battery dieing

[polywideblock]

hi got an electrical problem ,know nothing about car electrics.when you hook up battery ammeter goes into discharge ,when you start motor goes further into discharge and goes all the way when you put foot on brake or turn on indicators(moves back and forth) after an hour engine will just cut out and battery is dead. any idea where to start ?bad alternator was suggested

[charger Downunder]

You may have a bad or flat battery stick it on the charger.
Check the earth.
Pull all fuses put one it at a time and see if you can work out what is draining the battery as you put them back in one at a time.
Dont leave the battery hooked up when parked in case of a fire.
It is normal for the ammeter to go into discharge if you have a flat battery.

[polywideblock]

You may have a bad or flat battery stick it on the charger.
Check the earth.
Pull all fuses put one it at a time and see if you can work out what is draining the battery as you put them back in one at a time.
Dont leave the battery hooked up when parked in case of a fire.
It is normal for the ammeter to go into discharge if you have a flat battery.

battery is fully charged at the start of all this each time. gets taken out of car and charged,brand new battery(EXIDE) was the first thing i thought of /been checked. ammeter goes into discharge on a full battery

[charger Downunder]

You have a serious problem if it drains the battery that quick,you better start searching and checking. When did this start.

[polywideblock]

when i had ignition switch replaced by "reputable"auto electricion. ended up with wire running through grommet in firewall to hot side of ballast  because he "didn't trust my 40 year old bulkhead connector" don't know what else he did, but he is no longer in business. shop is empty!I'm stuck with this crap he also"split" my tail lights so outside half flashes as indicator and middle half is brake light for rego in nsw

[b5blue]

Any parts store will check Alt. output for free....

[garner7555]

I would get the alternator checked first. Sounds like it might not be charging, or either that guy didn't get it hooked back up right in the harness.

[charger Downunder]

when i had ignition switch replaced by "reputable"auto electricion. ended up with wire running through grommet in firewall to hot side of ballast  because he "didn't trust my 40 year old bulkhead connector" don't know what else he did, but he is no longer in business. shop is empty!I'm stuck with this crap he also"split" my tail lights so outside half flashes as indicator and middle half is brake light for rego in nsw

I thought these days they are happy with the way it is in the states and they leave it alone.

You may have to take it to another shop or get one of the mobile electricians out.

[Dino]

when i had ignition switch replaced by "reputable"auto electricion. ended up with wire running through grommet in firewall to hot side of ballast  because he "didn't trust my 40 year old bulkhead connector" don't know what else he did, but he is no longer in business. shop is empty!I'm stuck with this crap he also"split" my tail lights so outside half flashes as indicator and middle half is brake light for rego in nsw

Undo all he did and bring it back to stock specs, then when the battery no longer drains do the mods you need to do as they are supposed to be done.

[charger Downunder]

As preventative maintenance  it would be wise to split/pull apart the bulkhead connecter clean it all and apply some dielectric grease to the wire connections. Plus run some relays for high and low beam so all the power isn't running up through the dash and back.

[polywideblock]

when i had ignition switch replaced by "reputable"auto electricion. ended up with wire running through grommet in firewall to hot side of ballast  because he "didn't trust my 40 year old bulkhead connector" don't know what else he did, but he is no longer in business. shop is empty!I'm stuck with this crap he also"split" my tail lights so outside half flashes as indicator and middle half is brake light for rego in nsw

I thought these days they are happy with the way it is in the states and they leave it alone.

You may have to take it to another shop or get one of the mobile electricians out.

in nsw you have to "split" tail lights if they only have brakes/indicator can't have one brake light while the other flashes have to have two. did some asking around turns out he had a stroke and fell off his perch, family moved in and cleaned out shop in 3 days!,was always told don't speak ill of the dead so that's the last I'll say about him!   other than to say that will teach me to go looking for someone with 45 years in the business.think the mobile leco might be the go as i wouldn't know were to start !greatest fear is a fire

[Paul G]

hi got an electrical problem ,know nothing about car electrics.when you hook up battery ammeter goes into discharge ,when you start motor goes further into discharge and goes all the way when you put foot on brake or turn on indicators(moves back and forth) after an hour engine will just cut out and battery is dead. any idea where to start ?bad alternator was suggested

when i had ignition switch replaced by "reputable"auto electricion. ended up with wire running through grommet in firewall to hot side of ballast  because he "didn't trust my 40 year old bulkhead connector" don't know what else he did, but he is no longer in business. shop is empty!I'm stuck with this crap

If the alternator is going to "discharge" side as soon as the battery is hooked up, something is drawing power from it when it should not be. With the battery hooked up check all your lights around the car, cig lighter, glove box light, etc. to make sure they are off. Is that new wire he ran from the ballast resistor connected to a switched source from the ignition switch? Better to ask, does the engine shut off when you turn the key off?

