95max auto...losing power electricity
 

hi all,

got a 95 auto 160k...change alternator last year...car worked fine until this winter....when its cold or raining car loses power and dies...wont start until its jump started...check the battery its fine...got the right watts...12V

died on the road..when I was approaching a stop...just died

when its cold or rains car has issues....I noticed the alternator harness might need replacement...bc it was jammed in there good when I changed the alternator so I had to pull a bit...connections seemed ok tho...

can it be the harness? or is it something else?

also, when the car runs a bit and gets warms its works good...drives and all...plus check the voltage on battery with it running warm...gives correct voltage as per running with alternator on...14V

also no codes..when its about to die all lights get dimmed,,,car does into choking

Just curious, have you cleaned the grounds?

You could have a bad alternator where the voltage regulator doesn't like cold. It could also be a case where the alternator belt is loose and/or drying out.

If your battery is not 100%, then either of the above will give you your problem.

good thing i just found the warranty for mine, even though it seems to be working ok. ( alternator ) my hid's seem to make a whine through the stereo sometimes, my belts are getting close to needing replacement as well. i've had new ones in trunk for 2-3 years. :)

Yup cleaned...battery 6 months ago

The bbelt seems to be on pretty good. When I press it...it only moves a bit down...how firm does it have to be on? When I press it should I be super hard?

Jump started the max today and ran it with cables for 10 min...took them off runs fine...took a drive and it's fine....40 degrees out so warmer than before when it didn't run....

When I drove it I noticed that battery light comes on when I ppress the gas fast...like a quick start from red light/stop....on when turning and hitting the gas hard right after the car hesitates to go..like has no power...thoughts? Thanks all!!!!

The belt tension is actually pretty tight. You check in the center the section of belt between the crankshaft pulley and the a/c compressor. Using a force of 22 pounds, the belt should deflect a maximum of .18 or 3/16 of an inch.

But if the belt is old, drying up, cracking and hardening, it can still slip even with the correct tension.

You need to connect a voltmeter and watch the voltage while the car is running. When running, the voltage should always be around 14 volts, from the moment you start the engine until you turn it off. And that includes turning on every possible thing in the car.

Bełt feels lukę right tension....i noticed when its cold its hard to steer...prób old steering fluid....will this cuz start issues??

The power steering will not cause starting problems.

The power steering pump has its own belt. It does not use the same belt as the alternator and a/c. I don't know if old oil would cause hard steering. Maybe the wrong kind of oil could. The Maxima power steering uses Dexron III automatic transmission oil.

But if you need to use jumper cables to start the car, then the battery isn't full charged. After you have been driving the car and shut it off for the night, check the battery voltage. Then, before you start the car the next morning, check the battery voltage. The voltage after you shut the car off at night and when you go to start it the next morning should be almost the same, within a tenth of a volt. A good battery will measure 12.5 volts, not 12.0. Then start the car. The voltage should be about 14 volts.

Another thought - when the engine is idling, look at the crankshaft pulley. Does it look like it is wobbling?

This is great help. Thanks I will try ttho thingd mentioned. ...just checked the voltage...car not running voltage at 12.43v....running at 15.34

You know rubber goes bad? I hope you don't buy new tires and let them sit like that. :goofy:

That alternator is BAD!! The voltage should never be that high.

Replace that alternator.

If you decide to purchase another alternator, there are some BAD new and rebuilt alternators from China going around. You don't want to go through the effort to change an alternator to have the replacement fail a few days later.

A friend recently purchased a rebuilt from NAPA that is working out good so far.

thanks all...its was the damn alternator...cant believe it that is broke after 4 months...damn re-manufactures....thanks all......max running smooth again

Thanks for letting us know how it turned out.