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Battery flatted after service?!

Something is badly wrong with the electrics... I'd now say the alternator.

I have changed my mind... you are unlikely to make it home in the dark, as the headlights will 'steal' any power available.
 
Oops that's not good...I wonder if the white smoke could be related to a slipping alternator belt....good luck getting home, that's the first thing.
 
Maybe the bearings have gone or somethings has burnt out, is the it the Rectifier its called?
 
Good news!
I managed to arrive home! I notice that the electricity is more alive if the rev is 2k or higher, so I told myself "fuk that, let's do it"

I was driving the whole way with 4th gear and 50mph, radio off, heating off, only the dip beam on (very dim). And I rev the engine when I need to stop at the junction.

Not 100% but I guess, the alternator is working, because I had experience of alternator failure before of my old car, the electrical system shut down completely, even jump start wouldn't help, had to tow it away.
 
I got told years ago when I first started driving that revving the engine and watching your headlights brighten and dim, following the RPMs (up and down) in otherwords was a sign of a failing alternator.

As its dark, maybe give that a go as you are parked up.
 
I also heard this Andy so might be the way to tell by your headlights
 
Holy crap if that's the real problem :(
How much for an alternator? DIY fitting?

My workmate asked me why the alternator spinning slowly when we were doing the jump start?

Should it be spin faster?
 
Not sure about that, have a look on Lings for a new price, compare that to reconditoned ones or from Ebay or EuroCarParts.

I'm not recommending any of these places Andy, just for you to estimate a price. Maybe some other guys can point you in a 7th Gen direction ;-)
 
Just saw your edit.

How does the belt feel on the alternator? Is it very tight or loose, on mine a very firm press around halfway along the long side should deflect it about 1cm or so.

Was there any noise when it was spinning, grinding etc? Was the smoke coming from there?
 
AndyB1976 said:
Just saw your edit.

How does the belt feel on the alternator? Is it very tight or loose, on mine a very firm press around halfway along the long side should deflect it about 1cm or so.

Was there any noise when it was spinning, grinding etc? Was the smoke coming from there?
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I got this white steamish smoke right after I serviced my car on Sunday, but it doesn't stay long, couple mins max and disappeared, perhaps the temperature is cold

The belt is very firm, can only press down for about 1cm by my thumb, I could hear a very gentle "veeeeeee" if I put my head closely, about 6-7 inches away from the bearing
 
AndyHK said:
My neighbour suggested me to put a new battery and test it for a few days before bring it to the garage
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nice quote from AndyB1976 lol :lol:

Can you get a meter at all, that will virtually pinpoint your problem removing guesswork and even worse, internet guesswork lol
 
This is the meter I have, it can also measure temperature with a separate lead (supplied) which can be useful to push down your vents to measure aircon performance - that should operate about 5°C I believe. When checking resistance of my HT Leads I had to measure it near 20°C to get an accurate reading. Turns out two of them were well outside the range of no greater than 25kOhm.

Personally if I was buying again I would spend more, maybe £100+ and get some min and max functions for voltage drop testing but this has done enough for me just now. You could argue your car is much electrical as mechanical, yet I bet most people have basic tools but no meter.



http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/uni-trend-50c-with-temperature-and-frequency-digital-multimeter-n78cb
 
Your clearly dependant on the car working so get it checked by a pro. Many of us could diagnose this in a few mins with a meter but its hard giving instructions over the net when you do not have a meter.

just pop it into a garage and they will diagnose for you.

ghetto test is start it and disconnect the negative from the battery lol
 
I wouldn't trust the reading the at moment because we don't know what state it is in, especially just off a charger. It might read fine about 12.6 and it might very well be fine but that is just one (of three) checks we need to do. By all means take a reading tonight, and then again in the morning and we'll have a baseline of sorts.

We really need to get it on the car, esp with the engine running and look for 14v to rule out the alternator. Are you going to risk the drive to work?

Its getting more murky, because its been jumped, revved hard, charged which could be disguising the real issue.


It sounds to me like the alternator, but you also have an old battery so that can't be discounted.
 
AndyB1976 said:
I wouldn't trust the reading the at moment because we don't know what state it is in, especially just off a charger. It might read fine about 12.6 and it might very well be fine but that is just one (of three) checks we need to do. By all means take a reading tonight, and then again in the morning and we'll have a baseline of sorts.

We really need to get it on the car, esp with the engine running and look for 14v to rule out the alternator. Are you going to risk the drive to work?

Its getting more murky, because its been jumped, revved hard, charged which could be disguising the real issue.


It sounds to me like the alternator, but you also have an old battery so that can't be discounted.
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My workmate is also my neighbour, so he will give me a lift without any problem.

So, I will take a reading later on, then tomorrow evening when I come back from work, see how much of the different in between.

