2012 GTI battery not holding charge

Have a couple questions, they might be related. Back when it was colder, the EPC light came on and the car was running rough. Since I didn’t have the money to fix it, I basically only drove it short distances and not often. Last week, I drove it a bit while moving places, and the light didn’t come on at all and the engine seemed to run better, was it because it was hot outside now? Also, the battery was completely dead, so I had to jump it and drove it, but when I got to my destination the battery was still dead. Is it the battery or something else? When I first started driving it, several other lights came on and off but it might have been because the battery was completely dead and everything had reset. The battery was replaced a few years ago. Before all this, sometimes when starting the car it would not start when I press the start button but it would start up if I try again.

Also, the brake service light came on then off, and I felt what might have been pulsing, would that just be low fluid or something else? It seemed to stop OK, but I was being a bit more careful and not go too fast. TIA

It is futile to try and diagnose this without a fully charged battery and operational charging system. Have your battery charged then tested. Replace if necessary. Have the charging system checked. Once you have these issues taken care of, then come back if you need to for diagnosis. You may even find that this resolves the problems.

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Concur w/above advice, first step is to bring the battery and charging system back to 100% operation. If EPC problem continues, ask shop or otherwise obtain the diagnostic codes and post here. EPC problems are often caused by problems in either the engine control module, brake control module, and/or steering control module. Problems in any of those would usually cause a diagnostic code be placed in one of the computer’s memories. It may require a VW pro-level scan tool to obtain the codes, so you may need to visit a VW specialty shop or a dealership.

The poor running might be caused by a gummed-up throttle body btw, maybe it just needs a thorough cleaning. Ask shop to double check the pcv system and egr system operation at the same time.

OK I will have to wait a paycheck or two before I can get another battery, I’ll post back when I can. Thanks.