I have a 2002 Mazda Tribute. The battery light flickers and the car cuts out (and it drains the battery). We have (over the last 2 1/2 years) replaced the alternator 4 times. My husband, who is a mechanic, just replaced it again this week. But, for some reason, the alternator is still not charging fully. He has asked the people at the generator places, and we have even had them look at it, to see if they can see what the problem is, but they do not have a clue. It charges at about a 12 with nothing running, and even less if you have the lights or the a/c on. Any suggestions?
Check the grounds for the alternator and the battery. Low charging can be loose belt or that the grounds are loose, dirty or broken. If everything else checked was fine I would check all grounds this is a commonly overlooked problem. Also check for a draw on the battery. Use a test light for this between the neg. cable and the neg. post of the battery. You want to use a test light not a volt meter, for the test light will light if there is a draw. If you use a volt meter it will read voltage even with no draw, you need to be concerned with amperage not volts.
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