Author Topic: Hey Car Dudes (Read 1400 times)

SkinnyBenny · September 08, 2009, 12:43:54 AM

Do I need a new alternator? I got this battery at Wally World like six months ago, and now my car never fracking starts. If I jump it it might start about four of five times, but if I leave the car sitting for more than a day or two, I have to jump it all over again. Do I need a new alternator? Also, how do I tell if it's just a bad battery?

tia.

kst8cat · September 08, 2009, 01:02:07 AM

They do sell battery testers, but if you have a battery charger you can usually tell that way. Put the charger on it for an hour or so and see how well it takes a charge. If it charges up well, it sounds like an alternator problem. The charger needle will just barely move up if the battery is getting bad, but will jump right up there on a good battery.

willie83 · September 08, 2009, 09:15:34 AM

Wallly WOrld should be able to test the battery for you, and maybe the alternator, too. It does sound like it is not getting fully charged if it goes dead after only a few days, so could be the alternator, or simply bad connections. clean and tighten the cables on the battery and the black cable end that goes to your frame for a good ground.

Thin Blue Line · September 08, 2009, 11:53:45 AM

Could also be a parasitic draw, which is a biatch to track down.

Stupid Fitz · September 08, 2009, 12:17:30 PM

Go to any Autozone or Oreilly type car place and they will do a battery test for free and tell you what you need to know.

ew2x4 · September 08, 2009, 12:34:34 PM

Quote from: Thin Blue Line on September 08, 2009, 11:53:45 AM

Could also be a parasitic draw, which is a biatch to track down.

If this is the case, just sell the car. Not worth the trouble.

SkinnyBenny · September 08, 2009, 01:39:50 PM

First problem with a do it yourself cable tightening: it's a '95 Buick Regal (named it Brocktoon), and as such, has the battery very retardedly buried under a bunch of other stuff that you have to detach and lift off before you can even get to the 'attery. Terrible engineering.

Took Brocktoon to AutoZone this morning. They did the electrical test and told me the battery was registering a good number of volts and that the alternator was fine. The AutoZone guy just told me to make sure I start it every day, and he told me to take it to Wal-Mart (where I got the battery) to have them test it to see if it just didn't have enough juice/needed to be replaced or something. Wal-Mart tested it, said the battery was good, and they charged me $0.00 and didn't do anything.

So what's the deal? Bad wiring? Car vampires sucking Brocktoon's blood at night?

steve dave · September 08, 2009, 01:41:38 PM

Yeah, you're boned. Buy a scoot. There's not winter in LA.

SkinnyBenny · September 08, 2009, 01:43:41 PM

HAVE a scoot. But to get anywhere I wanna go I have to take the interstate, and Neptune only goes up to 40 mph.

willie83 · September 08, 2009, 01:50:32 PM

Quote from: SkinnyBenny on September 08, 2009, 01:39:50 PM

First problem with a do it yourself cable tightening: it's a '95 Buick Regal (named it Brocktoon), and as such, has the battery very retardedly buried under a bunch of other stuff that you have to detach and lift off before you can even get to the 'attery. Terrible engineering.

Took Brocktoon to AutoZone this morning. They did the electrical test and told me the battery was registering a good number of volts and that the alternator was fine. The AutoZone guy just told me to make sure I start it every day, and he told me to take it to Wal-Mart (where I got the battery) to have them test it to see if it just didn't have enough juice/needed to be replaced or something. Wal-Mart tested it, said the battery was good, and they charged me $0.00 and didn't do anything.

So what's the deal? Bad wiring? Car vampires sucking Brocktoon's blood at night?

I would check Brocktoon's starter next if all of the connections are good and the battery/alternator check out OK. Only other thing it could be, really. Sometimes the starters are pretty easy to get at, sometimes not, though.

SkinnyBenny · September 08, 2009, 02:00:59 PM

Prolly good advice, though I wish it were just the alternator. I replaced the starter on my sweet '99 Dodge Intrepid (Leopold, The Blurple Snozz-gina) and it was like $600. Grr. How do I test a starter, anyway?

ew2x4 · September 08, 2009, 02:23:37 PM

Quote from: SkinnyBenny on September 08, 2009, 02:00:59 PM

Prolly good advice, though I wish it were just the alternator. I replaced the starter on my sweet '99 Dodge Intrepid (Leopold, The Blurple Snozz-gina) and it was like $600. Grr. How do I test a starter, anyway?

Hook a battery to it and if a rod shoots out and spins you should be good.

Thin Blue Line · September 08, 2009, 02:46:13 PM

Quote from: SkinnyBenny on September 08, 2009, 02:00:59 PM

Prolly good advice, though I wish it were just the alternator. I replaced the starter on my sweet '99 Dodge Intrepid (Leopold, The Blurple Snozz-gina) and it was like $600. Grr. How do I test a starter, anyway?

Shop on www.rockauto.com. Way cheaper than even O'reileys, autozone, etc.

willie83 · September 08, 2009, 02:47:40 PM

Quote from: SkinnyBenny on September 08, 2009, 02:00:59 PM

Prolly good advice, though I wish it were just the alternator. I replaced the starter on my sweet '99 Dodge Intrepid (Leopold, The Blurple Snozz-gina) and it was like $600. Grr. How do I test a starter, anyway?

Here is a link to "How to Troubleshoot a Starter"

KSt8er · September 08, 2009, 04:00:37 PM

Wait, what is it specifically not doing when you try to start it? If it is out of juice and won't crank over it is not a starter. If you can jump it and it starts it is not a starter. You'll be waisting time with it.

Does it have a voltage regulator, check that if so? Double check the ground wire where it connects to the frame. As said, if it's a drain issue sell that SOB and try again.

SkinnyBenny · September 08, 2009, 04:17:20 PM

It starts when I jump it, it's just that the battery completely dies if I don't start it once every day or so. A real pain in the A. I'm about two months away from buying a new one, so I want to put in as little $$$ as possible. By the way, thanks for all your help car d00ds.

cyclist · September 08, 2009, 05:42:59 PM

One thing you could try if you think it is a drain. Unhook the battery by pulling the positive lead off after you have done your driving for the day. Then connecting prior to starting. It would be a hassle, but...

powercatmiller · September 08, 2009, 08:33:27 PM

Why not just go out start it 2 or 3 times a day and then let it run for a minute each time

PCR · September 08, 2009, 10:11:14 PM

Check the trunk light, interior lights, glove box, etc... anything that uses electricity.

You should be getting something more than 12 volts when the car is running--up to about 14 volts. You could buy a slow charger if you don't think you can fix it and hook it up periodically.

Joker · September 09, 2009, 12:54:32 PM

Did you check the specs on the rotary girder?

CatsNShocks · September 09, 2009, 12:58:13 PM

Sounds like you also might be low on blinker fluid. Check the blinker fluid level and top off if necessary.

KSt8er · September 09, 2009, 03:54:40 PM

Quote from: cyclist on September 08, 2009, 05:42:59 PM

One thing you could try if you think it is a drain. Unhook the battery by pulling the positive lead off after you have done your driving for the day. Then connecting prior to starting. It would be a hassle, but...

Actually a pretty good solution, but, you can get a switch installed very easily that allow you to cut off all flow from the battery without having to deal with unhooking the positive cable.