my crx 90si had the battery light on, and then i hit traffic, and my cd player was acting funny, my tach was dead, my lights were dimming slightly, and then my car died and i barely made it to the shoulder.

i then had someone jump the car, and it started, but then died after a minute.

i had to get it towed

when i got it home, it started after jumping it, and it ran for over 30 minutes???, which i did'nt understand.

the weird part is that i had this EXACT same thing happen in june, and after i had the batter and alternator tested, and they tested good on the voltmeter at O'Reilly's, so i never did anything and i drove the car all the way til now, but then it happens again?

so, the tow truck driver said the battery terminal cable needs to be replaced, and that it was too loose, so i will do that today, but i was wondering if anyone thinks i should just replace the alternator and battery no matter what?

just because an alternator tests at 14 volts, does that necesarily mean it is good?

cause i don't understand why the car runs again after all that happening those 2 different times, and i want to prevent it from happening again, and any tips would help, thanks

 

First, tighten the battery cable. And while you're at it, check the end of the negative cable where it attaches to the trans and make sure it's a clean connection and the wires aren't frayed or corroded.

If the alternator raises the volts to 14 volts, it should be good. However, this test is normally done at idle. At higher rpms, the brushes could be worn enough to reduce the output and cause problems, like the battery light coming on.

 

here is a way to test out if its your battery or alternator, what you do is jump start your car again, while running take off positive cable from the battery, if the car keeps runnin-alternator is good , if it dies-altern . most likely your gonna need to recharge your bat or get a new one if its already drained.

 

the tow truck driver jumped the battery after it was back in my driveway, and it started, and then he disconnected the negative battery cable, and the car was still running without it, so are you saying that means my alternator is good?

i am crossing my fingers, cause i don't want to spend much cash right now, i would rather get new shocks.

btw, it was the terminal closest to the bumper, i think it was the negative?

 

ok man. Do you have a stereo in your car? When runningn high wattage stereos/amps then your stock alt will be fried bushings after about that long. So replace with a hihger amp bosch alt.

 

yeah, actually i have 2 rockford fosgate amps, 2 10" woofers in a box, etc...., could that be it? just upgrade to higher amp rated alternator?

 

yea if your car kept running , altern .
if you gotta system just get a capacitor, i think that
should help.

 

had a similar problem and it ended up being my main relay.
(while driving my stereo would shut off or lose time but the dash clock wouldn't, car would die wouldn't start onits own but would run fine after being jumpstarted, etc. etc...)

 

Okay first off....NEVER DO THIS...EVER..since you dont want to spend mad cash this would be the worst thing to do since youll have to buy a new alternator....doing this creates what is called electrical spike.....you can send up to 120 volts to the alternator in sec. and can ruin it as well as the wires to it.....BIG PROBLEM

next.....you say your running 2 rockford subs....well being you have more power output what is your wire gauge? It should at least be 8 or 4...and you should have either a capacitor or a higher amp alternaotr...

hows the fluid in your battery.....you know you can get a 14 volt reading on a battery that has extremely low electrolyte levels.......

is your battery clean? and are the terminals clean?

With your system your battery can have peaks where at certani times it will handle stress but after a while your batterys plates will start to get sulfated so much as to where they cant produce as much power....when this happens your car wont start so you jump it also bad but somtimes a must....this helps to recharge the battery hence burn of the sulfate and clean up your plates......

your battery can and will charge itself but if its old or its dirty after a while it cant recharge enough and will die........

 

I had the EXACT same thing happen to me in my 90 CRX Si a few weeks ago, bad alternator......I had the same symptoms as you described, batt light on, tach not working or acting funny, and my clock was dimming in and out too. I had put another alternator on.....Problem solved..


[Modified by Forever JDM, 9:02 AM 12/14/2002]

 

just to follow up, i had the battery tested, and it was good, and he recharged it also, and then i replaced my negative battery cable, since the connector was kind of bent, and i switched it with a thicker cable.
the car starts fine, and i drove with no problems, and the next thing i will do is take the alternator out and have autozone test it for me, and go from there.
the only thing i did'nt do is check the battery fluid levels, cause i did'nt think my battery needed that, but i will check it to make sure.

i cleaned the terminals and battery also.

i am hoping that the alt tests good, but otherwise i will fork over the 88 bucks.

but as far as my stereo system, i don't know how many watts my two amps are, i need to look at them and find out, but i don't think i need a higher wattage alternator, cause i have heard of people with real high wattage systems that are just running a stock alt with no probs.
my car has 150k miles on it, and i never replaced the alt on it before, and just because i know it is an old alt, it almost makes me want to just replace it just so i won't have to worry about it.

one thing which was weird is that each of the two different times my car died like this, it was in almost stopped traffic, with lights on and air on also, and maybe that just makes the alternator strain more, but i am not sure, just hoping it won't happen again.

 

I had a similar experience.
Just installed boomin system and went to start car and nothing.
Tried jumping but wouldnt start but it would push start (??).
finally figured out the starter power wire was completely corroded and fell off.
Replaced the starter wire and fired right up.
Ran good for 2 days then one day it wouldnt start again.
Battery was dead. Put newer battery in and fired right up again ( but no battery light). It was good for about a day and died again. I tried another battery and fired right up again ( this time battery light came on). I charged battery while i replaced the alternator with a stock replacement, installed new negative battery cable plus some extra grounds( batt to chassis + alt to chassis). Fired it up and with lights on and system bumping the battery tested at a hair over 15 v.
Now she runs and starts like a champ.

 

to follow up one more time, i replaced the negative cable, had the battery test good

then i was pretty sure the alternator was good, cause someone said if i have the car running, and take the negative battery cable off and the car is still running that it means its a good alternator.

so, my car starts right away and drives fine one day, and today i went to work going 70 on the highway, then i notice the battery light is back on?????, and it stays on all the way til i get to work, so now what does this mean?, i thought i was done with this problem, but apparently i am not.

but do you think i need to actually take the alternator out and have it tested?, or is there any reason anyone knows why the battery light would be on? thnks