Hi,I need help with 1997 Maxima problem. Here is the story please help. I bought a new battery in Jan 2011 installed it, car was running fine. I went on vacation in Apr 2011 for two weeks. Car started when I came back running fine. I did not drive the car for another two weeks tryed to start, car was dead would not crank over. I went to Autozone with the battery they charged it for 45 minutes then they tested it, no reading manager said bad battery they gave me a new battery. I installed battery car was running fine for three weeks then today my battery and brake light go on when I press the gas pedal and radio doesn't work when the battery and brake lights are on. When I stop at a traffic light the warning lights go off. I have no clue what is going on. Please help if you can.

Bass

 

The battery & brake lights together mean bad altenator. What you need to do is get a voltmeter and measure the voltage whan the engine is running. The voltage should be around 14.5 volts at a 1000 rpm. If not, the altenator is not charging. If you chec the battery voltage befor you start the car, It should be between 12.1 and 12.5. If the battery voltage is low, that means that the battery in not fully charged.

 

i have a similar issue with my 97 max my issue is when i press the brake the interior lights and the headlights go dimm for a second or 2 would that be a alertnator issue or an electrical issue

 

Yep bad alternator!! I just swapped out the alternator on my sisters 4th gen.. same issue!

 

Electrical issue. Most likely the ground cables that connect the various sections together are becomming corroded. You'll have to unbolt the cables and clean the connection points.

 

Is the alternator grounded through its body or is there a ground cable?

 

There is no ground cable for the altenator. It is grounded through the case and the mounting bolts. Start with the battery cable and work backwards fron there. Don't just look at the connection, remove it to inspect it. You want to have clean, shiny metal to metal contact.

 

if you can disconnect the battery with the car running and it keeps running, it's not the alternator, if it dies, it is.

 

I tested the battery got a reading of 12.7 volts. I connected the battery cables started car and tested it got a reading of 18.7 volts. I noticed water coming out of the top of the battery. Will the battery burst? Do I need a new alternator? Please help if you can. Thanks

Bass

 

Sounds like some regulator is letting the battery overcharge, but that is beyond me. It also sounds at least like your alternator is working. Not sure of the voltage regulator setup with this car.

 

you deff need a battery an prolly need a alt also

 

that high means ur voltage regulator is bad which is internal on our alternators so yes u need a new one

the water coming out of the top is because your alternator is litterally boiling it inside of the battery

yes replace it and be careful if your under the hood anymore before then as the battery could explode

 

Thanks is the battery still good? I just got it three weeks ago.

Bass

 

no not if thing are coming out of it its done

 

It's not necessarily done...take it back and have it tested again...batteries are pretty tough

Also as cars get newer there are a lot of problems u can cause to the electronics by pulling ur battery to test if the alternator is good

Actually some cars won't run at all without a battery, I used that method on my 87 fiero and it wouldn't stay running so I had napa test both and alternator was go od and lasted the next 2 yrs that I owned the car

 

were exactly can i find these ground cables ??

 

I have a similar problem. My battery light and brake light started flickering on and off today, whenever I had the engine above 3000 rpm. I checked the conections, and they are ok. I hooked up my voltmeter to the battery. With the engine off I have 12.7v. With the engine at idle I have 14.5v. With the engine at 3000-3500 rpm I have 14.8v-15.0v. Does anyone know if this voltage is high enough to cause any damage to my battery or electrical system?

 

Th voltage reading you got when running 3k rpms is too high and out of spec. It will probably get worse and fry the battery. The voltage regulator is not working properly and you should replace that alternator.

 

Do not disconnect the battery while the engine is running! You can permanently damage the alternator or other sensitive electronic devices in your car.

Your battery "smooths" the voltage coming out from the alternator.

My friend fried his regulator when doing this. At least one of the diodes in his regulator was damaged by doing this test.

 

check for a short in your ground cable. too much corrosion?

 

i just replaced my alternator about 5 months ago and i have noticed ever since i got it that when the car is running if i try to turn on my turn signal with my headlights on, then all my dash lights dim in succession with the blinker going off.
If i try to roll up my windows my dash lights dim.
when the key is set to "on" but not running if i turn on my headlights with my radio on it kills my radio.
the guy at the parts/service at the local stealership told me that there are 2 different alts for our 4th gens.
IIRC a 85 and a 110 and the 110 is the one that we should be using but both will fit the car. how do i find out if i have the 110 in my car bc i think thats what could be causing the problems.

 

Fishy..... if you do have the 85A alternator instead of the 110A (assuming your 85A alternator works properly), I doubt your electrical problem(s) is due to the alternator being undersized. I highly doubt your electronics are pulling near 80A.

 

I recently replaced mine with a 125A a short while ago, the previous one was 110. I doubt if the alternator is really capable of putting out 85A DC. My amp killed my alternator and that's why i went to 125. I now monitor current draw via ammeter and voltage via voltmeter (both aftermarket).

 

Yes, I've been trying to figure this out too.

 

My car speakers all work on the left side of the car but not the right. I went through all the fuses by the steering column. How do I figure out which fuse is for the speakers? What else may it be if not the fuses? Thanks.

 

there is no fuse for the speakers, only the head unit. The speakers could be blown, or the output could be bad on your head unit. One way to find out is to temporarily hook up the non working speakers to the working o/p, if they work, then it's definately the output, if not then there is either a wiring problem or something else going on. Are the speakers and HU orig?

This maybe silly, but have you checked the balance?

 

if you have t the bose HU then its not an uncommon occurence for the outputs of left and right, i would check the balance just to make sure (ya never know)
my HU will just stop working on the front driver door if i hit a bump and i have to kind halfway smack it once on the lcd screen of it to get it to work correctly at least till the next big bump happens lol