Alternator? could be?

IdriveCarAwd · 10-07-2005

so i hook up the jumper cables and it starts. After that it runs for about a minute when i unhook the cables then it slowly but surely dies. I am thinking maybe it is the alternator, or maybe the battery. not so sure.

Jakey · 10-07-2005

so just kind of wondering what kind of car you have since you didn't specify whether it is a honduhh or a dsm but maybe a cadillac cause no matter how general a question you ask it is still nice to know some specifications about your car to make solving your problem easier for everyone

IdriveCarAwd · 10-08-2005

oh sorry, its a 92 talon tsi.

chengsta · 10-08-2005

yes, if you were to specify what type of car you have you might get some better answers. But getting back to what you had asked, I had the same problem with my 1990 eagle talon tsi with it starting fine with a jumper but died shortly after. Turned out that the alternator had bad diodes. So I just had it rebuilt since it was cheaper then buying a new one and it started up and ran fine again.

TheBlizzard · 10-08-2005

Jump the car and disconnect the battery, if the alternator is good the car should stay running on its own. If it dies the alternator is most likely dead. If the voltage regulator on the alternator went bad then there is a good chance it killed your battery in the process as well. So you might have to replace both.

Note. Before you replace the alternator itself though check the alternator fuse in the black fuse box under the hood of the car. I think 1Gs use the a 80amp. If that is blown it will cause all sort of problems.

From the sounds of it though, I would guess your alternator is bad.

And next time you post a tech question I want to see more information on your car other than its a 92 TSI. List mods, miles, ect. The more you tell us the easier it is to help you.

GVR-4579 · 10-08-2005

hey, first You need a volt meter, jump the car and then check what your reading is it should be anywhere from 13-15 volts, if you get this reading it is probly your alternator. It oculd be your battery, to check this you need to check voltage with no load on the battery, then put a load on the battery and see how far down the voltage comes, i recently helped a fried fix his car wich was a bad battery, it measured fine at 12.6 volts until you put even the smallest load on it, it would then jump down to 6 volts and in that case it was the battery not the alt. Also if you look up A&B auto they can test your alternator for free, and most checkers can do it as well.

Erik

Wizard · 10-08-2005

Ok, if the alt. is bad, you will get a reading of less than 12.8 Volts or more than 15 volts. If your reading is high, the alt is overcharging. If you are reading less than 12.8 volts, your alt. is not charging. Check your alt fuse, belt tension and connections at the back of the alt. first. Then you can remove both your alt and battery and haul them up to Advance Auto or AutoZone, etc to have them checked for free. Eliminates a lot of the unnecessary guessing. A bad alternator can often 'kill' a battery also.

If your only ride is your DSM, have someone jump you for a while. IE, with the other car running, keep charging your battery for at least 1/2 hour. Or, if available....use a battery charger. That should give you enough juice to make it before it dies. No radio, fan and lights if possible. They are just draining your battery even faster.

Wiz

CDeutsch · 10-08-2005

In this case it doesn't matter what type of car he has they all work the same. It's your alternator. Your car can live without a battery (once it's started) a lot longer then it can live without an alt.

quick2.4 · 10-20-2005

also check the 80amp fuse under the hood an the wires an terminals for broken wires or corrosion

iceminion · 10-26-2005

my wingnuts would slowly loosen themselves on the battery connection terminals, but yeah, if your alternator is stock, replace it, its going to die eventually....but replace it with a 90amp gvr4 alternator (I think stock dsm alternators are 65)