Battery, Alternator or Starter issue?

ShockWave

I will get a load test done at advanced auto parts. How much it is or is it free? You guys don't think its the spark plugs?

kenchan

Parasitic drain or user issue. Like listening to stereo while engine off, etc.

ShockWave

Thanks...you guys give me lots of good info.

SouthArk370Z

Most auto parts stores will test your battery for free. Call around.

At this point, can't rule out the plugs but they are very near the bottom of my list of possibilities. I'd check the electrical stuff first.

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Tadpole

It's free. Drop it off as it may take several hours to get a full charge on it

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mults

My wife has a 04 Hyundai Sonata and we bought a battery from Auto Zone and sure as heck, one day the car wouldn't start. Brought the car and receipt to Auto Zone and got a new battery. BTW, the battery was only 1 year old.

I would not be surprised if your battery is shot.

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mults
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Tadpole

So what's the verdict OP?

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kenchan

Plug in coffee maker...

ShockWave

okay I tested the battery with a multimeter ...

The battery is showing 12.6 volt with the car off. Turn the car on and its showing 14 + volt.

Did a parasitic Draw Test. and its shows 0 MA.

SouthArk370Z

Testing a battery without a load is all but worthless.

If you got zero for parasitic load you are doing something wrong or your meter is not sensitive enough.

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ShockWave

I load tested and its good....what am I'm doing wrong here?

SouthArk370Z

I suggest one or more of the following:
*Check all wiring and connectors in the starting system. The FSM has everything you need to know about wire colors (check the key; the abbrevs they use for colors aren't always obvious), harness routing, connector pinouts, and much, much more. My guess is that this is where the problem is.
*Log voltage and see if any anomalies show up. It doesn't really sound like it's the alternator from your descriptions but it's worth looking at.
*Check parasitic load. IIRC, expected/acceptable figures are in the FSM (I can't remember what it's supposed to be but I'm certain it is greater than zero). Might need to log this to see problems.


Edit: It sounds a lot like you have an intermittent electrical problem. These can be a royal PITA and, because of the come-and-go nature, can give very misleading clues (eg, replace battery and car starts, even though a bad electrical connection was the problem).

The problem could also be in the IPDM-E/R. A dealer will have to check that and they may not be able to diagnose an intermittent.

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Tadpole

One other inexpensive way to eliminate this issue is to change out your wire terminals to the battery. I had to do this on my 350z when I had it.

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Trips

I suggest in a worst case scenario to take it to a local electrical car shop that specializes in these types of problems.

Im sure they will determine if there is something drawing power or if the alternator is not regulating the power like it should or the battery maybe at fault.

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threeseventy

So the battery guy at Pep Boys tested my 2 year old "3 year free replacement" Bosch battery and the printout says it tests OK and charging system is ok, he said that I probably have some sort of parasitic draw which is causing it to be dead after sitting for just 2 days, so I put it on the ammeter and there's only a 22 mAh draw and shows 14.4V when running, and the alternator diode tests fine, then I charged it for 8 hours on 10A and let it sit disconnected overnight, connected, and it won't crank the engine.

Did Pep Boys fake a test result to avoid replacing?

Discuss..