i don't know what's wrong with my car. the car lose all the electricity when i trun on any light like the singnal or headlight. then the engine shut down cuz their is no electricity to the spark plugs. lose the power steering......etc... it's like all the electricity drain to somewhere.

does anyone know what's wrong?? is it my battery or the alternator???

any advice???

 

It's your alternator.

 

how much is a alternator???
is it a DIY???

 

What year is your Max?

If it's a late 96/early 97, the dealer will replace it for free most likely. (recall)

Otherwise, It shouldn't be too hard. Go to your local Auto Parts store and pick up a Chilton's or haynes manual and they walk you through it step by step.

IanS

 

my max is made 04/96. does that mean the dealer will replace it for free???

 

Probably not.

But it's worth a check. Write down your VIN Number, call teh dealer, and give it to them and say you are wondering if you are part of the Alternator Recall for 96-97 Maximas.

IanS

 

is there anything else i can check to make sure before changing the alternator??

any other suggestion maybe something wrong with my car??

 

if its a recall issue, it should be done free. but you would need to show them the mailing they sent you, which would mean that your car was affected. if you never got one, then your car is not "affected."

if its a TSB issue (which i think i rememeber a TSB with some diode in the alternator being bad), then since your car is already out of warranty, i believe they will charge you only for the labor, but not for parts. still, in the end, labor ends up being more i would think.

 

If you want to make sure it IS your alternator loosen the ground side battery cable and start your car. Pull the cable off the battery. If the car dies, you have a dead alternator. If not, you could have anything wrong.... but with a Nissan you would be looking for corroded elctrical connections: especially ground connections.

 

This is not good for the car. The proper way is to get a voltmeter. With the vehicle off, check the voltage from the negative battery terminal to the one at the back of the alternator. It should read around 12.6 volts. Now with the vehicle running, it should read above 13.5v volts.

 

Lonely Driver is correct! See this article from Click and Clack:

http://cartalk.cars.com/Columns/Arch.../April/02.html

 

These guys must have been unhooking the positive cable.....
I have a degree in electronics.... I've done this before on cars made in the 60's 70's 80's and 90's. A voltage regulator doesn't blow because it has LESS of a load when you remove the battery...

If you reconnect the battery with the car still turned on: Yes, it will blow the voltage regulator and who knows what else....

And yes, a voltmeter is a good test. Better yet, take it to a garage and have them hook up a dummy load to your system while it's running.

Bottom line is: it's highly unlikely the battery would maintain enough charge to start the car everyday unless it IS being charged... it has to be something else....