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Registered
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Tulsa, OK USA
Posts: 112
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Another alternator question...
Is it true that if you pull your negative battery cable off of the battery while the car is running, and the car dies, that the alternator is bad?? Trying to track down starting problem. Get in and "click" is all I get from the ignition battery will drain in about a day. Checked starter connections, ignition switch, and battery cables and no luck. Pulled neg cable from battery while car was running and it died immediately. Just want to be sure its my alternator before shelling out the bucks on one.
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05-27-2004, 11:06 AM
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Registered
Join Date: May 2002
Location: St Louis
Posts: 4,211
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Holy Crap... That’s a pretty subtle way to test your alternator! Did it refire after this
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05-27-2004, 11:41 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Newmarket, UK
Posts: 132
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No, that is not a good method - and not good for your car. Try getting a voltmeter from someone or buy one, get a cheap cigarette lighter plug (with leads) from Radio Shack and get some real data.
Test it out while sitting at idle, while driving at 3k RPM and while driving at 3k with a load (high beams, defrost, A/C). This will give you a better idea on the status of your alternator and what may be wrong... Cheers, |
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05-27-2004, 12:49 PM
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Registered
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Tulsa, OK USA
Posts: 112
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Car actually fired ok after this little incident!
 What should the voltmeter read if alternator is ok? Seems like this starting problem just happened overnight. One day it was running great, and the next day battery was dead (put in new battery with same result) If I put it on a battery charger overnight, it will start fine and run for about a day then the battery is dead again. I did notice that my alternator pully seems to spin out of balance (fan post seems fine, but pully acts as if warped.)
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05-27-2004, 06:18 PM
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