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Old 09-14-2010, 01:06 PM   #1
bueiz
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Charging Issues. Battery Discharging.

Charging Issues. Battery Discharging.

I drive a '99 Tahoe 4x4. Driving to work last week it died on me. Ran fine initially, halfway to work all of my electronics went out, then stayed in one gear all the way to work where it died in the parking lot. Pulled the battery and alternator out, took it to Autozone where they both tested dead/bad. Put the new parts in and it started right up until I realized that I hadn't connected the wire to the generator output terminal and I didn't hook up the negative battery cable (tough day). I think the Negative Battery cable was grounded out on the trucks fender so it was able to start up. Either way, it ran until I realized I hadn't hooked up those wires when I turned the truck off. I hooked everything back up correctly, and when I went to try and start the truck again it was completely dead. Ended up being a blown 175A 32V Megafuse. Replaced the Megafuse and the truck started right up and I was able to drive the truck home and park it.

Didn't drive the truck again after that until 4-5 days later where the same thing happened on the way to work, the truck completely died a mile from work. Went to Autozone with new battery and new alternator, the alternator tested good, and the battery was dead. The Battery needed a recharge since I ran it dead trying to get to work.

Now, I'm wondering what it could be if he Alternator tested good. These are all alternator symptoms.

I've put the multimeter on the battery with the truck running and the battery reads 12.3V; 12.5V when it's not running. I've put the multimeter to the alternator output and housing while the truck was running and it read 12.3V. Are there any more inline fuses under the hood I may have missed? I checked the 175A 32V Megafuse and it's fine, I've checked my fuse boxes and as far as I could tell they're all fine.

The day before I started having issues I removed my Instrument Cluster for rebuild; sent it off to Module Master. Would the Instrument Cluster being out of the truck have something to do with the problem? Open loop telling the truck not to charge?

Last edited by bueiz; 09-15-2010 at 10:31 AM. Reason: Charging Issues. Battery Discharging.
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Old 09-14-2010, 01:38 PM   #2
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Re: Charing Issues. Battery Discharging.

To starts with the engine running you should see voltage at about 14 volts not 12.6
I would venture to guess you have a bad alternator from the parts store. Not to uncommon to get a bad alternator out of the box. Crappy rebuilds. Anyways start there.

LOL I didn't read your last sentence, sorry. That is a good question, I believe that you would have issues driving that vehicle without the IP cluster in it. I know on other vehicles I have working on it does cause issue. Some vehicles will not shift properly, some will not drive at all. So yes I would wait to get the cluster back. I would imagine having a BCM in the vehicle would cause issues if it did not see the cluster. When you get the cluster back recheck you output again and see if it goes up to the 14 volts it needs to run properly.....
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Old 09-14-2010, 01:48 PM   #3
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Re: Charing Issues. Battery Discharging.

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Originally Posted by AutoService101 View Post
To starts with the engine running you should see voltage at about 14 volts not 12.6
I would venture to guess you have a bad alternator from the parts store. Not to uncommon to get a bad alternator out of the box. Crappy rebuilds. Anyways start there.
When the truck died on me the first time I took off the Alternator and took it to Autozone for testing - it tested bad. So, I bought a new Alternator (Reman - Lifetime Warranty). I thought the problem was solved so I drove as usual and the next time I go to work the truck dies again. I take the "new" Alternator to Autozone for testing and it tests good; battery needed recharging and it tested good. So I put everything back in and still had charging issues. I drive it to another Autozone on the battery, they hook their "fancy tester" (nothing but a fancy DMM) and they get a "bad alternator" reading; so I'm thinking awesome (because the other Autozone said it was good). I pull out the Alternator and they say they have to test it on their machine first before swapping it out. Turned out their tester was broken so they swap out the alternator for me and give me a "new" one (reman). So I install the new alternator, crank up the truck and still have the same problems. DMM showing battery voltage, not charging. And Autozone hooks up their fancy doodad and it gives them the same "bad" reading.

I've checked my fuses, they seem ok.
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Old 09-14-2010, 02:27 PM   #4
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Re: Charing Issues. Battery Discharging.

do you have your IP cluster back in the vehicle???
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Old 09-14-2010, 02:30 PM   #5
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Re: Charing Issues. Battery Discharging.

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do you have your IP cluster back in the vehicle???
Nope, it's still out at Module Master for rebuild. That's why I was wondering if have the Cluster out would cause charging problems.
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Old 09-14-2010, 02:42 PM   #6
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Re: Charing Issues. Battery Discharging.

So I tried to see if I could find any info regarding having the IP cluster out and if it will cause issues or not. Could not find any info myself. Seems like you should be getting that cluster back any day now. I would waht till you get the cluster back and then check it from there. The other thing you could do if you have not is have codes pulled to see if there where any defualts detected. Would imaging there are a few related to the IP cluster missing. I really do feel as though this is your issue. You are just spinning your wheels at this point. I am not sure how it would effect the charging system but like I said I have seen other cars have strange issues because the cluster is not detected. The ecm, pcm and bcm all look at the cluster for different reasons. I have to believe this may be the cause. I would waht and see unless someone else steps up with good info....
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Old 09-15-2010, 09:55 AM   #7
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Re: Charing Issues. Battery Discharging.

Quote:
Originally Posted by bueiz View Post
Nope, it's still out at Module Master for rebuild. That's why I was wondering if have the Cluster out would cause charging problems.
most alternators require a small amount of current/voltage to create the magnetic field required to generate electricity.

this small wire that connects to the back of the alternator must have a voltage on it if not this is most likely why you have had these issues.

auto zone has a alternator tester. I have seen this setup and it looks accurate to me on testing of these alternators.


this small wire is a part of the dash assy.
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