on the way home yesterday. No dash problems at all, otherwise.
I hope that I have been able to describe things sufficiently and someone might have an idea of what to look out for.
Thanks so much in advance! It's got a 30-day warranty, so it should be sorted, but I'm very curious as to what can be the problem. Googling symptoms actually led me to this board, where I saw a couple of threads with sorta similar situations.
First, the ABS warning light came on and beeped, telling us to see garage. We talked to dealer/garage and booked in for Tuesday. Was told it wasn't dangerous to drive in the meantime.
Later, after driving maybe 30 miles, we stopped for a snack. While the husband took the boys to the toilet, I was sitting alone in the car, ENGINE OFF, key not in ignition, nursing our baby, and I noticed a very faint ticking. It sounded like a ticking watch. NOT a mechanical/knocking noise... it really sounded like a stopwatch. I assumed the watch in my husband's jacket pocket was loud enough to be heard in a quiet car.
I started the car and then things got very weird. The ticking got LOUD. It was the same pitch and tempo, but now much louder. The sound was distinctly coming from the dash.
And, the dash died. I had no speedometer, odometer, or anything. Only the time was on the screen, and later we realized that that wasn't even the time. Oh, and the fuel gauge remained OK, (or at least was stuck on full). I pulled over and turned off the car. When I'd start up, all the lights were normal. It would stay OK for a few seconds/meters and then the ticking would grow louder.
I stopped the car and re-started numerous times. When the engine was off (key not even in ignition) the ticking was faint but audible. When I started the engine, all seemed normal. Then, I'd start to move and maybe in a few seconds/feet or maybe a bit longer (15 seconds/30 meters) the ticking would become loud at the exact time the dash would go dead.
The louder ticking always went with the dead dash.
The speedometer would freeze at whatever speed I was at when this happened. This wasn't any particular speed - it happened at 0, 10, 20, and 30 mph on different starts.
Also, merely reving the engine in neutral didn't seem to cause any problem. The dash would just die shortly after starting off down the road.
The engine and all mechanical aspects seemed just fine.
One thing that may be of note: the car battery was absolutely dead when I first came to the dealer to test drive it. It needed jumping/charging to get rolling that first time, so I know it's been completely dead recently.
Second thing: this wasn't the first time/day I'd driven the car. I picked it up yesterday and drove it around my town a bit with no problems, but the ABS beeping started after I stopped to fuel up on the way home yesterday. No dash problems at all, otherwise.
I hope that I have been able to describe things sufficiently and someone might have an idea of what to look out for.
Thanks so much in advance!
It's got a 30-day warranty, so it should be sorted, but I'm very curious as to what can be the problem. Googling symptoms actually led me to this board, where I saw a couple of threads with sorta similar situations.
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