Okay Gang,

My turn for a new post here. Quick background on my car (if you don't know me already):

-MY2000 with 135k miles.
-Replaced battery 2 years ago w/ an Autozone 51-d (425 cold cranking)
-No aftermarket stereo or alarm
-No mods to electrical system

The symptoms:

-I cannot leave my lights on for more than 5 minutes while the car is parked or the car won't turn over
-The dash display flickers slightly at idle
-This has actually been ongoing for a year or so
-VOLT METER shows 14.4 at idle, and 14.36 at idle with lights on

As I understand it, the flickering display is a tell-tale sign of a failing alternator. However the voltmeter showing that high of a number has me confused. Before I go spending serious $$ on an alternator, I'd like to hear from you guys.

Whaddya think?????

-Hockey

p.s. I HAVE killed this battery a few times. I'm told they never really recover. Is it just battery time? Why the flickering dash then?

 

The alternator doesn't have anything to do with how long the battery can keep your lights on in this case. Because the alternator isn't even turning when the engine is off. Of course I am presuming that when you say the car is parked, that the engine is not running.

I suspect your battery is dead or dying. If you keep killing batteries, then it's probably a sign that there is something wrong in the electrical system.

Could be the alternator or just the votage regulator (a part buried in the alternator these days). You can drive the car to AutoZone or the like and have them hook up their portable analyzer to test the battery and alternator.

But you could also have a wiring problem. Check connections at battery, alternator, and earth grounds. If you have a clamp-on amp meter, you can check the amp draw on the battery when the key is turned off. This should be tiny (a few milliamps). You can also check how many amps are being supplied to the battery from the alternator.

You could also use an ohmmeter to check the wiring circuits (every fuse) for shorts to ground.

My guess is that you have a loose connection on at least one of the wires in the electrical system which allow current to pass from the alternator to the battery. Remember, this could just as easily be a ground wire as a hot wire.

 

This tells me that your charging system (alternator) is OK. It's your battery that is either not getting the charge (bad connection) or not able to be charged or holding a charge (bad battery). I would check the terminal connections, cables or see about getting the pro-rated refund on the battery.

 

Get a new battery. the one you have has no capacity. Let your car sit for 24 hours so you can get an accurate resting voltage reading and see what the voltage of the battery is. My guess is it be around 11 or below...essentially dead.