Err......engine has to be running when taking the reading? The pins should touch the battery terminal block or the clips? :unsure: :eek: :p
 
just take a static reading from the battery once it's rested a few hours after coming off charge/use. Then when in car started put load onit by turning on lights,heater etc take another reading at the battery terminals, should read 14v+ with it running (charging)
 
Salim said:
just take a static reading from the battery once it's rested a few hours after coming off charge/use. Then when in car started put load onit by turning on lights,heater etc take another reading at the battery terminals, should read 14v+ with it running (charging)
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Thanks Salim, so I will take a few readings and post up here tomorrow ;)

I never use voltmeter before, that's why I don't know where the pins from the meter should connect to, or just touch the metal part would be ok........I'm so daft about this :(
 
ok, let the battery charge overnight and all day tomorrow.

Set your meter to 20v DC, ensure the leads are in (red)VOLT and (black)COM.
Touch the red lead to POSITIVE battery post, black lead to NEGATIVE battery post.

Tomorrow night take it off the charger take an immediate reading, it will maybe about 12.6, 12.7, 12.8 somewhere around there. If its down nearer 12.0 then that battery is finished.

***uming the battery is ok,, stick it in the car, and turn your headlights on for about 2-3mins but don't start the engine. Now take a reading here, again if its away down to 12.0 then battery is finished.

If that is all ok, start your engine and take a reading again, this should be above 14v. If its is lower and you rev the engine and the voltmeter fluctuates all over the place (like the headlight test) then its the alternator.
 
AndyB1976 said:
ok, let the battery charge overnight and all day tomorrow.

Set your meter to 20v DC, ensure the leads are in (red)VOLT and (black)COM.
Touch the red lead to POSITIVE battery post, black lead to NEGATIVE battery post.

Tomorrow night take it off the charger take an immediate reading, it will maybe about 12.6, 12.7, 12.8 somewhere around there. If its down nearer 12.0 then that battery is finished.

***uming the battery is ok,, stick it in the car, and turn your headlights on for about 2-3mins but don't start the engine. Now take a reading here, again if its away down to 12.0 then battery is finished.

If that is all ok, start your engine and take a reading again, this should be above 14v. If its is lower and you rev the engine and the voltmeter fluctuates all over the place (like the headlight test) then its the alternator.
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Yes Sir!

Nice and clear! I'll do that tomorrow after finished work.

Cheers Andy :)
 
No probs, its not that complicated after you have done it once. You are just in an unusual situation where you could have a dodgy battery (based on age) and a dodgy alternator at the same time.

As the other guys have said, buying a new battery will be a wise move due to its age. I don't think car batteries like being drained flat, and an 8yo battery will be on the limits of its operational life so that would hurt it all the more.

A battery from Holdcroft Honda as mentioned solves that issue, the alternator I'm not sure what your best option is.

Alternatively you might find that halfords or kwikfit etc are doing battery healthchecks, maybe for free - you could maybe try them as see what they say.

Had a look for you, might be worth a shot although their reputations often are slated lol.
http://www.kwik-fit.com/your-battery-check.asp

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ACArticleDisplay?storeId=10001&langId=-1&articleId=788003&categoryId=245348
 
It could be that a weak battery has wrecked the alternator, but I'm just adding speculation. From what's been said, the alternator is definitely faulty and needs replacement or repair (can't give specific advice, but usually alternators with electrical problems can be repaired with a new rectifier/regulator module).
 
Yeah I've read a weak battery causes the alternator to work harder and in the same statement that simply jumping a car, then driving it in the sole hope to charge the battery wears the alternator out quicker.

I guess in a nutshell the point was the alternator is only there to maintain system voltage, not try and recover it.
 
I'm at work right now and just talked to a mechanic workmate, he said that the best way is get the reading tonight, also get a new battery, it is 8 years old anyway, only the reading can tell where the problem comes from
 
Nice one...let us know how you get on. Remember the battery straight off the charger could show a slight overcharge or bang on the 12.6 - you can't necessarily trust this, straight off the charger!
 
Good evening, I got the reading here, so please tell me if it is the battery fault (finger cross it is)

1. The moment just disconnect from the charger -- 13.06

2. Rest for 15 mins after the first reading -- 12.26

3. With headlights dip beam on for 3 mins -- 12.19

4. Now, headlights still on, engine started and idling, for 2 mins -- 12.36

5. Rev up at 3000 rpm -- 12.67

So, battery or alternator?
 
Battery is dead/dying in my opinion.
battery-voltages.png



Alternator likely to be on its way out. Buy a new battery, then we can see if it resolves itself, or else at least some further investigation into the alternator, pulley, belt etc.

http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2010/01/how-to-test-a-car-alternator/
 
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