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Car Battery Questions and Answers

Question:  2001 Chevy Impala mileage: 55,000. Hi...my girlfriend's old Impala eats batteries! We had one burst last month, thought it frozen. Got a replacement, now this one is belching sulfurous gasses and is warm to the touch after the car has run for a little while. Not cold enough to freeze - possible charging system problem?  Sometimes the interior lights/radio lights go dim, then bright again, also.  The alternator is putting out about 14.7 volts, the battery is charged to about 13.5 volts, seems high.  I thought maybe the voltage regulator could be bad, but don't know where it is on that year vehicle!  Otherwise a great low-mileage nana car...any advice you guys could give on where to start looking for the problem would be appreciated!

Answer:  Check the ground wires to make sure they are in place and making good contact, especially the battery cable ground connection to the motor.  If this checks out okay, you probably have a faulty alternator. BTW you will need to replace the battery again also. It cant take over charging.

Question: 2002 Mercedes Benz. miles: 78,000 My battery was dead this morning and now it won't take a charge anymore?

Answer: If your battery will not take a charge it is worn out and needs to be replaced.

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Question: 1998 Grand Caravan SE. I replaced the battery in my car. Everything was great. Then my wife noticed that the manual recommended that I put the "felt pads" under the cables. I disconnected the new battery put the felt pads back down and reconnected the battery. Now no interior lights work, headlights don't work, rpm/mileage display doesn't work. Power doors, mirrors, brake lights, CD player, AC all work. What do I need to reset?

Answer: When you replaced the battery, is there a chance that you accidentally got the cables switched? If so, you may have "cooked" a few things. If not, check the fuseable links located close to the battery.

Question: 1993 Ford Escort LX 4 cylinder mileage: 115,000. I have a 1993 Ford Escort LX wagon with 115,000 miles. It has always run like a charm. The other day when I went to start it, it wouldn't turn over, but everything else worked. I keyed it a few more times and it started right up. Today it did it again and I decided to take a look at it. When I popped the hood and keyed the engine, the positive battery terminal began to smoke. Any ideas?

Answer: Sounds like you have a poor connection at the battery or the battery itself is starting to fail.

Question: 1995 Oldsmobile Regency V6 3.8 litter mileage: 95,000. We recently replaced a dead battery on our 1995 Oldsmobile Regency. After it was replaced, the climate control is all out of whack. The driver's side is blowing out very cold air and the passenger side is blowing out heat. Does the car's computer need to be reset?

Answer: The computer should not have to be reset. If you tried to jump the battery from another car, and the cables were attached backwards, the electronics in the car will sustain damage, which would explain the climate control being out of "whack." In addition, if the cables were attached backwards when the new battery was installed, the same will occur.

Question: 1995 Nissan Micra 1000 mileage: 36,000. I have two questions: 1) For the last two years I have found increasing deposits of white powder around my battery terminal. What could be causing this? 2) Twice in the last two months when I have gone to start my car for the first time it has crunched and not started as if the starter motor is not engaged properly. How can this problem be solved? Could this problem be related to the battery problem? Thank you

Answer: Remove the battery cables and clean the battery. Get yourself a carbonated soft drink, no do not drink it, and pour it on the battery to neutralize the white powdery substance. Rinse the battery with water, clean the battery terminals, and reconnect. This may help your "crunching" starter motor problems. If it does not, you will probably have to replace the starter. In addition, load test the battery.

Question: 1996 Mazda Prot�g� 4 cyl mileage: 72,000. This is embarrassing. When I went to jumpstart my wife's car, I accidentally hooked up the cable wrong. This resulted in cross polarity, which melted the negative battery terminal right off the "bad" battery. I've had a new battery and battery terminal installed and the car seems to be running fine. However, the radio no longer works. I've checked the radio fuse in the fuse box, and it is fine. Is there anything else I can check or did I fry my radio during the cross polarity?

Answer: Don't be embarrassed. You aren't the only one who has made this mistake. It is possible that you did "fry" it. However, it is more likely that your radio has an anti-theft devise built into it. When a battery is disconnected, the dealer must reset the radio.

Question: 1997 Honda Accord TX. I am having trouble with our work car and I'm not sure what the trouble is... First off, I drive it about 40 miles one-way to work. I noticed the dashboard lights got real dim and the headlights were hardly lit. After I got to work, I turned the lights and everything else off and let it run by itself for ten minutes. I then turned the car off and tried to start it. Well, no start. I had to have it jumped. This was just the beginning. I put a new battery in it and still had the problem. Then I replaced the alternator and had new battery cables installed as well. It still leaves me sitting.... What else could it possibly be?

Answer: With the engine running, check for 14 to 14� volts at the battery. Check the fuseable links and check the auto shutdown relay.

Question: Do those battery boosters which plug into the cigarette lighter really work? I saw one in a catalog that sells for around $60. Another manufacturer makes a throwaway charger good for one charge and costs around $25. What do you think of these? I'm the type who is afraid to connect regular jumper cables to my battery terminals.

Answer: We are not impressed with battery booster products. If you are concerned about your car not starting, then have the battery load tested. If marginal, replace the battery with a good quality battery. You will be money ahead in the long run.

Question: 1996 Ford Tempo  mileage: 89,124.  Battery went dead this morning. Disconnected alt. but still draining juice from somewhere.  When you touch the battery terminals to the post, it sparks.   This just happened all the sudden.  Start car every day, and it has never had a problem

Answer: Here is the procedure we use to isolate a battery drain.  Remove negative battery cable from the battery.  Using a 12-volt test light, hook one end to the negative battery post the other end to the negative battery cable you just disconnected.  The test light will glow or “light” if there is a drain.  If the “light or glow” is faint, that is probably normal draw for the clock or computer.  If the “light or glow” is bright, then there is a large drain.  That should be corrected.  Now start removing and replacing the fuses one by one until the light goes out; that one will be the circuit with the drain.

Question: 1997 Honda Prelude mileage: 108,000.  Battery light will come on sometimes when the car is started, sometimes not for a while down the road, sometimes not at all. In addition, it sometimes flickers rapidly (not blinking, looks like a fluorescent bulb about to go out), then goes off for a while, and comes back on.  I think this may be the voltage regulator.  However, I do not know if the regulator is external, computer controlled, or integrated with the alternator.  All connections to alternator/battery/fuse box/ignition coil/distributor checked, battery replaced a few days ago.  I am not sure if the alternator is failing, as I drove the car for over 2 hrs with the light going on and off (mostly on).  Btw, this all started after driving through an extremely rough section of road that was being repaired.   Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Answer: It sounds like you may be having trouble with your charging system.  Have your battery load tested and check the alternator output for voltage and amperage.   You may have a diode in the alternator starting to leak.

Question: 1998 Ford Ranger 2.9L mileage: 109,000.  A few weeks ago, my charge light started coming on intermittently, and my battery has since died. The alternator is putting out (the exact amps I do not know).  I found this out using some shade tree methods (removing cables while engine is running, feeling magnetic pull on back of alternator).  I have since replaced the battery, and the charge light still comes on, however it stops glowing at idle with the headlamps on.  It will appear again upon acceleration.  Any ideas?

Answer:   It sounds like you may be having trouble with your charging system.  Have your battery load tested and check the alternator output for voltage and amperage. It is not a good idea to remove the battery cables when the engine is running.

Repair Topics / Battery-1 / Battery-2

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