charging woes part III "The Return"

[tim eh?]

ok we've been through this before.... how complicated can a charging system be?

(depends on the idiot testing it, i guess )

3rd alternator exhibits the same symptoms as the previous 2... basically...
-14.3v at idle nothing on
-12.0v at idle everything on
supplier insists all 3 were good.

Battery loses charge overnight (last night 12.50 to 12.39... maybe not so bad? I will try again tonight...)

Draw test = 20mA very consistently now.

Everything stock except stereo head unit which I am very confident is not suspect.
Anything electrical works 100% except a fog light indicator in the clusterboard, the passenger in-seat heat, and the fuel guage is whacked.

Battery passed a load test at a trusted garage last wednesday. New december 2007. Moll 91, i guess that's small but it's stock size at least.

I'm testing with two cheap multimeters but they compare well so I am confident with my results.

if you are bored with life you can read some long backgrounds (ptI ptII) and a funny noob hijack of an otherwise useful shogun thread that is somewhat related,
but I think that's all the important stuff.

it's gotsta be the battery? no? how 4sure is a load test?

aaaaargh i'm going !




*-AE was right all along i hope? since this post i had it tested and it passed... but... (?)

I'd venture to guess you have a bad cell or two in the battery so you have voltage but not the amperage to back it up, and it is dragging your alternator output down by being a constant load.