Battery drain problems

[waxikus]

cheers folks. I and my wife are long time festiva fans. Our current (and second) Festiva is having issues and I thought I'd ask for some help as I have not been able to get this one done myself.

1988 Festiva, Manual

Long story short, I have replaced the alternator twice, battery keeps draining. We gave up and took it to a shop which diagnosed a burned wire to the alternator. This was replaced and the car ran fine for a few weeks, but then the battery charge light started flickering. It would go away when I accelerated or revved the engine.

yesterday, the car wouldnt start. I'm assuming the battery has drained again, this has happened before and a new battery gets her going, but only for a few days obviously.

Before I dig in with a THIRD alternator, do any of you have any suggestions?

many thanks

[mechanicaldj]

have you checked for a battery drain?

using a 12volt test light, disconnect the negative battery cable and ground the test light on the "-" terminal and the test light probe on the cable

should be very dimly lit if your radio is still plugged in and your doors are shut

if it is brightly lit : you have a severe battery drain


then start pulling the fuses one-by-one until the brightly lite test light goes dim

then trace the defective circuit using your owners manual

[GenevaDirt]

the battery charge light started flickering. It would go away when I accelerated or revved the engine.

this statement leads me to believe that the belt is slipping

[jglutz]

^^very possible...buit after multiple alt's?

The most recent alt was changed prior to the wire which may have been the original problem....the most recent alt may have been damaged prior to the changinging of the wire.

The wire being "burnt" could have been cuses by eithe a bad battery...blown cell...or bad ground.

My sugestion...clean all the electrical connections from the + of the battery thru and including the fusible links....do the same for the negative post...follow the wire from the bat and clean all the connections...thoose with screws/bolts thru them...not the clip on type.

[waxikus]

thank you for the tips. our festiva is on the road again - basically I believe the burnt wire damaged the last "good" alternator. I've replaced it, and have a new battery (free replacement) and I'm running a voltometer - everything is checking out.

special thanks for the pulling fuses tip - good to know

[sanjeet]

Good on you waxikus and the voltmeter is a really good idea and you can monitor the alternator output....the comment about the fan belt tension is good too and check you don't have the belt too tight or too loose, check your manual for the correct tension.