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Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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Thor
Novice
Oct 1, 2012, 7:28 AM
Post #1 of 7
(1893 views)
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Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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Hi all -
I woke up to an electrical problem on our 2003 Dodge Neon. (regular 2.0 litre) It hadn't been driven in a few days. When I went to start it, it clicked a little and everything went dim. I tried a portable starter pack on it, and it would start - but when I take the cables off, the dash lights and gauges go crazy. eventually it would sputter and die. Put it on to charge a while & jumped from another vehicle. It started and ran somewhat stable. I drove it on into town to have the battery & charging system checked out. Most of the way, the gauges and dash lights were still looking like a carnival.
Got it to AutoZone and managed to get a tester on the battery. It showed the charge was fluctuating between 5 & 15 volts at the battery. They're charging the battery to do a bench test and get me back home. Does it sound like a given that the problem is the alternator? Hate to spend $100 on a part without being pretty certain. This is the first sign of a problem like this - not like it's been acting weak or quirky lately.
So - any opinions on whether it is likely the alternator, or could there be another component that's causing the problem? Could it be some type of regulator or something, or is all that internal with the alternator?
Thanks for any help you can offer.
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Oct 1, 2012, 7:38 AM
Post #2 of 7
(1884 views)
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Re: Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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It needs known good, charged battery and connections to diagnose this out any more. I think alternator is regulated by computer control on this so bench testing may not show a bad alternator itself. I think it's bad connections and battery so far,
T
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Thor
Novice
Oct 1, 2012, 7:53 AM
Post #3 of 7
(1863 views)
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Re: Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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Thanks Tom. One thing I failed to mention - I did take the battery terminals loose, cleaned the clamps & posts, and ran some sandpaper over each. I imagine there are plenty more connections.
So I guess a bad battery could show some weird charging readings couldn't it? Well - once it gets a good full charge, if it tests good we can put it back in the car & then retest charging.
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Oct 1, 2012, 8:07 AM
Post #4 of 7
(1862 views)
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Re: Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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OK - have battery tested but charged up first. Connections can look good and not be. All are only as good as the weakest. Follow battery cables to where they go, positive ends up at starter and negative ends up at engine block for most all.
It could show 5-15v so right now I tend to doubt the alternator itself just yet. Battery itself shouldn't be so intermittent but who knows? You've already had it off but watch out disconnecting batteries as it resets things you may not know of or mess things up. At a minimum always remove negative cable first and positive last and negative back on last when done with playing there. Check any wiring items around where battery was if out for corrosion too.
Mopars seem to be particularly fussy about a good battery and connections but all are really,
T
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nickwarner
Veteran
/ Moderator
Oct 1, 2012, 3:44 PM
Post #5 of 7
(1834 views)
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Re: Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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Chrysler came up with a great brainchild disaster to regulate the alternator with the PCM. Problem is, they also made a crappy PCM. If the PCM alternator field coil circuit is bad, you won't be able to charge this battery with any alternator. You would of course have to verify that the alternator is indeed good and that the circuit integrity to the PCM from it is good. There is a bypass that installs an old-school external regulator into this which is cheaper than the PCM replacement. Hammer Time has some great diagrams on this and has done many himself and I'm sure he'll be popping up with a post soon.
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Hammer Time
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Oct 1, 2012, 3:46 PM
Post #6 of 7
(1832 views)
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Re: Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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I don't see that anyone has even tested the battery or charging system yet.
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We offer help in answering questions, clarifying things or giving advice but we are not a substitute for an on-site inspection by a professional.
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Thor
Novice
Oct 2, 2012, 5:06 AM
Post #7 of 7
(1819 views)
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Re: Electrical issue on 2003 Neon
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So far - things look as well as I could have hoped for. Left the battery at the parts store and let it charge fully. They said it showed bad as soon as they load tested it. Replaced with a new battery and all appears well.
I guess as fast as this all happened, I really didn't think it was going to be the battery. The thing had not shown any signs of weakening or dragging when starting the car. And then to act so goofy when it was jumped, I thought we had some other issue.
Thanks for all the thought and insight - I'll let you know if anything else shows up.
Steve
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