Fault code p1632

Hi I was driving on the motorway doing 70 with the cruise control on when my engine management light started flashing and my gas pedal stopped working. I managed to get it to the hard shoulder and when I tried Erving the engine it would. Bearly reve to 1 on the rev counter. I switched off the ignition and restarted the car and everything started working as it should. I has already called the breakdown and when they got me home they put a diagnostic machine on and got the error code of p1632. I have been on verious web sites but can only find conflicting info. Either theft deterant file disabled of alternator fault or throttle sensor/motor fault. I have tested the alternator and this is working as it should my car is a 2002 c3 1.6 petrolexclusive with all the toys. Any idea what is wrong and whether it will happen again

Hello 2e0raf

p1632 does look like a charge error, or at least a charge monitoring error.

I have tested the alternator and this is working as it should

While the car was idling?

or

on the motorway doing 70 with the cruise control on

?

If you have a fault at 70 with cruise on, then testing for a intermittent fault would need testing for in a similar environment to get the best chance to see what is happening.

These smart charge errors are sometimes caused by wiring faults near the alternator, some high resistance due to corrosion or contamination. A thorough visual inspection with dismantling and resistance checking the circuits would be beneficial.

whether it will happen again

Who knows, until you find the cause you are not going to know..... Faults rarely clear up by themselves, but some happen so infrequently thats its just not worth spending the time and money on.

Thanks for the reply. Have booked the car into a car doctor who will be doing some live diagnostics, will let you know how I get on

It's a quite old topic, but I had the same error code today, with very similar conditions: ca. 100 km/h on a highway, with tempomat on, and suddenly the car started to slow down. After I restarted it, I was able to get to my workplace. In the afternoon I came home with the light still on. After stopping and starting the car again, the light disappeared.

sikarinagl wrote: ↑Fri Feb 22, 2019 4:02 pm It's a quite old topic, but I had the same error code today, with very similar conditions: ca. 100 km/h on a highway, with tempomat on, and suddenly the car started to slow down. After I restarted it, I was able to get to my workplace. In the afternoon I came home with the light still on. After stopping and starting the car again, the light disappeared.

Hi sikarinagl, no problem with relying to the old posts here

The P1632 code for the C3 comes up as 'Smart alternator faults sensor or circuit malfunction' but that is not from lexia, which would be the definitive answer when hooked up to the car.

I am guessing 'tempomat' is cruise control.

I would imagine the alternator signal is poor - over, under or poor charging at a particular engine RPM and the fault clears when you restart the engine.

The alternators do wear out and the connections to the alternator can become contaminated or damaged.

Maybe it won't come back, maybe it will and a replacement alternator will cure it. But whatever happens, please keep us updated on how things go