i recently put a new battery in and now its dying. I'm not sure if its a bad alternator or a bad starter. i do know the system light flashes when the car is running. is there a way to test the alternator and the starter to make sure these things aren't bad. this car is becoming an electrical nightmare.

 

Most parts stores will test either for free.

 

I wanna test it in the car

 

Are you sure it's not a bad battery?

 

I replaced the battery allready and had the new one checked to make sure it was good. My thoughts are. The car has a parasitic drain on it. I believe it's the starter or the alternator is bad. I'm the third owner of this car and it looks like nothing has ever been changed.

 

Then do as Ben Dover said... take to Advanced, they will check your battery and alternator function with everything in the car.

 

Sure you don't have a short somewhere that is causing excessive drain on the battery? Disconnect the negative post and put a multimeter in between the negative cable and negative battery terminal...you should see 30mA to 50mA of current draw (don't start the car and make sure the interior lights are off)...anything greater than that would indicate a short somewhere. The SYS light usually flashes when the voltage of the battery drops to below normal which will happen with a short.

If you do find that the current draw is higher than 50mA pull each fuse until you see the current drop...that will at least point you to a particular part of the electrical system within the car.

 

Before I did that, I would take a DVM and measure the battery voltage right on the battery with the engine running. Should be about 14 volts +/- about 0.5 volts. Post the results. If you're in the 12s, then you're not charging enough.

Why do you say the battery is dying, does it turn over slow. have you tried to charge it, did it help?

What does you volt meter on the car say when the engine is running. Is it where it usually is?

How old is the battery, where did you get it from?

Make sure there is no light on at night like under the hood or in the car center console or other place.

A SYS light can also indicate a code is set in the BCM and does not necessary indicate a battery problem.

 

Advanced will run a test that tells you if you have a draw somewhere. Just kill a handful of birds with one stone and take it to advanced.

 

Hi

buy a basic cheap volt meter, check the battery volts before starting.
Should be 12.5 volts d/c, when started should go up to 13.5 -14 volts. Do not rely on the dash readout.

I had a battery going flat if the car sat for a week or even a few days, turned out the antenna motor would cut in and out every 5 to 10 seconds. Traced the fault to the grease all dried up, was causing problems with the motor shaft not opening the pressure switch correctly. Try listening at the back of the car for any "click" noises.

Also if a battery goes completely flat, it can ruin them.
Even a new battery discharged fast and completely will be pretty much scrap metal. I now use the yellow top Optima battery, that is a deep cycle battery for heavy loads and can handle repeated deep discharges and bounce back.

They do need a special charger or another battery in parallel with a normal charger,(normal battery chargers will not charge a optima battery if it is below 10 volts) i know many have thrown a perfectly good optima battery out because of this by not knowing.

A daily driver will keep the battery in a good state of charge, if you leave the car parked for days or weeks and have another daily driver like a company car you need a battery tender/ trickle charger too
keep a battery going for several years, remember most standard batteries are only good for 2-3 years. Letting them discharge often will dramatically shorten their life span.

 

It could very well be the alternator and it is not charging the battery. I had the diodes go on mine. This is something that you need to get tested.

As noted above there are places that you can take it to that will test it on the car for you.

 

********************


Before I did that, I would take a DVM and measure the battery voltage right on the battery with the engine running. Should be about 14 volts +/- about 0.5 volts. Post the results. If you're in the 12s, then you're not charging enough.

.....Agreed