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Car Battery Draining?
This morning I tested my battery with a multimeter and cold it read 12.06. I had my wife start it up and it went to 10.30 and back up to 14.5. Yesterday my wife took to autozone and they said alternator was dead but didn't give her a reading. She then went to Oreilleys and It read 12.54 off,10.50 starting, and 14.1 running. They said starter,alt and battery were great. We gone through 3 new advanced auto batteries since june 2011. All dying within 3 month period.
I don't understand how it could be at 12.54 yesterday and now 12.06 today. Oreilleys said it was at 80%. Now its like 25%..
I have checked battery terminals,interior lighting,and even shut off the lighting inside. Radio is off,and nothing plugged into lighter. Its a 2000 ford windstar 3.8.
Somone said start pulling fuses but not sure what they are talking about or how to do this. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I don't understand why it was just
2 Answers
- Russ BLv 59 years agoFavorite Answer
What was the temperature outside when you were testing the battery? Remember, the battery should be between 60 and 100F for best results for an open circuit voltage test(the first one you did) and at 80F for the load test( 2nd and 3rd you did, the wrong way btw).
The only legit test you performed is the first one with your multimeter, and only if the battery temperature was between 60 and 100F, and you disconnected the ground cable before you did it. Te results seem alright, depending on what the temperature of the battery was.
The other tests, that seem to resemble the load test, that you got 10.3 and 14.5 from are not done the way you did it. That test is not performed by cranking your engine. It is performed using a load tester or a VAT.
- Anonymous9 years ago
After reading this, my first initial thought was the Alt. I am also very bias. I trust Orielly more than autozone. :)
I would check the connection from the battery to the fuse box. You should be able to take out the fuse box and check the wiring under it. Also check your battery fuse.
Good Luck!
