I think the alternator in my car just went out

[divinemartyr]

Any way to tell if it's the battery or the alternator? I don't have access to a voltimeter, but wondered if there's an easy way to figure this out. The "battery" indicator light in my car just went on. Any help?

dm

 

[Electric Amish]

If you were driving and it started running very sluggishly, lights dimming, etc. It's probably the Alternator or the belt.

Does the car have a charge gauge in the dash? If it's in the middle or so, it's probably the battery.

amish

 

[XZeroII]

Turn on your radio, lights, and everything else you can think of and let it run. If the lights dim, then it's the alternator (90% of the time).

 

[cavdraco]

any local shop should have a unit to test it and most will do it for free then you will know

 

[bozo1]

In older cars, if you yank one of the battery cables off while the car is running and it dies, your alternator is bad. Don't know if that's true on newer cars.

 

[Evadman]

Originally posted by: bozo1
In older cars, if you yank one of the battery cables off while the car is running and it dies, your alternator is bad. Don't know if that's true on newer cars.

Still works on newer cars, but you can create a voltage spike which is not good for onboard computers.

Just go to autozone and have them test the battery. they do it for free, like a bunch of places. ( NTB ) or just grab a $5 DVOm from Home Depot or something. With engine running, you should be over 12.6v on the battery.

 

[Vette73]

The only real job of the battery is to start your car. After that the Alt. does the rest.

If the battery or charge light came on while drving then your Alt. probable went out. Make sure you check the wires to it first. You can get the Alt. and battery tested for free at AutoZone.

What kind of car, year also.