my last battery inquiry

[I_luv_HP&trq]

ok there i was sitting in traffic trying to get on the freeway. i had my heat vent on as well as my headlights. i go to roll up the windows and notice they're moving very slow. look down at my "fake" volt gauge and see my battery is dying. i immediately turn my heat off and it starts to go up a little, then i turn off my headlights and the needle goes back up to the center. i turned the lights on again just to check and the needle went down and my lights dimmed.

does this mean anything significant to anyone? was my battery not being charged due to a crappy charging system? maybe the alt works but not the regulator?
advice and opinions of all kind welcom.
thanks.

[Joel5.0]

Quote: Originally Posted by I_luv_HP&trq ok there i was sitting in traffic trying to get on the freeway. i had my heat vent on as well as my headlights. i go to roll up the windows and notice they're moving very slow. look down at my "fake" volt gauge and see my battery is dying. i immediately turn my heat off and it starts to go up a little, then i turn off my headlights and the needle goes back up to the center. i turned the lights on again just to check and the needle went down and my lights dimmed. does this mean anything significant to anyone? was my battery not being charged due to a crappy charging system? maybe the alt works but not the regulator? advice and opinions of all kind welcom. thanks.

Provided your battery passed a load test, your problem is a charging system issue.
Don't concentrate on the alternator alone, there are other elements of the charging system that are underestimated and overlooked 95% of the time and also create problems. Wire feeds from the alternator to the battery, ground wires, ground straps, all the ground contacts, to name a few.lol

[I_luv_HP&trq]

i've gone over every wire for i don't know how many hours. i'm going to check again tonight since i have nothing else to do. thanks for the input.

[Joel5.0]

Quote: Originally Posted by I_luv_HP&trq i've gone over every wire for i don't know how many hours. i'm going to check again tonight since i have nothing else to do. thanks for the input.

Need a DMM for the following suggestions, and believe me, it works.

Have you done voltage drop tests between the alternator and the battery?
Anything over 0.5vdc difference is a problem.

What about a voltage test to your ground connections w/ & w/o load? (A/C, electric fan, headlights, stop light, radio,.....)
Anything over 0.2vdc is not good.

Also check alternator voltage output as a function of time over a 20 min. period to verify that the alternator doesn't have an output problem when it heats up. I've seen them fail.

[I_luv_HP&trq]

^ unfortunately i don't have the tools or knowledge to do these tests. sure i can read a manual and follow directions perfectly fine but i haven't found any manuals for my car. i've done several searches....
I don't want to take it to a shop cuz last time i did they charged me loot and didn't help me one bit.

also my battery doesn't last long enough to do those tests. all my extra accessories are disconnected and i haven't had a radio in a couple months. every fuse is ok as well.
anyone have some diagrams i can follow?

[I_luv_HP&trq]

allright so i did a load test in my shop class today and the battery couldn't handle it. the charging sysytem was working fine. the battery i have is only a year old and has always tested good in the past. i guess the mechanics were lazy and lied about it before.
anyways i'm not 100% sure it's all the battery. I don't know what else could be draining it.

is it possible that my belt is slipping and that could be a cause?

[Joel5.0]

Quote: Originally Posted by I_luv_HP&trq allright so i did a load test in my shop class today and the battery couldn't handle it. the charging sysytem was working fine. the battery i have is only a year old and has always tested good in the past. i guess the mechanics were lazy and lied about it before. anyways i'm not 100% sure it's all the battery. I don't know what else could be draining it. is it possible that my belt is slipping and that could be a cause?

The two reds don't mix, a slipping belt would show up in a charging system test, specially under load. If you're not sure about the battery, you can have it checked at any auto part that sells them.

On the battery failing after 1 yr.,.....I've seen batteries fail off the shelf and others that don't after 5½ yrs., like mine, and it's still under warranty.

Besides, the only rule that exists for something to fail is that it has be working fine in the first place, remember Murphy. GL

[I_luv_HP&trq]

yea that's what i get from buying parts at Kragen. the first one they gave me lasted a couple months then i got the one i have currently. with the volt meter the battery was around 11.6-12.0
Then when i started the car it went up to 15.
I think i'll try another battery and hope it's the solution.
thanks for your help

[Ponycarman]

Quote: Originally Posted by I_luv_HP&trq yea that's what i get from buying parts at Kragen. the first one they gave me lasted a couple months then i got the one i have currently. with the volt meter the battery was around 11.6-12.0 Then when i started the car it went up to 15. I think i'll try another battery and hope it's the solution. thanks for your help

That's somewhat normal, though the battery voltage with the engine off should be around 12.6V, assuming no load to speak of on the battery (i.e. headlights off).