'88 Accord--Battery, Alternator...?
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Joined: Mar 2003
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From: Jacksonville, FL
'88 Accord--Battery, Alternator...?
I have an '88 Honda Accord LX with 150K+ on it. Last night while at my friends, I went to start my car up and it was completely dead--wouldn't turn on at all. So we jumped it off his car and drove it to the store (I stayed in the car with it running) and back hoping it'd charge up. Got it back and shut it off then tried to start it up and it was completely dead again. It worked fine on the initial drive over to his house, so I'm wondering what the problem is. I checked the appropriate fuses and they look fine. It could be the battery, but I'm thinking it's the alternator.
When I drove it home last night, I didn't listen to my stereo or anything. But whenever I tapped the brakes (putting extra load on the system) the battery light would pop on and the lights would dim and then go back to normal again. So either there's a belt loose or the alternator is shot all together, right?
Something that leads me to think the latter is one, the mileage on my car, and two, the fact that I have a 250W amp hooked up in the car. I'm sure it overloads the system because my headlights generally dim when the sound is turned up and my subs hit. I've had this hooked up for about three years so the load could have shot my alternator over time, no?
I'm a student and this thing just gets me from point A to B, so I want to spend as little as possible fixing it. Don't want to buy a new battery if that's not the problem. Any easy way to diagnose EXACTLY what the problem is?
Thanks for any help.
When I drove it home last night, I didn't listen to my stereo or anything. But whenever I tapped the brakes (putting extra load on the system) the battery light would pop on and the lights would dim and then go back to normal again. So either there's a belt loose or the alternator is shot all together, right?
Something that leads me to think the latter is one, the mileage on my car, and two, the fact that I have a 250W amp hooked up in the car. I'm sure it overloads the system because my headlights generally dim when the sound is turned up and my subs hit. I've had this hooked up for about three years so the load could have shot my alternator over time, no?
I'm a student and this thing just gets me from point A to B, so I want to spend as little as possible fixing it. Don't want to buy a new battery if that's not the problem. Any easy way to diagnose EXACTLY what the problem is?
Thanks for any help.
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Joined: Jan 2003
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Re: '88 Accord--Battery, Alternator...? (iam7head)
Could be the battery as well...
Measure voltage across your battery terminals with the engine running - it should be 14v or more. Then measure again after you turn off the engine, it should be around 12v. If it is, then measure it again (engine off) after a couple hours with everything off.
If it won't stay up around 14v with the engine running, its your alternator. Especially if that's with the stereo turned off. If it drops off way below 12v with the engine off, then your battery doesn't hold a charge.
Measure voltage across your battery terminals with the engine running - it should be 14v or more. Then measure again after you turn off the engine, it should be around 12v. If it is, then measure it again (engine off) after a couple hours with everything off.
If it won't stay up around 14v with the engine running, its your alternator. Especially if that's with the stereo turned off. If it drops off way below 12v with the engine off, then your battery doesn't hold a charge.
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