Battery/charging problem

[97SerevoSX]

Recently my car died on me while driving. All the lights went dim and it finally pooped.

Charged the battery back up and it cranked over fine and then slowly the lights started going dim again.
Well I was driving behind my friend one night and he said my lights were really dim, then a few minutes later got bright again.

The next morning I tested the voltage output on the alternator with my multimeter by the positive terminal on the alt. and the ground on a bolt and it was 10.87 and was slowly dropping to 10.86, 10.85 etc.

So I replaced the alternator, even though when I took it to autozone it tested fine. I'm still having the same issue. I checked all of my grounds, and the wiring to the alternator, checked all of the fuses and everything is as it should be. I'm stumped!
Any ideas?

[drugsbunny]

Change the battery!

the battery must be bad!

[BNASTYs13]

yeh deff a dead battary

[DA KAOS]

You should check all grounds and make sure all the connections to the alternator are tight and free from any gunk. I know with my alternator I have to rev my car up to 3k to get it to charge. I think its a relay for me but it don't bother me. Hopefully things work out.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

[97SerevoSX]

Man, I just got this battery about 3 weeks ago (optima red top) from my friend's dad...

I'll try another battery tomorrow and let you guys know.

[rat240]

Clean the contacts

Next time post in small q thread

[97SerevoSX]

The contacts couldn't be cleaner

[97SerevoSX]

I replaced the battery today with a known good one. While I was testing the voltage, which was at a fairly steady 12.07 V, the car sputtered and died. After it died there was something clicking like a relay under the hood.

I checked but there's nothing that is related to the car running or the charging system in the relay box under the hood. The alt fuse is good, all of the fuseable links are still good (I checked them all with the multimeter for continuity).

I checked the fuse box in the kick panel on the driver's side and only found a few fuses that I thought could be the culprit. electron ign, alternator, and stater and all of them checked out good..

I have no idea what's going on with my car.

[wimernw]

Make sure the betery isn't a gel type. Another 240 driver was explaining to me how his gel type battery was causing problems.

[97SerevoSX]

I think the red top is a gel type, the other battery is not though. I don't think that is the problem though as the red top was fine before my sr swap and after the swap, but when I put my Ka back in (Sr had low comp on one cylinder) I have all these electrical issues all of a sudden

[97SerevoSX]

I replaced the battery, I replaced the alternator, I've checked every fuse and fuseable link and I still can't get the thing to charge, what is wrong!?

[wimernw]

My only guess is that something is drawing more juice than it should. Check all your aftermarket stuff that is wired to the battery first. After market sound system would be my first guess. Also see what it is that you're doing that makes the lights go dim. (Turning up the volume, windows up or down, messing with the AC, or even accelerating.) This way you could narrow it down at the very least. At this point I'm thinking it is a wiring problem from something aftermarket that got installed wrong.

[KiLLeR2001]

You should be getting around 13.75V at the battery terminals with the car running. Did you hook up the ground wire that attaches to the back of the alternator that EVERYONE seems to forget?

[wimernw]

You should be getting around 13.75V at the battery terminals with the car running. Did you hook up the ground wire that attaches to the back of the alternator that EVERYONE seems to forget?

Haha, I forgot about that too. That's probably it.

[97SerevoSX]

I disconnected the amp first thing because I thought it could be shorting out, however the battery and amp are in the trunk so it doesnt go far and there is a fuse on the amp.

I did connect that ground wire to the alt. as well. I wish I had done something stupid like that, it would make things sooo much easier.

Before I took the Sr out it was working fine, everything worked, the battery charged just fine. Put the Ka back in with the stock harness and it won't charge...
Someone suggested a corroded wire, I tested my new Sr harness from the positive terminal to the alternator and got .7 ohms I assume the Ka harness shouldnt be much higher if any, than that?

Also should mention that the Battery or charge light never comes on.

[97SerevoSX]

I've made a discovery!
I don't know how I missed this before, but the fuse boxes are grounding out.
Both the under hood box and the driver's floorboard are grounded.

I would assume this has something to do with when I put the Ka back in the car so I feel like that's a good place to start.

Every fuse in the engine bay fuse box is grounding out as well as all the power wires to every relay. Almost all the fuses in the floorboard box are grounding as well. The ones that aren't are the starter, wipers and I think the last was the airbag.

I also know that the wire going to the fuse box from the alternator, the wire going to the battery in the trunk, and the wire going to the starter are not grounded out when I seperate them from the wire that comes FROM the fuse box (the two big white wires that plug into the stock battery + terminal)

My question is, if one system like the wipers are grounding out, would that make the entire positive side of the car ground out??

What wire on the engine harness would cause the entire hot side to ground out?

I've checked all the under hood relays, and the ecu relay and they all test good.