The “Service Battery Charging System” error message in the Chevrolet Equinox may appear on your dashboard if one of these units malfunctions:
- alternator;
- 12-volt battery;
- wiring;
- ECU.
These units take part in the process of charging the battery in your Equinox. The ECU sends the needed signals to all control units and modules, the alternator produces the electric current with a certain voltage, the wiring sends this current directly to the battery, and the battery itself gets the charge and holds it.
Once something of these goes wrong, a nasty message can appear on the dashboard. Let’s see why!
Helpful symptoms of the charging system problems the Equinox
Your Chevy SUV may show some symptoms along with sending this annoying error message on the dash. Noticing these symptoms is important for proper inspection.
Here are the symptoms that you should take into account:
- Other electrical units malfunction when the engine is on. This certainly shows you that the alternator is not good. It may produce a low-voltage current or just fail to work properly.
- The battery warning light is on. If along with the error message you get the battery warning light on the dash, it may tell you about battery fault or alternator failure. In both cases, the light will go on.
- The problem is not persistent it may go away after you restart the car or drive for some time. If this is the case, the wiring is the first suspect. Some connections may be loose and they may work intermittently.
- The vehicle may stall at red lights. If your Equinox stalls at intersections, you should also look at the battery-alternator couple. Stalling is the result of the sharp drop of voltage in the electrical system of your SUV.
- There are other electrical and software glitches in your car. The vehicle may throw different error messages and do nasty things. This may tell you about the problem with the ECU – it may be damaged and just going crazy.
If you see the “Service Battery Charging System” in the Equinox, pay attention to these symptoms and even write them down to tell your mechanic about them if this is needed later.
Now, let’s go through the units that may cause this error message to appear on the dash of the Equinox and see what you can do:
1. Faulty alternator
This is one of the most common culprits of the “Service Battery Charging System” error in the Equinox as well as in many other modern Chevrolet vehicles.
The alternator is set to produce an electrical current between 13.5 and 14.8 volts. This current will allow your battery to charge properly and all other modules to work correctly. If the current voltage drops, the battery can’t charge and it will gradually lose its juice. In the end, you will have a drained battery and will buy a new one. But the new 12V battery will go bad soon if you don’t repair the alternator.
The alternator is driven by the drive belt, so this is one more reason for the problem. The drive belt may be worn and it may just slip instead of rotating the alternator.
Also, the voltage regulator may malfunction and change the voltage of the current produced by the alternator.
Eventually, the alternator itself may go bad and lose its efficiency. This will lead to bad current quality and will affect your Chevy Equinox badly.
Alternators in Chevrolet vehicles usually last about 150,000 miles if not damaged by unexpected factors like collisions. After that, the replacement is the most obvious solution for the problems. But you may also inspect the alternator and find the actual reason for the problems like a voltage regulator or maybe some bearing that may be replaced easily.
2. The 12V battery
The battery in your Equinox should only be used when you start your car. Once it started, the alternator takes over all responsibilities for the electricity supply and the battery gets some charge. But when something goes wrong, the battery may not be charging properly. If it’s about the bad alternator, then look at the previous section of the article.
But sometimes, the battery won’t charge because it’s old and inefficient. Also, it may have a changed voltage and too low power to start the car properly. If this happens, your Equinox may still send a message telling you to service the battery charging system.
Checking your 12V battery is easy if you have a multimeter. Here’s how you may do this:
- turn off the engine and the ignition, open the hood of the vehicle;
- take the plastic cover off the battery to have access to its terminals;
- connect your multimeter to battery terminals;
- make sure the battery is showing something between 12 and 13 volts now;
- then, turn on the ignition and turn on the AC or something power-consuming without starting your car;
- check the battery voltage – it shouldn’t be dropped to 8-9 volts;
- if it’s that low, the battery is dying.
Also, you may take your Equinox battery to specialists and they will use professional equipment to check the battery’s health. If the 12V battery is dying, better buy the new one. You may also try to recharge the battery with a proper charger to get it back to life. But this will work with batteries that are younger than 3 years.
3. Wiring and connections problems
All electrical components of your Chevy Equinox are connected with wires. Once some connections are worn out or damaged, you will get loads of problems locating and repairing them. Wiring problems are always one of the most troublesome when it comes to inspection and repair.
You may try and inspect some most common problems by yourself.
Look at the battery terminals and make sure they have no buildup on them. This buildup of white or green color may disturb them from sending the current to the wires.
Also, inspect the wires that connect the battery to other units in the vehicles. They shouldn’t be broken or corroded.
Then, you may look at the wires that connect the alternator to other units in the car. Again, look at the signs of corrosion or possible damage to the wires or connections.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do on your own if you don’t have any experience as a car mechanic. If you are sure that the problem is in the wiring, you may want to go to a trusted repair shop and have your car inspected professionally.
4. ECU issues
ECU problems are quite rare in Chevrolet Equinox SUVs. But if your Equinox has been in an accident with front-end damage, chances are the ECU and its connections had a hard time.
In most cases, if the ECU malfunctions, your vehicle will just go crazy and will send you all kinds of error messages, warning lights, etc. You will not be able to read codes with the scanner because these codes will change every time you connect the scanner to the OBD2 slot.
I don’t recommend using any DIY manuals to troubleshoot and repair your ECU in the Equinox. This is a very sensitive unit and it needs a professional hand if something goes wrong with it. So, just let professionals do their job.
Can you drive your Equinox with the “Service Battery Charging System” error?
Although Chevy manuals don’t recommend you drive your Equinox if you see this error, I believe there is nothing dangerous and bad if you keep driving several more miles to go to the dealership and have the car inspected.
Yes, you can damage your battery even more or even experience bad handling because of the broken drive belt. But it’s highly unlikely that this can at all lead to some fatal problems.
Whenever you see the “Service Battery Charging System” in your Equinox, you shouldn’t ignore the message. If your own troubleshooting doesn’t work, arrange a visit to the dealership or to a trusted repair shop.
But if you ignore the message and decide to drive the Equinox for several hundred miles more, be ready that your Chevy SUV will die on the roadside in the middle of nowhere and you will have to call for help.