Help! Engine dies when...

[Blumpkin!]

Hello everyone! New poster here...

so, the other day I went to start my 05 altima and got nothing...just clicks (dead battery). So I jumped it and drove home. After I got home, I took the battery out, while the car was running, to see if the alternator was supplying juice. It ran fine, but when I turned the headlights on the engine died. I tried the same with the battery hooked up and it died then as well. I took the car to checker and they tested the alternator and said it was fine, but the battery was shot. So I bought a new battery, and the car works fine since.

However, it seems funny to me that the alternator can't handle the added load when the lights are turned on..it should be able to handle this, correct? Otherwise, it would seem as though the headlights would put a constant drain on the battery as the alternator is not supplying the juice. I'm concerned the headlights are putting too much strain on the circuit..can anyone confirm this?

[91 bird]

not really too much drain. its the battery that runs everything, the alt just keeps the battery charged. it really isnt designed to run high amp systems such as lights, ac, rear defrost, etc...

[ricebike]

don't do that again on newer cars w/ all the electronics....

sure, you can do it on an old car w/ a carburetor setup up to the mid 70s models,

but on today's vehicles w/ those electronics, you're risking a voltage spike that may cost you a few hundred to diagnose where the break in the wire happened...

i believe the battery acts as a "capacitor" or a buffer