At 04:13 PM 8/29/98 -0700, you wrote:
>> Palmer Family wrote:
>>
>> > So, anyone want to help me with an alternator that's not charging?
>(PUSH
>> > STARTED 3 TIMES YESTERDAY!!! No shortage of people to help push!!)
>>
>> Now this is weird. It is my understanding that if a car will not start,
>but
>> will run after being push-started, then it is the battery or connections,
>and
>> not the alternator (unless the battery has just enough juice to run the
>car,
>> but not start it?).
>
>It takes litle to no power to actually run the car, turning the starter
>over is what takes all the power!!
>
>signed,
>BARRY PALMER
I'm not even going to pretend to be terribly competent let alone an expert,
but I've just solved a charging problem so maybe my experiences will prove
somewhat helpful.
When my car was not charging, my battery continued to run further and
further down until it wouldn't operate the fuel pump and the car died -
repeatedly after numerous jump starts. It appears to these unexpert eyes
that it stands to reason that the battery may have enough juice to run a
car for a while, but if the battery is not getting new juice it must
eventually run down to a point where the car will no longer start =or= run.
I sort of wonder whether it is a starter issue rather than a charging one.
Have you had it checked by a garage for the charging issue? How about a
load test on the battery to determine if it is still good? It may have a
charge but be internally defective. I'm just musing that the battery may
have enough of a charge to get the alternator running and that can then run
the electricals of the car under motion, but not have enough juice to start
the car. This, of course, assumes at least a nominally functioning
alternator.
My problem turned out to be a defective alternator followed by idiocy on my
part in forgetting to reconnect the hot wire from the alternator to the
solenoid. The battery did not have enough juice to get the alternator
flowing upon reconnecting the hot wire to the newly installed alt so it
still appeared not to be charging well. Charged up the battery, drove
around all day (yahooo!) and rechecked it at the garage. Strong 14+ volts
and I'm back in electrical business.
Maybe somewhere in this rambling you may find something to point you in a
useful direction.
Philip
1974 Damask Midget - Arioch, Lord of Chaos
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