Hi everyone,

I'm in need of some advice with my 06 Polo. My battery went flat during the cold weather, but after jump starting it fine the power steering has failed. The power steering electrical fault light is constantly on even with the engine running and it's so heavy I dare not drive it. Unfortunately this means I now can't drive it to charge the battery!

Any ideas?

Claire

i think the power steering is electric on yours so id check its getting power also leave it running to charge the battery or use a battery charger

The battery will charge slowly on idle, and even after half an hour it'll be good for a few starts! :)

But a flat battery and then no power steering? If it's not electric then it sounds like a snapped aux belt?

Is the battery light on?! :)

Marvellous thank you, thats what I thought.

I'm waiting for someone to jump start it then we'll charge it for a while and hopefully the power steering should work - fingers crossed!

Hello Claire and welcome to the forum.

If, as Adam suggests, the auxiliary drive belt has broken, then the alternator will not be able to charge the battery, he asks, is the battery (ignition warning light) 'on' when the engine is running? if it is, this could well indicate a broken belt or some other problem which is preventing the battery from charging.

The other point being, if the alternator is not charging, there may well not be enough power left in the battery to operate the power steering.

Regards.

this may sound stupid but if your power steering is electric then the fault could be as simple as a faulty alternater, i have found this on a few different cars.