Alt. or Batt.

[A+]

before i start struggling with removing this honda alt. I wanted a second opinion on my problem.
I got in my van yesterday and the battery light was on. I made it home but when i got back in an hour later the car was dead. I gave it a jump and went out for some gas. The damn van died at the gas station. I got another jump and the van died when i slowed down while i was driving into my garage.
SO, with that info. what would you guys think needs to be replaced? Im thinking alternator.

[94mstng94]

I’d go with the alternator. You probably toasted that battery as well though. I wouldn’t trust it.


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[lowthreeohz]

have the battery load tested first. if it's shot the alt won't be able to charge it. prob dropped a cell.

[A+]

the battery was replaced by the previous owner and is still under warranty through AAA. I hope the battery wasnt damaged but ill cross my fingers and hope that AAA will replace it if it was. Im gonna drop the battery off at Oreily's when if get off work and start on removing the alternator. Hopefully its just one or the other. F me if its both.

[DON SVO]

A bad battery can kill an alternator, since the alternator is constantly trying to share the battery as well. A bad battery is a dead cell or two will mimic a bad alternator since it is pulling so much juice from the alternator that the alternator can’t keep up.

[svauto-erotic855]

Both. Use a VOM to test the voltage at the battery with the engine running and every powered accessory turned on. If you do not have at least 13.4 volts you have killed the battery with either a bad alternator or bad wiring from the alternator.

[A+]

I picked up the battery from Oreily and they said that “it’s on it’s last leg” I guess AAA makes crap batteries because this one is 1 y/o. After I brought it home and reinstalled it, I rushed back to Oreily so they could test my alternator. Test showed low volt so the alt. is gone too! I’m gonna start doing my homework because installation looks like it’s gonna be hard ☹️

[LS1Goat]

Just FYI. If you need your alt. rebuilt Auto Start, Inc. in Lewisville is the place to go. They make it better than OEM. Those guys are good. Used them when my '03GT alt. took a dump. Reasonable prices.

[Gasser64]

Both.

That's the conclusion I've come to. I've been dealing with and figuring out the same issue lately. Its like if one of 'em dies, its probably best to replace both. If your alternator is dying, there's a good enough chance you've harmed your battery. Battery is dying, well now your alternator has been working to hard for too long.

I don't trust those lousy tests they have at the auto parts stores. They've failed me on many occasions. Saying a part was still good and then I chase my tail, only to find out in the end that the part was actually bad.

[A+]

I don't trust those lousy tests they have at the auto parts stores. They've failed me on many occasions. Saying a part was still good and then I chase my tail, only to find out in the end that the part was actually bad.

its gonna be a pain in the butt trying to pull out that alt. Ive been thinking about just throwing in a new battery and see what happens. Ive run the van a few time since the battery got charged but i disconnected it lastnight to be safe. Connected it this morning to drive to the train station and disconnected it again so that its not dead when i get off work. (I wont have time to work on it till saturday, thats why im doing that.)

[scootro]

why didn't you use your warranty at AAA for the battery and spend your cash for the alternator?

[scootro]

That's the conclusion I've come to. I've been dealing with and figuring out the same issue lately. Its like if one of 'em dies, its probably best to replace both. If your alternator is dying, there's a good enough chance you've harmed your battery. Battery is dying, well now your alternator has been working to hard for too long.

I don't trust those lousy tests they have at the auto parts stores. They've failed me on many occasions. Saying a part was still good and then I chase my tail, only to find out in the end that the part was actually bad.

no kidding an their battery tester fails every battery including good ones unless it's under warranty

[A+]

why didn't you use your warranty at AAA for the battery and spend your cash for the alternator?

i dont have AAA and the battery is under warranty under the previous owners name.

[Gasser64]

its gonna be a pain in the butt trying to pull out that alt. Ive been thinking about just throwing in a new battery and see what happens. Ive run the van a few time since the battery got charged but i disconnected it lastnight to be safe. Connected it this morning to drive to the train station and disconnected it again so that its not dead when i get off work. (I wont have time to work on it till saturday, thats why im doing that.)

Have you checked for a parasitic draw? All you gotta do is just get out your digital multimeter, and remove each fuse and put the prongs in the fuse slot. Then look at your meter screen and it will show you how much of a power draw is there. Then check the fuse diagram (and maybe google) to find out what all systems are on that circuit. Found one in the mustang that way. It might be something else draining your battery, worth a look. Oh and make sure the keys are out of the ignition in case some stuff gets powered up when they're in. Most of the time everything is off if they're not turned to the "on" position but I just leave 'em completely out just to be safe when doing this test.

[A+]

Well. The van left me stranded at a red light during rush hour traffic. Lucky for me it was right in front of richardson fire dept. they came out and pushed me out the way. They gave me a jump too but unfortunately it only gave me enough boost to get out of their way and die somewhere else. Luck for me, it was in a parking lot where my only option was to get my car towed. Well, I didn’t feel like waiting and there was an Autozone a few blocks down the road so I bought a battery and put it in so that I could go home. Sure enough, it started right up and brought me home but the battery light never turned off so I guess it’s the alt. or maybe I needed to drive it around some more so that the light could turn off? I’m not sure but I’ll be taking it back to Oreily to see how the alt. tests with the new battery. I haven’t checked for parasitic draw. It’s just a regular Honda Odyssey, I hope that won’t be a problem for me.