Hey everyone!

I'm new to the forum, and don't know hardly anything about cars so please keep your advice as simple as possible for me.

I have a 2013 Honda Civic LX and I noticed that only when I'm driving or accelerating and I turn the headlights on, the car loses power. It's not stalling and it doesn't feel like it's just losing RPM's. It just feels like it just shuts off. If I let off the gas and step back on, though, everything is fine again. If I turn the lights on from idling or in any other state, there isn't a problem.

I also just installed a new battery, so I know that isn't the issue. I have a sound system running to it (10" sub and tweeters/speakers). I also looked at what I thought was the alternator fuse and it was fine. The guys at the auto shop said I need a new alternator, but I don't want to spend more money only to find out that wasn't the problem... again.

I've been looking all over the Honda forums, and I've come across so many different possibilities for issues, I figured I'd just post and see what you all thought.

Thanks!

 

well do you have an amp and cross over and such for your sound system. you might be drawing too much power for what the stock alternator can do. You also might have a ground problem. Do lights in the car dim at all when this power loss happens?

 

id say disconnect the sound system from the battery and see if still does it. If it doesn't then you know where your problem is. if that is the case then you may need a stronger alternator or capacitor to hold the charge for surges of power, like turning on lights etc...

 

I have an amp but not a crossover. The speakers were installed at Best Buy, and the guy did a total hack job... Never going there again for audio. Then I got the sub and amp installed at a sound shop.

And okay thanks! I'll try those suggestions out later and get back to you guys.

 

So I just went out and tried your suggestions:

-The lights do not dim when it happens
-with the sub and amp disconnected, it still does happen.

Where do the ground wires run that I should check, and any other thoughts?

When the car was completely off, and I disconnected the sub/amp cable, the battery was pretty hot too (as in it kept sparking if the car's positive cable sides made contact). Is that supposed to happen?

 

And here's a photo of my battery setup

 

The positive ( red cable ) terminal and and the battery post aren't tightly joined. Is there a reason for this? All battery terminals need to be clean and tight.

 

That's as tight as I could get it :/ but I talked to a mechanic and he told me that I should definitely look into a new alternator.

Any recommendations for amps/place to order from?

Thanks again for all the help guys!

 

Back the connector from the red cable off until the connector slides over the post and sits even with the top of the post. The re-tighten the clamp. This should stop your power issues.

 

Oh...........my................God

 

^ YES!!!....YOU HAVE TO HAVE A GOOD CONNECTION FOR THE CAR TO WORK RIGHT.

OMG........

DUDE, we all have the same car and we all see the problem. If all the shops say you need a new alternator and say nothing about that SH!** battery connection they are all trying to rip you OFF.

 

alternators typically last 160k miles or so.
usually the brushes wear out and you can just replace those
instead of the whole unit. worked for me.
doubt you'll be needing to do so any time soon....

 

I went and did one of those free alternator tests at multiple auto stores and they all came back with failed voltage regulators.

I also fixed up the battery and everything was working much better. Still seeing the same problem with the headlights though when I'm driving, and now my stereo is starting to go in and out.

I know I'm pulling too much power with my system so something needs to be modified anyways. My buddy did his car and recommended a higher amp alternator and a capacitor.
Think I might just do that. I feel like my car is going die every time I drive it now...

 

lol guess they dont make em like they used to.
180k miles and counting on my circa 2005 denso alt.
shoulda hung on to my 94 factory original. d'oh!:no:

 

So I wanted to let anyone who was curious know what the problem was.

Turns out the LED bulbs I installed in my exterior lights (brake, reverse, 3rd brake) were drawing just enough amps to overload my stock alternator. I put all the original halogens back in and now everything is back to normal.

Still don't fully understand the issue since LEDs draw less power than halogens, but I read on a few other sites that changing out the bulbs to a kind your car wasn't made for can do that to your charging system.

What are the benefits of switching to LED bulbs in a car?

Thanks for all the help everyone! Glad the problem got resolved