Good to be back, haven't been able to come around much anymore. I got new headlights and foglights, pretty sweet, but now I may have an actually problem. I was cruising last night, and happened to notice when I was sitting in traffic, my battery gauge was all the way down to the L, and my interior lights went off as did my CD player. BUT if I rev the engine, the batter meter goes right back to the middle, and everything works just find.

After that happened, I started home, which was completely open road, and even if I got to a red light or stop light on the road, it didn't happen again. I replaced my alternator 5 years ago, and my battery 4 years ago, I really hope neither of those are an issue with it being only a short amount of time, and I don't have a big sound system or anything to suck up a lot of juice.

Any suggestions? My buddy thinks it might be a belt, but everything sounded and looked ok. Last time my alternator went out, I could barely make it 10 miles, last night I drove about 50 or 60 miles, so I'm thinking it's not that. Any input would be great, thanks guys.

 

Yep,
Alternator is on its way out the door.

 

Dammit. 2 alternators in 5 years, this blows.

 

It may be the battery and not the alt. You need to have them checked out. If a cell is going dead in the battery it can do the same thing. If you have a volt meter connect it to the battery and let the engine idle. It should show a minimum of 13.5 volts, if it's less it's the alt. With the engine off it should read at least 12V, if it's lower it's the battery. Also is the serpentine belt still tight? How are the battery connections? Are they dirty or loose?

 

Sounds like either of the two. 4 years is about the time typical batteries go out.

 

The battery connections are a little dirty, I'll clean those off after lunch.

 

Both are free to get checked at mostparts stores. If it's your alternator try changing the brushes instead of the whole alternator. They are about $15 instead of $150 for a rebuilt alternator. They are also very easy to change. But if your alternator is worn out it probably took the battery with it.

 

I've always been curious about changing brushes. Never did it, but I wonder if there's a way to boost output while doing it?

 

You can change brushes but you need to have the commutator turned then so the new brushes don't wear out too soon. It's best to have shop rebuild yours rather than doing it your self.

 

Yeah I'm gonna call my mechanic in the morning, to at least take a look at it. It started right up, and the battery gauge went straight ot the middle. I cleaned as much of the crap off the battery connections as I could with what little I had to work with.