Battery Question
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 417
Likes: 0
Battery Question
I have a 1996 LT4....My car has been charging the battery alot lately when I first crank the car and when I turn the key and just have it sitting there but not running it says I have a low battery. But it still cranks up just fine everyday...well driving to work this morning my instrument panel lights and everything shut off completely for a second and came back on....then about 30 seconds later it did it again. Could this be a battery problem? I bought a new one last night and im going to put it in im just worryed a little.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 9,036
Likes: 13
From: Edmonton AB
Originally Posted by Achilleus07
Idriving to work this morning my instrument panel lights and everything
shut off completely for a second and came back on....then about 30
seconds later it did it again. Could this be a battery problem?
shut off completely for a second and came back on....then about 30
seconds later it did it again. Could this be a battery problem?
If it is much lower than this, then I would be looking at the alternator
with some suspicion.
.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 9,036
Likes: 13
From: Edmonton AB
While premature, a couple of preemptive tips in the event you decide
to swap out the alternator.
Disconnect the battery - the large terminal on the alt is hot.
Use ignition wrenches or something with thin enough flats to permit you
to hold the hex of the stud while you break free and loosen the nut.
If you don't, the stud turns and and breaks a connection inside the
alt. A dealership tech has performed this 'mod' for me in the past
(it was a pain having to repair what had been a perfectly good alt
before he removed it to access other stuff.).
to swap out the alternator.
Disconnect the battery - the large terminal on the alt is hot.
Use ignition wrenches or something with thin enough flats to permit you
to hold the hex of the stud while you break free and loosen the nut.
If you don't, the stud turns and and breaks a connection inside the
alt. A dealership tech has performed this 'mod' for me in the past
(it was a pain having to repair what had been a perfectly good alt
before he removed it to access other stuff.)
Team Owner
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 54,124
Likes: 30
From: Cincinnati, Oh USA
Without the engine running, the dash digital voltmeter does not read correctly, they read low and with the ignition on and no alternator output, the battery symbol light will be on, and this is normal. Engine running and cold, the voltmeter will read 14.3 v and engine hot, 13.3 v and this too is normal. Your cluster went dim because of a momentary disconnection of power to the lamps and has nothing to do with the battery or alternator.
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 417
Likes: 0
The Voltage runs between 14.1-14.5 all the time...never higher...never lower. Plus the tach for the battery always jumps up and down....its weird...not a lot...just a little up and down action every now and then.
Last edited by Achilleus07; Nov 23, 2005 at 12:59 PM.
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Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 417
Likes: 0
no I havent checked the connection...I just got warm clothes on and im venturing out to do all that now. I bought a new battery and im going to put that in because I know for a fact that the battery in the car is old as **** and almost dead. Im hoping that will fix the problem.
Team Owner
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 54,124
Likes: 30
From: Cincinnati, Oh USA
14.5 volts is not too high !!!! GM says the nominal alternator output voltage is 14.7 volts and the dash voltmeter reads the voltage after the ignition switch contacts which have 0.3 volts drop across them, so normally the dash voltmeter will read 14.3 volts engine cold and the alternator voltage drops to 13.7 volts output when it gets hot and this is normal. Furthermore, GM says the alternator output voltage can be as high as 16 volts and still be within specifications.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 9,036
Likes: 13
From: Edmonton AB
Originally Posted by jfb
Your cluster went dim because of a momentary disconnection of
power to the lamps and has nothing to do with the battery or alternator.
power to the lamps and has nothing to do with the battery or alternator.
shrinkage?
.
Team Owner
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 54,124
Likes: 30
From: Cincinnati, Oh USA
Hard to say where the interruption occurred. It would be worth it to just unplug the connectors on the cluster and plug them back in which will clean the connections. Of course, I'd wait to see if it happened again, getting at those connectors takes some time and patience.
Racer
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 456
Likes: 3
From: Sumner Texas
Originally Posted by Slalom4me
Bad ground? Loose connection aggravated by cold weather causing
shrinkage?
.
shrinkage?
.
Good luck,
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 9,036
Likes: 13
From: Edmonton AB
In case you didn't notice it, the 'dash cluster earth
help' thread has suggestions about checking
the cluster for broken solder traces on the circuits.
When the search feature works again, I think you'll
find threads in the archives about bad cluster solder
traces, too.
I haven't seen this mentioned yet in your thread and
it is possible your symptoms are caused by a combo
of issues. (FWIW - my climate control lighting is
sensitive to weather. Cleaning the contacts worked
but the problem is back and I'll be looking at the
traces at some point.)
I'd still check for bad grounds first. If you come up
empty-handed, checking the traces for breaks is
another troubleshooting measure to apply.
.
help' thread has suggestions about checking
the cluster for broken solder traces on the circuits.
When the search feature works again, I think you'll
find threads in the archives about bad cluster solder
traces, too.
I haven't seen this mentioned yet in your thread and
it is possible your symptoms are caused by a combo
of issues. (FWIW - my climate control lighting is
sensitive to weather. Cleaning the contacts worked
but the problem is back and I'll be looking at the
traces at some point.)
I'd still check for bad grounds first. If you come up
empty-handed, checking the traces for breaks is
another troubleshooting measure to apply.
.
Last edited by Slalom4me; Nov 25, 2005 at 06:36 AM.