Power to run the car can flow from two sources, the battery, and the alternator. They both power the car, just from two different directions if you know what I mean. When the ammeter is on the discharge side, power to run the car is coming from the battery, hence "discharging the battery". When the ammeter is on the charge side, "charging the battery" power to run the car is coming from the alternator. When the ammeter is in the middle, the battery is fully charged and the alternator is feeding the load of the electrical demands of the car. The two power sources meet up in the middle kind of. Joined together at the fuse box. Normal conditions, turn the key to the "run" position, the ammeter will move slightly to the "discharge" side, meaning the battery is feeding the load since the alternator is not turning yet. After the engine starts the ammeter will be on the "charge" side for a short bit, just to recharge the battery after start up. At night, head lights on, maybe the wipers going, step on the brake, you will notice the ammeter go to "discharge". Power to run the car is coming from the battery until the engine gets back up to speed and the alternator can again recharge the battery and feed the needs of the car.

Try this. With the engine running remove the negative lead from the battery. If the alternator and regulator are working properly the engine should continue to run, being powered by the alternator. If the engine dies immediately after the battery cable is removed the charging circuit, alternator or regulator, is not working properly. It does not mean they are faulty, it just means they are not working properly.

[polywideblock]

hi got an electrical problem ,know nothing about car electrics.when you hook up battery ammeter goes into discharge ,when you start motor goes further into discharge and goes all the way when you put foot on brake or turn on indicators(moves back and forth) after an hour engine will just cut out and battery is dead. any idea where to start ?bad alternator was suggested

when i had ignition switch replaced by "reputable"auto electricion. ended up with wire running through grommet in firewall to hot side of ballast  because he "didn't trust my 40 year old bulkhead connector" don't know what else he did, but he is no longer in business. shop is empty!I'm stuck with this crap

If the alternator is going to "discharge" side as soon as the battery is hooked up, something is drawing power from it when it should not be. With the battery hooked up check all your lights around the car, cig lighter, glove box light, etc. to make sure they are off. Is that new wire he ran from the ballast resistor connected to a switched source from the ignition switch? Better to ask, does the engine shut off when you turn the key off?

Power to run the car can flow from two sources, the battery, and the alternator. They both power the car, just from two different directions if you know what I mean. When the ammeter is on the discharge side, power to run the car is coming from the battery, hence "discharging the battery". When the ammeter is on the charge side, "charging the battery" power to run the car is coming from the alternator. When the ammeter is in the middle, the battery is fully charged and the alternator is feeding the load of the electrical demands of the car. The two power sources meet up in the middle kind of. Joined together at the fuse box. Normal conditions, turn the key to the "run" position, the ammeter will move slightly to the "discharge" side, meaning the battery is feeding the load since the alternator is not turning yet. After the engine starts the ammeter will be on the "charge" side for a short bit, just to recharge the battery after start up. At night, head lights on, maybe the wipers going, step on the brake, you will notice the ammeter go to "discharge". Power to run the car is coming from the battery until the engine gets back up to speed and the alternator can again recharge the battery and feed the needs of the car.

Try this. With the engine running remove the negative lead from the battery. If the alternator and regulator are working properly the engine should continue to run, being powered by the alternator. If the engine dies immediately after the battery cable is removed the charging circuit, alternator or regulator, is not working properly. It does not mean they are faulty, it just means they are not working properly.

car starts and stops with key .  ammeter goes to half way discharge as soon as i turn key , goes 3/4 discharge with motor running further if you put foot on brake or turn on indicators  will try battery lead test next time I'm over at storage

[b5blue]

Could be a bad regulator, no Alt. output, weak battery or even poor ground to regulator, Alt, chassis, engine. Verify these, find out exactly what the mech. changed and clean the bulkhead conn. with salt and vinegar per my topic. It could possibly be something has a "jumper wire" added that is screwing up normal function. 
Will the car run with the battery disconnected?

[polywideblock]

Could be a bad regulator, no Alt. output, weak battery or even poor ground to regulator, Alt, chassis, engine. Verify these, find out exactly what the mech. changed and clean the bulkhead conn. with salt and vinegar per my topic. It could possibly be something has a "jumper wire" added that is screwing up normal function. 
Will the car run with the battery disconnected?

you've just jogged my memory. with old ignition switch after market CD turned on/off with key  e.g. with car switched off CD would not work ,when i went to pick it up after ignition switch replacement  CD was on with keys in shop i demanded that he put CD back the way he found it took a couple of extra hours wonder if he's spliced into something that he shouldn't have

[b5blue]

 

[nascarxx29]

Get the alternator checked at a auto parts store.Alt and regulator require good chassis ground.You can get a 12 volt testlight between + battery and pos cable .And remove fuses one at a time or unhook misc connections to pin point trouble area with all accesories turned off.Testlight stays on theres a draw on power.It needs to be out until a circuit is completed. For example open and closing of door and interior light.Door closed light out
Always check bulkhead ammeter connection points and fusebox alt &reg connection starter relay any power distribution point.Look at a wiring diagram for you car take 1 wire at a time with testlight checking for power

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