Electrical system shut down like battery was not charging, replaced alternator. Turn on headlights and battery still runs down in 5 miles. Lose lights completely. Where do I look next?

Used your battery up just getting home. Now recharge the battery, and test the charging system- could be a bad alternator not charging the battery.

Normally, the alternator powers all the car's electrical needs when the engine is running. If the alternator fails, the battery will then be used to run the electrical needs until the battery is depleted, then the car will shut down. Dead, just like yours. No big deal, just find out why the charging system stopped.

Sounds like a charging system problem. The engine runs off of the alternator but if it is not charging the battery properly the battery will be drained until I engine will no longer run. You need to get the vehicle to a repair shop to have the battery and charging system check for defects

check the alternator. should be giving out 14 volts. around 5 amps on idle. also check the earthing wires in the engine bay and check they have good contact any and most electrical problems are down to a bad earth.

Try replacing the "convinence control module" and bad board can cause all elec issues explained and also cause engine to cut out and other things but that is where I would start, hope this helps-

Before replacing alternator testing should be done , is there B+ voltage at the heavier gage wire on the back of the alternator . Could have a blown fuse or fusible link . Your vehicle from what you have posted , isn't charging . Plus there is a regular fuse located in the under hood fuse box F1.13 - 10 amp this supply's B+ voltage to the orange with lit blue stripe wire at the three wire connector plugged into the alternator . The other two wires come from the PCM - engine computer . This charging system is computer controlled . Ford PCM controlled alternator testing

Alternator may be bad, causing battery to lose voltage. I think you should have the starting/charging system checked, and replace the battery and alternator as required by the testing. I wouldn't drive it until this problem is fixed, as the car can shut down when the voltage gets too low, working off of the battery. Check whether the charge light is lit when the car is running. If it is, there is a self detected problem with the alternator. If not, there could still be a voltage charge problem, that hasn't been self detected, perhaps a diode is bad or voltage regulator is faulty, causing the alternator to barely put out enough power to keep the car running.

You probably have a problem with the charging system. The alternator is a likely cause.

Yep. Sounds like you have a bad alternator.

Investigate the battery and the alternator.
The battery's only job is to start the car.
The alternator's job is to power the electrical supply for the car.

The battery can go bad at any time, and the alternator is probably is putting out only enough electricity to only keep the car running. And not enough to power charge the battery and power the headlights.

If you jumped the car already and it seemed fine while the cables were connected to the other car, then the electrical systems began to fail after the cables were disconnected, your most likely culprit is the alternator.

Once the car is started, all the electrical systems should be running off your alternator, not the battery itself. When the alternator goes out the electrical systems on most modern cars will continue to feed off the battery instead of the alternator. When this occurs you will see your battery light illuminate on the dashboard display for most vehicles.

Your best bet when you see the electrical systems failing like this is to get the car to a safe location quickly as once the battery voltage gets too low, the electrical systems (including your computer which controls timing and everything in your engine) will fail and the car will stop running.

If this is the case the car does not necessarily need to be towed. If you intend to move it on your own, you should 1 turn off all headlights, radios and everything else that is a drain on the electrical system (heat/ac, etc), jump the car using another with a good alternator and battery. Leave the cars connected and running for 15-20 minutes or so and have the person follow you DURING THE DAY only. Do not attempt this at night as your headlights will be a major drain on the battery and in the event they go out you could cause an accident.

If you are only running vital systems off the now fully charged battery, you should be able to get 5-10 miles before the battery clunks out on you again. This process can be repeated until you reach your repair center, but the safest and best option is to simply have the vehicle towed to it's destination. This option is only for those who can not afford it and are willing to take the risk. If you car dies in an area where it cannot be jumped easily, you will most likely need to have it towed anyway, but if your destination is within 10 miles or so, this option can save you a lot on the towing fees.