1998 Chevy Monte Carlo alternator?

arunkj78 · Posted at Mon Mar 08, 2010 7:07 pm

Electrical problem
1998 Chevy Monte Carlo 6 cyl Two Wheel Drive Automatic 120000 miles

I have a 98 Chevy Monte Carlo which has about 120,000 miles on it. It has been running very well till a couple of weeks back.
Since I have a newer honda civic, this car has been idle for a couple of weeks. One day, when I took it to the nearby gorcery store, the ANTI-LOCK indicator came on. The brakes worked and it ran without any problem. The next day I noticed that the pickup(acceleration) wasn't very good (actually very bad) and the VOLT indicator also came on. The next day the car wouldn't start. I used my honda to jump start the car and it started. I went for test round inside the parking lot and the car went dead mid way while it was running. I somehow steared it to the side and again jump started it and got the car parked.

A couple of weeks later (ie. one week before), I bought a new battery and replaced the old one. The car started and ran without any problems. But it was short lived. Within a couple of days the VOLT indicator came back again.

1) What could be wrong with the car? This looks like a an electrical issue to me since it worked well after changing the battery. What I would like from the experts is the following:

2) Could this be a problem with the alternator? I have read a couple of similar stories in the internet and the problem didn't go away by changing battery/alternator. What could be the chance for that?
3) What parts are involved in the issue? Why was there a difference in the pickup (acceleration) after changing the battery? I was under the impression that batteries and associated parts are not involved that much once the car starts moving.

Thanks,

saturntech9 · Posted at Mon Mar 08, 2010 9:19 pm

i would have the alternator tested if u have a bad bettery a computer controled car can stall high idle all that.if ur alternator isnt charging then when ur battery got low ur car would die like it did.charge ur battery have ur alternator tested if it tests bad then take it off the car and have it tested on the machine at the auto parts store that will tell u if its the alternator or the cars wiring or something else.but it just sounds like a alternator.let me know what u find.