Alternator or something else??

[NSolano]

My brother just got back from work, he is 17 and he was scared cause his car wasn't working right. He had to get a ride from work home.
His 97 camaro that he just bought two weeks ago, suddenly lost power, he said that not even the accelerator was working and he barely had time to stop the car and park it. He said that it doesn't turn on anymore and I was thinking it was the battery, but aren't those symptons the alternator. A car just can't shut off like that while driving if it was the battery??
any help?
any cheap alternators around/?

[hockeyman]

Ok, well here goes my best shot:
1- If a car isn't cranking, try and jump it or replace the battery.
* I had a battery go bad once in my 86 T/A. I tried to jump it several times, but still got a clicking sound and no response from the starter. Turns out that a coil went bad in the battery and was causing it to cross-connect the + and - at the same time. Jumping it didn't help.
2- To (ghetto) check the alternator, get the car started/running, and disconnect the positive (+) side of the battery. If the engine dies, your alternator needs to be replaced.

-Marc

[Ian]

check battery terminals too.

[strange_trp]

DO NOT DISCONNECT BATT TERMINALS WHEN CAR IS RUNNING!!! I have personally seen this fry modules. It is inaccurate at best and very harmful if the diode bridge or voltage regulator in the alt is faulty because you have removed the batt from the circuit, which usually acts to absorb voltage spikes and surges before damage can occur.
DO NOT DO THIS!!!

if car will crank but not start, probably not batt or alt.
if car will not crank at all, check both batt and alt.

[ November 20, 2003: Message edited by: strange_trp ]</p>

[hockeyman]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by strange_trp:
DO NOT DISCONNECT BATT TERMINALS WHEN CAR IS RUNNING!!! I have personally seen this fry modules. It is inaccurate at best and very harmful if the diode bridge or voltage regulator in the alt is faulty because you have removed the batt from the circuit, which usually acts to absorb voltage spikes and surges before damage can occur.
DO NOT DO THIS!!!<hr></blockquote>

This is news to me. I never heard of this before, so I stand corrected. Take the alt to someone who can test it for you.
Thank you for the insight! [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

-Marc

[cassie]

Well, I had a *similar* problem. My car's battery gauge would fluctuate a lot while I was driving and when I came to a stop, especially. It stalled out on me a few times too. I replaced my alternator, checked my battery and all was fine. Then, about 5 days ago we replaced my MAFsensor, and I haven't even seen the SLIGHTEST fluctuation since.

[Jason McCallister]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>DO NOT DISCONNECT BATT TERMINALS WHEN CAR IS RUNNING!!!<hr></blockquote>

Agreed! That's old school stuff that doesn't work too well on FI cars.

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>A car just can't shut off like that while driving if it was the battery??<hr></blockquote>

FWIW: Recently, my battery terminal broke out of the battery. I had to get the car home from the tranny shop so I wedged it back into the battery. On the last one hundred feet from home, the battery terminal came out.... the gauge cluster shut down in sections and the engine started stumbling. :eek: It's possible the engine will stall if power is removed while engine is at idle... then that would defeat the purpose of the old school test. [img]graemlins/naughty.gif[/img]

[Ike]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by cassie:
Well, I had a *similar* problem. My car's battery gauge would fluctuate a lot while I was driving and when I came to a stop, especially. It stalled out on me a few times too. I replaced my alternator, checked my battery and all was fine. Then, about 5 days ago we replaced my MAFsensor, and I haven't even seen the SLIGHTEST fluctuation since.<hr></blockquote>

I'm interested in hearing more about this...so as to not hijack the thread, should there be a new one?

[cassie]

well...what would you like to know? I've had MAJOR problems with my car for the past year or so, and finally I'd say they're almost fixed, and all it took was a new MAF.

[strange_trp]

cassie i am guessing your idle was not quite right either, correct?
unstable idle will cause the batt gauge jump around a good bit.
glad you got it fixed. hope you took some time to learn to diag the sensor before throwing parts at it.

[strange_trp]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by hockeyman:

Thank you for the insight! [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

-Marc<hr></blockquote>

no prob man... we're all here to learn. [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

[cassie]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by strange_trp:
cassie i am guessing your idle was not quite right either, correct?
unstable idle will cause the batt gauge jump around a good bit.
glad you got it fixed. hope you took some time to learn to diag the sensor before throwing parts at it.<hr></blockquote>


actually the MAF was the first PART that I did throw at it. I tried diagnosing it, but every time got the diagnostic tool done on it, a different code would come up. I did full tune up and it didn't make much of a difference, so we decided to go to the MAF afterwards. I'm still having a problem with the car starting up thought. And, i have always idled around 1k

[strange_trp]

high idle speed, long starting times....
what codes are you getting now?
what diag equipment do you have?
after replacing MAF, you must reset PCM's adaptive learn. sometimes you can do this by pulling both pcm fuses for a while, but it is best done with scan tool.
pull the IAC and push the pintle all the way back. clean it and its passages with throttle body cleaner. put the iac back in, plug it up, turn on key but don't start yet. let it sit for about 10 seconds, press the gas pedal WOT and let off, wait a few more seconds and then start.

let me know if clearing adaptive learn helps, and if cleaning and resetting iac posistion helps. let me know if you have any codes stored now. which ones and they order they come up. if you have freeze frame data that is excellent as well.

hi idle all the time could also be caused by low coolant level, or bad ECT sensor/ ckt. what thermostat are you using?

[cassie]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by strange_trp:
high idle speed, long starting times....
what codes are you getting now?
what diag equipment do you have?
after replacing MAF, you must reset PCM's adaptive learn. sometimes you can do this by pulling both pcm fuses for a while, but it is best done with scan tool.
pull the IAC and push the pintle all the way back. clean it and its passages with throttle body cleaner. put the iac back in, plug it up, turn on key but don't start yet. let it sit for about 10 seconds, press the gas pedal WOT and let off, wait a few more seconds and then start.

let me know if clearing adaptive learn helps, and if cleaning and resetting iac posistion helps. let me know if you have any codes stored now. which ones and they order they come up. if you have freeze frame data that is excellent as well.

hi idle all the time could also be caused by low coolant level, or bad ECT sensor/ ckt. what thermostat are you using?<hr></blockquote>

i will do that this weekend

stock thermostat

[Ike]

What if the voltage drops occur just like explained before (random fluctuation at idle, drops when braking, etc.) without a searching idle. Mine idles solid, but peroidically the voltage gauge acts funny. And it's not consistent; it never acts funny when I'm trying to show some one!

Can I get some love? :(