Help Losing Power!? Alternator issues maybe?

Heres how it all went down.

I was driving to mankato from burnsville (about an 80 mile trek). Anyways, about 2 miles from home my speedometer started going crazy, then my rpms meters went crazy, started losing power (headlights, dimmers and so on, i think my car even started losing power). My ABS light turned on, then my Air Bag Light and a few others. I shut my car off and left it the hell alone.

Recently I was on the forums asking questions about an engine that i blew up, turned out i bought a engine with 57,000 on it, just had it installed (thats why my car was in burnsville). Could the mechanics could have forgotten to install something or does this sound like a common alternator problem? Any feedback would be much appreciated. Sorry for the long post but i wanted you the reader to fully understand the situation. I'm pretty broke from the new engine install and if this is a minor problem i want to know how to handle it.

Thanks
Ben from Mankato

Sure sounds like a battery, battery/ground connection issue, or a failed alternator. The newer rodeos are REALLY sensative to a clean, steady minimum of 14VDC with the truck running. Anything less will cause the issues you describe. Many a parts store reman/rebuilt alternator is no good out of the box as well.
G/luck
Joel

Thanks again Joel, I think you helped me last time.

Any idea on where I could find a resonable priced alternator or any tests I could run on it to maybe see if it is indeed the alternator. Could I charge my batery all night to get it fully charged and then try and drive it around for a while to see if I get same results, or will that be harsh on the car?

For a quick charging system check, put a digital voltmeter across the battery leads with the truck idling. You need to see atleast 14VDC at idle. You can pickup a cheap digital multi-meter from harbor freight tools for around $10, a bit more at wally world, sears or auto parts stores. For a new alternator, I know it's $$$, but I'd try a dealer, I prefer mail order from www.stcharlesauto.com, maybe eBay, NAPA or Carquest. I've had good luck with remans thru them. Check for a dry or funky looking cell in the battery as well. If you dunno how old it is, it's probably too old!
G/luck
Joel

definately sounds like alternator to me, do you have a voltage guage in the truck? Did you happen to see it while all of this was happening? Alternators going bad can definately cause some funky things to happen, in some vehicles the car will just go dead all together, other act differently. I suppose it also has something to do with how bad the alternator is as well...