1991 Pontiac Sunbird Battery Charging Issues

GINGERSNAPPED01

MEMBER
1991 PONTIAC SUNBIRD

1991 Pontiac Sunbird

There seems to be a problem with the battery in my car dying very quickly (like after 2 minutes with the lights on and the ignition off). When the battery dies, the starter does not click when I try to start it like it would usually do when the battery is drained. The alternator was replaced a year ago and I put a new battery in last week which has already needed to be jumped. Any ideas where the power is being pulled from?

1 Reply

INTERNETMECHANIC

MECHANIC
700 POSTS

I'd have to do some testing. Use a digital multimeter, leads at the battery posts, everything turned off. The generic spec for a full charged battery is 12.6 volts. Then start the vehicle, take a second reading across the battery posts, the second reading should be higher than the first, if the charging system is working. Some of the national brand autostores should be able to check this for you.

Also, there could be a battery drain? With everything turned off, you could check for battery amp draw, see if excessive. Another way would be to take battery cable loose, use a testlite between cable and battery posts, if lite comes on and stays on, you have a battery drain. You pull the fuses, one at a time, when you pull the fuse on the faulty circuit, the amp draw returns to normal or the testlite goes out.