Battery problem

You didn't state the age of the battery --If 3-4 years replace it

"Kevin Boylan" <k_boylan@bigfoot.com> wrote in message
news:vvr7lv01r3e8kjsp1q1ng5v82iq52lcqj1@...
> I have an 88 Toyota Camy and when the battery runs down due to leaving
> a map light on, for instance, I can jump the battery with no problem
> but as soon as the cables are removed, the engine stops. I can take
> the battery and get it charged and then everything is fine.
>
> One time we got it charged and it worked fine for a few days and then
> the engine kept wanting to stall. If it stalled, we would have to
> jump it and it would last awhile. So we took it to the shop and they
> said it was just loose cables. They checked everything out and it all
> looked good to them. So they tightened them up and it has been
> working for quite awhile now.
>
> But, whenever it gets drained all the way, as it just did when my son
> left the overhead light on, I can't just jump it and let the battery
> charge on its own. What could cause this? Would a bad alternator do
> this? When they test the battery they say it is fine.
>
> Any ideas?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Kevin
>

>When they test the battery they say it is fine.
>>

I assume they are qualified mechanics? If so they
should have a load tester to test the battery.
They should also have a tester to test the alternator.
How about the alt belt? is it tight and in good shape?
If you have run the battery down this many times it
is time for a new one anyway...clean battery cables
are a must too.

like Rob said get your car checked out, also it is hard on the
alternator making it recharge a battery, you should charge it with a
charger. Every time a battery fully discharges it looses some of its
recharge ability, and wont fully recover 100%. I have purchased several
cheap brands of batteries that were garbage after one year. Its most
likely a bad battery

Were you assuming that the alternator was going to charge the battery?
If so, it is an erroneouls assumption. Get yourself a 10 amp plug into
the wall charger, connect it to the batery and let it charge all night.
An alternator will with luck supply the immediate needs of the vehicle
and maintain the charge on the battery, but it wasn't designed to charge
it from scratch.

Kevin Boylan wrote:
> I have an 88 Toyota Camy and when the battery runs down due to leaving
> a map light on, for instance, I can jump the battery with no problem
> but as soon as the cables are removed, the engine stops. I can take
> the battery and get it charged and then everything is fine.
>
> One time we got it charged and it worked fine for a few days and then
> the engine kept wanting to stall. If it stalled, we would have to
> jump it and it would last awhile. So we took it to the shop and they
> said it was just loose cables. They checked everything out and it all
> looked good to them. So they tightened them up and it has been
> working for quite awhile now.
>
> But, whenever it gets drained all the way, as it just did when my son
> left the overhead light on, I can't just jump it and let the battery
> charge on its own. What could cause this? Would a bad alternator do
> this? When they test the battery they say it is fine.
>
> Any ideas?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Kevin
>

"Kevin Boylan" <k_boylan@bigfoot.com> wrote in message
news:vvr7lv01r3e8kjsp1q1ng5v82iq52lcqj1@...
> I have an 88 Toyota Camy and when the battery runs down due to leaving
> a map light on, for instance, I can jump the battery with no problem
> but as soon as the cables are removed, the engine stops. I can take
> the battery and get it charged and then everything is fine.
>
> One time we got it charged and it worked fine for a few days and then
> the engine kept wanting to stall. If it stalled, we would have to
> jump it and it would last awhile. So we took it to the shop and they
> said it was just loose cables. They checked everything out and it all
> looked good to them. So they tightened them up and it has been
> working for quite awhile now.
>
> But, whenever it gets drained all the way, as it just did when my son
> left the overhead light on, I can't just jump it and let the battery
> charge on its own. What could cause this? Would a bad alternator do
> this? When they test the battery they say it is fine.
>
> Any ideas?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Kevin

Could be a couple of things happening: when you remove the battery cables
the alternator will run at full voltage as it tries to charge a battery it
sees as having zero voltage. This is dangerous as the open-loop output from
an alternator can reach 16volts. This can but not allways damamge the
on-board electronics. Having said that if the computer has not closed down,
the alternator should still allow the car to run. If the alt has none or
little output the car will stall.

I would check your alternator maximum charge rate is correct, and make sure
your cables are making proper contact with the battery posts and the -ve
cable with the engine block

Jason

"Kevin Boylan" <k_boylan@bigfoot.com> wrote in message
news:cidalvkoet7jjssfpr5c6pjopprotjpnmt@...
> I would assume that if my car won't start because I left my lights on,
> and I jump the battery, I should be able to drive around for awhile
> and recharge the battery. I've done that lots of times with other
> cars and so does everyone else I know. That's all I'm talking about, I
> was not able to do that.
>
At some point, when a battery gets discharged, it can no longer hold an
adequate charge. It just depends on the age and condition of the battery. If
you could always re-charge a dead battery, they would last forever. They
don't.

Modern so-called "maintenance free" batteries can be more easily damaged by
discharge than older designs. Plus, many maintenance free batteries actually
need maintenance (more water) from time to time, even though their owners
assume no maintenance is necessary. This causes even more problems for
modern batteries.

