battery problem/ alternator?

HappyHourHero

Registered User
ok, i did a search and couldn't find anything but i very well could of missed something...first thing this is the 3rd time my battery died in 2 months (i jumped it and it was fine) the first time i left my lights on and the 2nd time the tinting place had the doors open for 2 hours, but anyway last light i went to get food at wendys with some friends and as we were leaving my car cranked and almost started after i put the key back down(sometimes it does that) but i tried again and it cranked once then nothing, no lights or radio. we tried jumping it and that got nowhere. so i left it there overnight and went back today and just went ahead and bought a new battery and pos. cable (the old one was very corroded) but i had gotten a neg cable instead and i pulled out the ground wire that came on it. so i put the battery in and my car started, i turned it off and got food since we were at wendys and then i left and went home. then i took out the battery and replaced the cable and now it won't start, nothing, no lights or radio. i tried starting it by bypassing the starter relay with a screw driver and it cranked and started for a second then died... i don't have a battery tester and i don't have a car to get one or else i'd give that info too. any ideas? alternator?

thanks
 
So to be sure, after you installed a new battery & a new - cable in place of the positive in the Wendy's parking lot, you went home & removed them to replace the new - cable with a +? Then when you restarted it, the engine actually ran for a second then died?

I'd say there was a short somewhere. Check the connection on the new battery cable. Also, there's probably a fuse in the underhood fuse box. Check for it.
 
i just put only the battery in at wendys, and when i got home i replaced the pos. cable (the cable i bought was actually a neg cable but i took out the ground wire that was attached) all fuses are fine too.
thanks
 
Ok, thats what I thought. Because it started @ Wendy's after + cable was replaced, & because the only change that I'm aware of which took place was the reinstallation of a new + cable between Wendy's & currently, I would start at the new cable. If the connection isn't good where its joined, it could be transfering insufficient current from the battery to start/run the vehicle. Fuses have been eliminated as a possibility, only other thing I think there are fusable links near the starter relay, look for a black wire with a blue stripe.. fuseable links might be connected to it.
 
oh man, i feel like a jerk, i accidentally mixed up one of the wires on the starter relay. so it starts again, and i got a hold of a volt meter and it read that my alternator was charging at 17.3, (same charge when i last checked 9 months ago, and i also put a new battery in then too) shouldn't it be at 14?

thanks for your help
 
At least the problem was simple! lol.

Normally alternators jump current to 14-16 volts with the engine running. Check or have checked the regulator, it could be starting to fail. If it produces extraneous current for too long a time, it could start damaging electrical accessories.
 
17.3 is wayyyyy tooo high.. it will overcharge your battery, boil off the electrolyte and kill it. The alternator has a built in voltage regulator; take it to Azone or Napa or some place and have it tested. They do it for free, but you have to remove the alternator which is a bit of a job. Not bad, but not real simple either.
 
If you are charging above 15 volts you will cook the battery. I suggest you have the volt meter checked. If the battery is low it will do strange things. I have been using a meter at work that the battery is low in. I was testing power supply cards at work when all of a sudden I had about 6 cards in a row that were about 4 volts too high. I verified it with another meter and went ahead and replaced the battery.

Your problem could be that the regulator in the alternator is shot and your battery is probably toast as well. If in fact your alternator is overcharging then you should replace the battery as well. Since you just changed it, it might be OK.

Jeff
 
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