2002 Acura RSX Alternator and battery causing SRS light to

AIRTAS

MEMBER
2002 ACURA RSX
4 CYL
FWD
AUTOMATIC
110,000 MILES

So a couple weeks ago my car would not start, I would jump it and then the car was fine

Couple days later same issue, jumped car it was fine

At this point I turned OFF MY SUB AMP, a week passes and then my SRS light comes on

Couple days after that I take my car to the repair shop where they tell me the SRS light is on due to improper voltage going to it and that my voltage was all over the place in the car and that my ALTERNATOR needed replacing

I replaced it and a couple days later, car wouldn't start, took it to repair shop again and after some testing they said battery is not holding a charge.

The battery is an OPTIMA yellowtop deep cycle and was covered under warranty

but.

Was my alternator never the problem?

Could it be normal to be "all over the place"?

Do you think the shop is trying to cover their mistake?

How can I confirm alternator was bad?

Could the alternator have been all out of whack voltage wise for years?

3 Replies

SATURNTECH9

MECHANIC
30,870 POSTS

First of all thank you so much for your donation. As far as your alternator being bad that sound's like a good reason why your voltage was all over the place. The only way you can see if it was really bad is take your old alternator and have it tested at auto zone or another part's store. If you still have your old alternator or have access to it?AS far as your alternator being bad for year's I highly doubt that they usually start going bad and then shortly after just fail. Now your battery being bad could just be a result of your alternator failing and taking the battery with it. If you can get your old alternator have it tested to see if it's bad or good. That way you can see if it was bad or good.

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Tuesday, September 21st, 2010 AT 11:10 AM

AIRTAS

MEMBER
11 POSTS

When I went to autozone initially they ran a test for about 60 seconds, the alternator was putting out 14.1 amps and the paper was cranking fine as well

both passed but I am assuming the test were not thorough enough

How long would a bad regulator last and what damage could I have done to my car?

Can the battery have given the voltage readings that were all over the place?

An alternator should always be putting out the same voltages right?

With all these questions I will need to donate!

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Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010 AT 8:12 AM

SATURNTECH9

MECHANIC
30,870 POSTS

A 60 second test sometimes isn't enough especially if the alternator isn't completely dead. Some of them will work off and on. Bad alternator's don't always just fail some fail over a period of time some just fail and your stranded that's my luck lol I have been stuck on the side of the road twice with a alternator good one min and the car surging and dieing the next. As long as your alternator wasn't totally over charging your car you should be ok. It isn't common for a alternator to damage the car when they fail they usually take out the battery if there going to hurt anything.A bad enough battery can cause stalling and the alternator to not be able to keep the car running because the battery is sapping it so bad. The alternator should be putting out a pretty steady voltage but the regulator keep's it from over charging the battery.

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Thursday, September 23rd, 2010 AT 1:11 PM