At Fixya.com, our trusted experts are meticulously vetted and possess extensive experience in their respective fields. Backed by a community of knowledgeable professionals, our platform ensures that the solutions provided are thoroughly researched and validated.
Replaced battery, voltage regulater, alternater....Still only getting 13 volts at best. complete drain with lights on. Also latly I have to tap on top of the siloniod to get it to ingage starter.Any suggestions ould be appreciated.
- If you need clarification, ask it in the comment box above.
- Better answers use proper spelling and grammar.
- Provide details, support with references or personal experience.
Tell us some more! Your answer needs to include more details to help people.You can't post answers that contain an email address.Please enter a valid email address.The email address entered is already associated to an account.Login to postPlease use English characters only.
Tip: The max point reward for answering a question is 15.
A 98 still has a computer so with out power it will die my guess is corroded wires first use a multi meter and check for voltage on the terminal on the alternater it should show 13 to 14.5 volts D/C then check the battery see if it has 13 to 14 volts if yes it is charging if the altenater show 13 to 14 it is charging if the voltage is 11 to 12 or lower it is just reading the battery and you need a alternater if the aliternater is good and the battery is not charging it is either the power wire or ground you can use jumper cables to check jump from the post on the alternater to positive battery by its self if this fixes it it is the power wire if not unhook the positive and then connect the ground thermal to the engine block and see if that fixes it if not do both you will see the problem good luck
if it started having this problem after you put in a new alternator, it could be an improperly connected alternator. if not, something electrical could be staying on which would kill the battery. however if you shut it off, and immediately you try to start it and it will not start (turn ignition off, and less than 10 seconds later it still wont), then its probably something with the alternator.
if wont jump battery has internal short and is bad replace with good battery get cheap ohm meter to test alternator out put. install battery ck voltage start engine ck voltage should rear 13-14 volts if not charging will read battery voltage with steady voltage drop. running with neg. cable unhooked can cause damage from voltage spike.
Start your engine and take digatal multimeter and ground the black probe and put the red one on the back on the alternators large red wire and read the voltage it should between 13-15 volts anything more or less then you will need to replace the alternator.
OK Check the voltage coming out of the alternator while it's running you should have at least 13-14.7 volts and no less than 13 volts and no more than 15 volts.Also check your alternator belt for slipage.
Check the alternator drive belt adjustment 2- Check battery terminals for corrotion or loose.3- loose,broken or faulty wiring in the charging system. 4- short in the vehicle wiring cause continuous drain of charge., sammyc47
test battery if voltage is 13 volts or better check positive and negative cable for clean good conections check in line fusible link by starter on positive cable if all good remove starter with solenoid take to parts store and have it checked solenoid may be bad. if all is good check main fuse usually under hood . If battery voltage is not 13 volts or better have alternater tested have battery load tested after chargeing.
First tell me why you don't think it's charging.
Because of the voltage reading you are getting at the battery terminals? The range you want is between 13.6v to 14.2v. The higher the voltage the lower the amps. and true the other way, the lower the voltage the higher the amps. If you get a reading of 13.6v or lower, the alt is nearing or at max output. An alt can only run at maximum for around fifteen minutes and it will start slinging solder from overheating. It's a good indication the battery is either totally dead or junk. Charging above 14.2 the alternater is running wide open and is only putting out high volts which will cause the battery to boil , in turn destroying it. This is a bad alternater. All alternaters have integrated voltage regulater with the exception of ver few of the earlier ones. You cannot test an alternater by removing a battery cable to see if the engine keeps running without taking great risk of damaging the alt, regulator. So tell me why you feel it isn't charging. Remember an alt is not made to charge dead batteries. Their sole function is to maintain the battery charge. Without a battery, the alt won't last 10 seconds.
Hope to hear from you and good luck.
Prob you should replace the starter solenoid, i think there is a connection for the battery there. also when you replaced the alt did you replace the wiring and plug? you have to solder a new one in place. also a lot of people think their problem is when the engine is running an what is really a problem is some kind of a voltage drain durning the night. with the key off and all doors closed pull a battery cable off and put a 12 v bulb between the cable and the battery. if it glows bright then you have a voltage drain. thats easy to find just start pulling fuses while an assistant watches the light. when it goes out or dims you have found the curcit that is draining. you may get some small drain from radio and clock type stuff. Oh and I have gotten a bad alt "new" from the parts house. now I always make them test the new one before i leave the store.
×