William G

About 2 months ago I replaced my battery in my Accord because it was nerly 4 years old and ready to die. Just yesterday I stepped out at the post office to mail some letters and when i got back into my car it wouldn't turn over. The battery was dead just like that. So I got a jump and it cranked right up with no problems. I drove it back to work and parked it for about 4 hours and when i got back in the car to leave for the day, the battery was dead again. So i got another jump and again it started right away on the first turn of the key. I then drove the car home about 40 miles away thinking that this would give the altenator plenty of time to charge the battery. However, when i got home and pulled into my garage I turn the car off and then tried to crank it again. WTF?! Does it sound like the altenator isn't charging the battery? Everything seems to work fine while the car is running (lights, radio etc) so I'm not sure what the deal is. It's a new battery so I don't think it's reached the end of it's life span. Anyone have similar problems or could give me some ideas on why this is happening? Thanks!

JimBlake

If the alternator wasn't working I bet you wouldn't have been able to drive the 40 miles home.

First check all your big power cables (both ends) for corrosion & tightness. Including the grounds from engine/transmission to body. Then with the engine idling measure your battery voltage. Should be about 14 or 14.5v, even if you turn on your headlights & fans. If it drops below 12 with the engine running then your alternator isn't working.

Turn off the engine, wait a minute or so, then measure battery voltage. Should be about 12 or 12.5v. Turn on the headlights & measure it again. If it goes down much your battery's shot. Sometimes new batterys are just defective, but I'm kinda guessing you have a loose or rusty cable somewhere.

tylek17

while the car is running unplug the negative on the battery. If the car dies then its the alternator. Mine went out a few months ago and i drove 60 miles at night on just my battery.

JimBlake

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tylek17 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">while the car is running unplug the negative on the battery...</TD></TR></TABLE>That's an old-school test. Don't do it - it might fry your ECU.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tylek17 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Mine went out a few months ago and i drove 60 miles at night on just my battery.</TD></TR></TABLE>That's good to know. So I guess William G driving 40 miles doesn't rule out a bad alternator.

William G

Sweet, thanks a lot. This is at least a good place to start. Hopefully I do only have a loose or coroded connection somewhere. I'll keep you posted.

parsapour

Dear Honda Tech,
Pls. guide me how to settle the issue with my Accord 91 EXi as Battery Indicator Light remains ON even after key is removed & the Bat. Light turns OFF once ignition key is turned to ON Pos. even before engin start .
Battery weakened & died after few days since car remained parked I strained to know if ALT is not working ? Or matter is somewhere els, Can it be caused from mess up harnesses? or Ground connection ? since symptom found when I returned from Repair shop for change of Head Gasket. I want to know why such reverse indication is happened ? whether it is due to Harnesses mess-Up or bad wiring by the Mechanic? or ALT is bad? how to check?, I checked ground connections they looks OK. what else should I do to remedy the case? appreciated your guides.
S. Parsapour
parsapours@aol.com

Best regards,
Saeid Parsapour

parsapour

parsapour

Has any one of Honda electrical technician drawn attention to my question on above problem?
Any helpful technical hint is highly appreciated.
parsapours@aol.com

parsapour

Dear Honda Tech,
Pls. guide me how to settle the issue with my Accord 91 EXi as Battery Indicator Light remains ON even after key is removed & the Bat. Light turns OFF once ignition key is turned to ON Pos. even before engin start .
Battery weakened & died after few days since car remained parked I strained to know if ALT is not working ? Or matter is somewhere els, Can it be caused from mess up harnesses? or Ground connection ? since symptom found when I returned from Repair shop for change of Head Gasket. I want to know why such reverse indication is happened ? whether it is due to Harnesses mess-Up or bad wiring by the Mechanic? or ALT is bad? how to check?, I checked ground connections they looks OK. what else should I do to remedy the case? appreciated your guides.
S. Parsapour
parsapours@aol.com

Best regards,
Saeid Parsapour[/COLOR]

parsapour

Dear Honda Tech,
Pls. guide me how to settle the issue with my Accord 91 EXi as Battery Indicator Light remains ON even after key is removed & the Bat. Light turns OFF once ignition key is turned to ON Pos. even before engin start .
Battery weakened & died after few days since car remained parked I strained to know if ALT is not working ? Or matter is somewhere els, Can it be caused from mess up harnesses? or Ground connection ? since symptom found when I returned from Repair shop for change of Head Gasket. I want to know why such reverse indication is happened ? whether it is due to Harnesses mess-Up or bad wiring by the Mechanic? or ALT is bad? how to check?, I checked ground connections they looks OK. what else should I do to remedy the case? appreciated your guides.
S. Parsapour
parsapours@aol.com

Best regards,
Saeid Parsapour[/COLOR]