last night i was fixing my lights and i left them on the whole time i was doing it, as well as the cd player which i installed 2 days before, i went to my friends house and when i left the battery was almost dead. we ended up pop starting it and then i drove around for a while trying to get the batt to charge. this morning i came outside and the samne thing happened. i had to pop start it down my hill. whats going on...i just got a charging problem fixed. and i thought it was fine and then the stereo was put in and this happens...now the volt meter reads 12 or higher usually when the car is running. i turn it off for about 3 minutes and i try to start it...it barley starts with about 8 or 9 volts. and then as a few more minutes go by it won't start at all...anyone have any ideas????

 

whoever fixed the charging problem take it back and have them check it again. How old is the battery the age of it could have something to do with it.

 

Your battery could be dead. Like no good anymore.A "SYSTEM" drains a lot of juice too.

 

well the battery is new, they put it in when they fixed it and its not really a system, and the battery charges fine when the car is running, i think i have a drain somewhere...anyone?

 

Your alternator should be producing 14 to 15 volts.I would have that checked out.

 

ok that sounds reasonable, but i just put a new one in a while ago...but that was right when the problem with the charging system started, so this alternator charged a dead battery probably like 40 times. so the alt. is prob gone, but wait, if my alternator was gone the car wouldn't drive ok and have all the power it needed, i mean it still flies when i floor it, so how could it be the alternator??

 

First of all..........

The alternator is NOT is not meant to FULLY charge your battery. So if your battery is\was fully drained,have it recharge with a charger!!

A alternator that puts out 15V from the factory, is a DEFECTIVE alternator.

 

That is more than 15 volts and the alternator wouldn't be defective the voltage regulator would be.

 

sound like you need a SECOND battery for your system.
As stated the alt. will not completely charg the battery--put it on a charger, or put an inline shut of switch on the "system" so you can run it only when the ca is running.
I put a second battery in the storage area behind the pass. seat.

 

I love all these people jumping in with no clue (I don't mean KNONFS or dvls-7).

Deep discharges are VERY bad for standard lead acid starting batteries, especially the cheap kind. Draining it dead then recharging it with the alternator could have killed it, and possibly the new alternator as well.

You need to have the battery load tested, and have the alternator tested as well. Put an ahmmeter between the lead from the alternator to the battery and measure current when engine is off. Should be virtually 0.

 

Im not trying to "jump in" but I would just like to suggest a possibility that very well could be related to the alternator ampage.

If you have any sort of amp (meaning powered unit) that runs off the battery, the amp could be wired to stay on all the time. Meaning its not getting a signal to turn off. Check any power lights on ANY powered units in the car to see if they stay on when you turn off the accesories.

 

thanks all, i found the problem, it was a bad alternator, i put the old one in that came with the car and it works fine, although i am gonna get a new one very soon because i don't know how long this thing is gonna last...thanks again everyone

 

GTI a little light or something similar would take weeks to kill a good battery.