my car is stuck at publix like 10 mins from where I currently am.

driving on the road, my car all of sudden starts turning all dim and my acceleration starts to studder, then the car dies. I jump the car and try to leave it running for a little to get the battery to recharge up, but it was a no go, it died 2 mins later down the road at a stop light. Now i bought a new battery, but am in the state of mind thinking that it is probably the alternator and if i put in the new battery, that without a good working alternator the battery will just drain. Any suggestions fellas?

 

Could be a DOA battery, but most likely a bad alt. Have you checked what sort of voltage the alt is putting out at idle?

 

turn the car on and then disconnect the battery - if the car dies then its the alternator - if it doesnt die, then it could be your battery

 

im going with alternator...try to get it to an autozone or advanced auto to get both of them tested.

 

+1

 

its ur alt bubba same thing happened to me 2 days ago

 

That's a good way to destroy a perfectly good alternator, so I don't know if this advice were meant as a joke or not.

To the OP, try the new batt first, it would not hurt anything, but the car would die eventually and you should get a lamp on the dash stating the battery is being discharged.

Being the original owner of my car, I know the alternator was replaced under factory recall, I think when it was 5 years old or so or in 2k3.

 

thanks for all the advice and suggestions. I'm going to try and take to autozone and I'll let you guys know what was wrong

 

my vote is alt... let us know what you find out

 

is it possible to home test with voltometer?

 

jump start your car and check the voltage at your battery, it should be around 14.2-14.4 if is is less and dropping then you need a new alternator my friend.

Did you notice any dash lights on? brake light + battery light = bad alternator

 

I vote altenator too. Although i had a battery the other day putting out 12v and still couldnt start my car. Someone said sumin about cranking cell blah blah blah.

 

I'm wondering what became of this? I have the same issue, though intermittent. Sometimes the dash lights (battery and brake light) come on, then they dissappear after a while. I could leave the car for a day and sometimes they would come on and sometimes they won't. It is so all over the place its impossible to say.

 

Not necessarily. If the car dies, there could be something disrupting the charging system. Happened to me not too long ago, ended up being a fuse.

vuiskool, check all your connections. Make sure they're all secure. Take a look at the wiring too from the battery and the alternator. And also check out any fuse that could be tied into your charging system. Check all the little things first before you draw conclusions and end up spending more money than you need to.

 

Measure the voltage @ the battery with the car not running! Start the car and measure the altenator output @ the battery or on the back of the altenator! Should be 13.5V- 14.4V. If the output is more than the Battery voltage chances are you have a bad battery. If you have a battery with service/vent caps, check you electrolyte level and take a voltohmmeter and check voltage @ each cell between positive and the electrolyte.....should be approx. 1.75V-2.0V per cell anything lower than 1.50V is a bad cell.

 

... Quick semi related question. Has anyone found a place to get voltage regulators that are worth buying?? All regulators I've found are around $200, which is the same as a new alt.

 

Must the light come on during driving or any point to signal alternator? After jumpstart, my car ran, but the ligth and etc. just seemed weaker. Granted I didn't drive this car in ages.

 

im pretty sure its the alternator man

 

i had a problem like this recently. my car cant start on the battery, and after i jump start it, i let it run for 20 min, and nothing helped. it still wouldnt start.

i changed the ground, starter, checked fuses....turned out that i just had to clean my battery terminals

 

I just replaced my alternator 2 days ago on 1998 gle. Everything seems to be running fine, however the Battery and Brake light still come on when I first start the car in morning. After it runs for about 2-3 minutes both lights go off. Any thoughts?

 

your alternator is putting out ZERO volts/ watts whatever when those lights come on. Brake and battery. Your alternator is d.o.a. Take it back and have them test it on the car. Get a replacement before your warranty runs out.

 

JSMAX, has car tested at AutoZone and everything comes back fine. Both lights still come on after intial start-up of car, then go off after 2-3 minutes of driving. Any ideas?