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cant find reason car loses power
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matt5000
New User
Dec 31, 2007, 7:27 AM
Post #1 of 2
(1413 views)
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cant find reason car loses power
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Hi. Ive got a '97 Mercury Tracer. 2.0 liter engine. Base model. The problem: I had the alternator replaced when I bought the car. The 2nd day I had it, I was driving and the car started losing power. First the headlight,then the dash, then the engine, until it died. The next day, it started and drove fine(all the way back to the auto garage I bought it from). He replaced the alternator again. We both established that it was the problem. Ive driven the car for two months and a few hundred miles since then with NO problems. Two days ago, the same thing happened as the day I bought it. It died. After letting it sit for a day, it started and drove the twelve miles back to my house. The way the car acts is just like a charging system malfuction(just like an alternator) Ive inspected everything that I could see. Please help me figure this out. Thank you so much in advance. .matt.
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Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Dec 31, 2007, 8:33 AM
Post #2 of 2
(1409 views)
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Re: cant find reason car loses power
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Hmmm? Could it be the alternator again?? I suppose it could but it's getting unlikely. Have you checked the voltage output with engine off and engine running? Try that. Off should be about 12v not lower. Running you'll see it jump up over 14v and when you turn on items like headlights, blower, rear window defroster it has a good load on it and must stay above perhaps 13.2v or you are losing the battle and using just the reserve of the battery.
The alternator needs amps from the battery to be able to make more amps to put back. If there's a break or weakness in the main "bat" wire for an alternator it could give it troubles. It would still bench test ok though. Not so common but I've had several batteries that by themselves have problems and short out within them and can drain so much juice that no alternator can keep up. This is most common with batteries over three years old or that might have been mishandled like dropped which can happen even before you get a new one. Also know that the plates of a battery should never touch each other which is out of sight. As they age and with use the flake off bits like dandruff and the bottom of it can handle just so much of that before the pile hits the plates and it shorts itself - ha - then you bump it, charge it up and it might behave again. Any chance a battery has done this it doesn't get a second chance with me.
One more: If a battery has been left discharged and exposed to freezing temps it can freeze the electrolite and that is very damaging to a battery,
T
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