Sanity Check - Charging Issues

[pplkook]

All

Well I have spent the morning looking/searching threads. I am posting to see if there are any recommended posts/wiki entries that I should also reference.

Problem - Noticed that when I started the car last night leaving work, the cranking was less than optimal, proceeded to drive 30 miles from work back to home (thankfully I left early when it was still light and didn't need to use my headlights!) Once home, I popped the hood, turned off the car, and pulled out the multimeter and checked the battery voltage - 9.6V. The car wouldn't start, so I got a push, got it started, and checked the voltage at idle and 2k RPM. Initially read 14V (for seconds) at idle, then stayed in the 9V range through RPM testing.

First up, I am going to pull the battery, trickle charge it out of the car and take it to a shop to see if the battery is still good. I honestly don't remember if the dash light was working, so I was going to check that with a charged battery, then I was going to get more dirty with the following:

1. Check/clean all ground (might as well look at the transmission ground strap too)
2. Check/clean all connections listed in the Bentley manual
3. Pull the alternator and get it tested

For reference I have read the following:

and

Interesting dash bulb scenario
and

Alternator troubleshooting help
and

Alternator Woes

and for removal of the alternator I was going to use the 101 book and the following link
Pelican Technical Article: 911 Alternator & Voltage Regulator Removal/Replacement

So - anyone have other suggestions of reading/diagnostic information I should arm myself with?

As always, I appreciate any advice.

The only weird thing is I know that the PO did an alternator replacement several years ago but it should only have around 10k miles on it. Which makes me think there is some electrical issue that is causing premature failure or it isn't the alternator.

Thanks

Jack