I would check the voltage at the battery when the motor is running. It
should be slightly above 14 volts. Then load the alternator by turning on
headlights etc and see that the voltage stays around the same. The
alternator should be able to run the car, lights, etc and have sufficient
left over to keep the voltage above 14 volts.
If the voltage drops then check the alternator fuse (bolted in) and the
voltage leaving the alternator. If low at the alternator then the alternator
needs looking at.
--

John
"Jason James" <flyhi@byplane.com> wrote in message
news:VGa5b.79315$bo1.2144@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>
> "Kevin Boylan" <k_boylan@bigfoot.com> wrote in message
> news:vvr7lv01r3e8kjsp1q1ng5v82iq52lcqj1@...
> > I have an 88 Toyota Camy and when the battery runs down due to leaving
> > a map light on, for instance, I can jump the battery with no problem
> > but as soon as the cables are removed, the engine stops. I can take
> > the battery and get it charged and then everything is fine.
> >
> > One time we got it charged and it worked fine for a few days and then
> > the engine kept wanting to stall. If it stalled, we would have to
> > jump it and it would last awhile. So we took it to the shop and they
> > said it was just loose cables. They checked everything out and it all
> > looked good to them. So they tightened them up and it has been
> > working for quite awhile now.
> >
> > But, whenever it gets drained all the way, as it just did when my son
> > left the overhead light on, I can't just jump it and let the battery
> > charge on its own. What could cause this? Would a bad alternator do
> > this? When they test the battery they say it is fine.
> >
> > Any ideas?
> >
> > Thanks!
> >
> > Kevin
>
> Could be a couple of things happening: when you remove the battery cables
> the alternator will run at full voltage as it tries to charge a battery it
> sees as having zero voltage. This is dangerous as the open-loop output
from
> an alternator can reach 16volts. This can but not allways damamge the
> on-board electronics. Having said that if the computer has not closed
down,
> the alternator should still allow the car to run. If the alt has none or
> little output the car will stall.
>
> I would check your alternator maximum charge rate is correct, and make
sure
> your cables are making proper contact with the battery posts and the -ve
> cable with the engine block
>
> Jason
>
>
>
>

If you ran the battery flat, you need a charger/power inverter to
chaarge the battery over a number of hours. As stated by others there
could well be other problems with the alternator, but these are in
addition to a discharged battery. Buy a charger. You need one anyway,
just on general principals.

Kevin Boylan wrote:
> I would assume that if my car won't start because I left my lights on,
> and I jump the battery, I should be able to drive around for awhile
> and recharge the battery. I've done that lots of times with other
> cars and so does everyone else I know. That's all I'm talking about, I
> was not able to do that.
>
> On Tue, 02 Sep 2003 23:44:49 GMT, Gary Danaher <gdanaher@>
> wrote:
>
>
>>Were you assuming that the alternator was going to charge the battery?
>>If so, it is an erroneouls assumption. Get yourself a 10 amp plug into
>>the wall charger, connect it to the batery and let it charge all night.
>>An alternator will with luck supply the immediate needs of the vehicle
>>and maintain the charge on the battery, but it wasn't designed to charge
>>it from scratch.
>>
>>Kevin Boylan wrote:
>>
>>>I have an 88 Toyota Camy and when the battery runs down due to leaving
>>>a map light on, for instance, I can jump the battery with no problem
>>>but as soon as the cables are removed, the engine stops. I can take
>>>the battery and get it charged and then everything is fine.
>>>
>>>One time we got it charged and it worked fine for a few days and then
>>>the engine kept wanting to stall. If it stalled, we would have to
>>>jump it and it would last awhile. So we took it to the shop and they
>>>said it was just loose cables. They checked everything out and it all
>>>looked good to them. So they tightened them up and it has been
>>>working for quite awhile now.
>>>
>>>But, whenever it gets drained all the way, as it just did when my son
>>>left the overhead light on, I can't just jump it and let the battery
>>>charge on its own. What could cause this? Would a bad alternator do
>>>this? When they test the battery they say it is fine.
>>>
>>>Any ideas?
>>>
>>>Thanks!
>>>
>>>Kevin
>>>
>
>

On Aug 18, 8:33 pm, johngd...@m wrote:
> It's probably the intense heat in the engine compartment that's
> shortening the life of the battery. I do change out the battery every
> 5-6 years no questions asked. Because the cost of an alternator is
> much more than a good Johnson Controls Inc battery sold under Autozone
> (Gold line), WalMart (~$45), Interstate, even Toyota.
>

Walmart ones has a good price. But I heard they don't work well in
cold weather. I'm New York City. The temperature goes down to 20
degrees Fahrenheit.

>
> I'll stay away from Exide, those don't seem to last as long. Go for AC
> Delco Maintenance Free, these are pretty good for about $80--90. But
> these Delcos 24Fs are hard to find.
>
> Like others said:
>
> 1. Where do you live? A hot climate can shorten the life of the
> battery.

I'm in New York City. This summer it's between 80 and 90. A few days
it went over 90s. So it's not that hot.

> 2. You need to periodically clean the terminals. Looks like heat is
> boiling the acid out of the battery (vapor) and collecting onto the
> terminals.

I only saw this brownish stuff on the nagative terminal after my last
visit to an auto shop. I thought the mechanic from the store put that
stuff to prevent corrosion.

> 3. How's your alternator? Diode bridge all working? Voltage regulation
> working? Parts stores like NAPA and Autozone do free tests.

I wouldn't know. How to check them?

> 4. Do you have a heat shield around the battery? It helps prolong the
> life of the battery.

I don't think so. I looked. No heat shield around the battery.

Add distilled water into the battery only when required/directed. Wear
acid resistant gloves and safety goggles. These acids can be nasty.
Keep baking soda solution *away* from vent ports or risk losing the
battery.

On Aug 19, 10:35 am, "trailer" <du...@dum.com> wrote:
> If you decide to clean the terminals as Mark suggested, wear protection for
> your eyes.  The toothbrush could easily splash up to your face.