HELP Alternator or Battery?

ok so heres what happend. the other night i go to start my car and its struggles to turn over and then it just dies(it never does that). so i try again this time giving it some gas while turning the key and it starts up and runs fine. i go over a friends house for a while, start her back up and i drive somewhere. im waiting outside a stor for someone with the car running and i look down at my gauges and it says im going ****in 40 mph when im just sitting there. so i start driving and put the pedal to the floor and my car accelerates like and 18 wheeler. the guages go crazy and it says im goin past 120 mph when im only goin like 10 and the ABS INOP light comes on. i drive to where i need to go, turn the car off, try to start it again and nothing happens. my lights and everything still work, but when i turn the key it just struggles for a second and nothing happens. so this morning i try jumping it and it just does the same thing, nothing happens.

im thinkin its the alternator, but either way my battery is guna be dead. so let me know what you think.

BTW im pretty sure this happend because of the 1600 watt system in my trunk.

I don't think it's the battery or alternator, i'm betting you shorted your electrical system out.

I just read this thread a couple of days ago and today (November 21, 2004) i was at the store and i turned the key and it struggled to start and went dead. I gave it a little gas and it started then left it running and it just kept reving itself from 1 to 2 and the lights went dim and back to regular. My car is a 1998 Camaro RS. Before that happende i intsalled a bigger subwoofer on it.

i usually have some kind of advice or hunch about what happened, u guys aughta see the dumbfounded look on my face right now...

excessive current draw, your vehicle control systems need at a minimum of 9 volts to operate, that massive stereo system is drawing away enough voltage to shut down your computer. youll have to install a higher power alternator, a second battery, and probly some capasiters to make the problem go away.

I'd start w/ a cap. and see if that fixes it unless its already fried the alternator.
what kind of system do u have?

excessive current draw, your vehicle control systems need at a minimum of 9 volts to operate, that massive stereo system is drawing away enough voltage to shut down your computer. youll have to install a higher power alternator, a second battery, and probly some capasiters to make the problem go away.

never would have got that one, good info though...

yeah you want to get yourself one of those performance batteries (optima) a heavy duty alt and a cap or two...

1600 Watts?? That's a little overkill isn't it? But Iroc&RS is right, a battery has a tough time operating under 9.6V, anyone who has ever used a VAT40 knows this. But with 1600 Watts you'll probably need 2 caps.

1600 watts!?! thats seriously about two and a half horsepower

thanks for the info guys

lol 1600watts = 2hp???????? now i know why ricers put such big stereo systems in their cars, its doubles their hp :)




edit - i know i know, im a hypocryte, i hate rice bashing in the forum, but i couldnt help it. let the hate mail fly.

Yeah, I agree with him, and if it's not that take it to a shop, and check it out and also see if it might also be your starter, because that sounds kindof what my 1979 did to me.

took of the sound system and it has been running good lately.