romeric

a couple of days ago a got a new battery because the old one was draining somehow while the car was off. when i got the new battery two days latter it did the same thing, well its not completely drained the car still turns on. i drive it around,and the battery gage goes down slowly to the point where the check gage light turns on. sometimes the gage will go up a little bit to where the check gage turns off. after a while ill go back down slowly again. i know its not the battery because its new. does any one know what else it could be? would it be the alternator?

romeric

anyone??? some help please?

96famaro

when you have your car running does the gauge show that its charging? You can check it also by putting a voltimeter to the battery it should read around 13-14 volts while its running. If it is not then its possible that it could be the alternator.

romeric

when my car is running the gage goes down to where that yellow line starts. would that mean its the alternator then? my understanding of alternator is it just keeps the charge right? so when the gage goes to the yellow thing, the alternator is not keeping the charge? how do u know when u need a new alternator?

mai krod

iTrader: (1)

sounds like an alternator, easiest way to tell would be to have it tested. almost every auto parts store will test your battery/alternator/starter for free. typically they can do it with the part still on your car. drive it to your nearest auto zone, advance, o'reily's, napa, whatever, and ask them to test your alternator for you. at the worst they will either tell you to remove the part so they can bench test it. most likely it is your alternator, it could also be your alternator fuse, so look into that as well.

I would also consider removing your alternator and having it bench tested, as an electrical issue (like a short or even a blown alternator fuse) would make an in car test throw a bad alternator result, and then you end up paying out for an alternator when the problem is a 5$ fuse.