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Went to start the car - no start, starter solenoid clicking, 5 1/2 year old battery. Assuming it's time had come, if not now, soon, so I purchased a replacement battery. I did not jump the car or attempt to charge the battery in place, although I did try to start it twice. This is not the first time I have R&R'd the battery (I used the OE battery as a "loaner" for the 9-5 for a day) but it is the first time I had a seemingly dead battery.
New battery installed, and almost everything seems to be fine. Car starts and runs perfectly, self-check responds "OK", oil life remaining was correctly remembered - I didn't check the radio, but I'll guess its ok. What isn't correct is the steering lock, which rather than the dreaded permanent locked condition remains unlocked. There is no "snapping click" when I insert the key, no warning message, no "unsnapping click" when I remove the key, and I can turn the steering wheel a half turn in either direction with the key out. Now I sort of assumed that the steering lock release is a "hot" solenoid, drawing current all the time the key is in place, which would mean a mandatory fix - but I measured the current and after an initial surge upon battery hook-up it settles down to 10ma, an entirely acceptable current draw for a modern car.
So now the questions:
a) is the steering lock release in fact a hot solenoid or is it a toggle that draws no current in either state but only draws when switching between locked and unlocked?
2) Since the steering is now unlocked and not toggling, is there any particular risk in driving the car? Is it possible for it to suddenly lock up while driving? Is it possible for it to lock up permanently when parking?
iii) Is there a chance that the thing will "repair itself?"
I am perfectly happy not having a steering wheel lock. In fact, given the history of the mechanism, permanently broken in the unlocked position is the best scenario I can think of.
posted by 70.126.181...
, Fri, 16 Dec 2011 10:12:50
, Wed, 7 Dec 2011 11:52:17, Wed, 7 Dec 2011 09:09:28
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