battery keeps dying

[TURBOKIDD90GST]

i can go about a week before the car dies. i think the alt. may be hook up wrong. the plug is pluged in but where do the other wires go. pics would be great.
ive relaced the battery and had the alt. tested off the car and it tested good. just replaced the battery and it lasted 4 days this time.

 

[steve]

On a 1G alternator you have the one or two white wires running from the alternator fuse to the B+ stud on the back of the alternator and the two wires (yellow and black with white stripe) running to the plug. The alternator is grounded by way of the mounting bracket to the engine block. That's it for the altternator.

At idle you should see between 13v to 15v at the battery if the alternator, wires and fuse are good.

Steve

 

[TURBOKIDD90GST]

thank you steve ima try that first thing in the morning ill let u know what happens

 

[TURBOKIDD90GST]

its friday afternoon. i put a test light on the battery and sure enough there was a drain. went into the fuse box and the first fuse i pull light goes out. my only question is the fuse i pulled was a 25amp its suposed to be for the room. i assume its the lights inside the car the cover says its a 10amp would this cause the problem. THANK YOU STEVE FOR THE HELP!!!!!!

 

[TURBOKIDD90GST]

tryd that light went out still same thing battery is good alt is good replaced all fuses. still does same thing if u jump it it will start and drive if u turn ne thing on lights go dime and trys to stall what else can it be

 

[TURBOKIDD90GST]

i ran a wire from the alt directly to the battery to by pass everthing and the alt still wont charge the battery. i have takn it to have it tested and it test good what should i do

 

[Spooling99]

I had a similar problem, my car would start about every other day. Turned out to be my terminals were really corroded.

 

[TURBOKIDD90GST]

ive replaced the terminals, cabels, battery. the only thing i come up with is the alt. ne one have ne other ideas

 

[seth98es]

Also check your grounds. Make sure they are all secure and not corroded. Usually a bad ground will just cause a click when trying to start, just like a bad starter. If all else fails and the batter has been tested to be good, get the alternator tested at AutoZone.

Do the 1gs have a voltage regulator? I know the 2gs do and that can cause some charging issues as well if it goes bad.

 

[nosturbo]

Check This Sh#t Out ....charge The Battery And Check Under Your Pass Seat The Amp My Have A Short!!! Mine Did And I Would Have Never Found It Unless I Took The Seats Out To Clean The Carpet......some Days It Wasnt Extremly Hot To The Touch Other Days It Would Set You Hand On Fire!!!! I Think Some One Spilled Water Or A Super Gulp And It Would Short Out From Time To Time Draining The Battery....yes U Need A Amp To Play Music As I Now Need A Amp But No Drain And Starts Evey Time Now.....good Luck!!!!

 

[patty AT forge]

I'll second checking the grounds and the terminals, beyond that what is the condition of your accessory belts? They might be slipping and preventing the alt from recharging the battery.

 

[girlieracr4g63]

Not a recommended test, but I have to admit I have been guilty of it a few times. While the car is running pull off the neg. battery cable. If the car dies. Its most likely the alt. or the alt. fuse.


Wendy

 

[steve]

Not a recommended test.

Grrrr!

Doing this can cause damage and doesn't tell you anything more than putting a voltmeter on the battery would tell you. Please don't do it and please stop repeating it.

The first clue that your alternator might not be working is checking for the battery idiot light turning on before you start the car. If the light doesn't turn on the alternator isn't getting current to bootstrap the field coils. This might be due to a blown 30A alternator, blown gauge fuse, bad wires, or a bad alternator. If your battery voltage doesn't go above 12.6v when the car is running then the alternator isn't charging the battery. Either a blown a main alternator fuse, bad wires, or bad alternator.

GTM also posted some quick tests in the tech library.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=226323

From now on I'll be passing out negative points to anybody I see posting this "test".

Steve

 

[TURBOKIDD90GST]

thank you again steve. i happen to be a manager at autozone. insert bashing here!!!! i took the alt. off took it to work and just swapped it out put new one in jump it and runs fun. thats my third alt. good thing for lifetime warrenty.

 

[steve]

Unfortunatly that seems to be a common story from people getting alternators from large chain auto parts stores.

I don't mind changing alternators in the truck but I only want to do it once every 5 years or so in the DSM and Stealths, not every other month.

Steve