Truck stopped running. Electrical problem?

[striker12300]

2004 silverado, 2wd, V6, 150,000 miles on it. New plugs and wires 2 years ago. New fuel pump and fuel filter last summer. Truck was running fine but I did notice the last couple of mornings while I was driving the headlights would dim a little bit then go back to normal. Yesterday afternoon it started like it was 15 below out. Turned over kinda slow. But it wasn't that cold out. Anyway the headlights and dash lights were really dim. I got the truck in the driveway, revved the engine and they didn't get any brighter. The truck started running ruff and eventually quit. When I tried to restart it, it just clicked. When I turned the key off the dash lights got bright again. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.

[ColoradoSilverado]

Sounds to me that you need a new battery.

[striker12300]

Would the battery cause the truck to stop running if it was already running?

[ColoradoSilverado]

Originally Posted by striker12300

Would the battery cause the truck to stop running if it was already running?

Yes, if the battery can't no longer hold a charge the truck will stop running.
Best thing is to charge the battery and drive to the nearest auto parts store and they can test the battery to see if it still holds a charge or maybe it's your alternator not charging.

[j cAT]

like was mentioned a weak battery may mean a defective alternator.

bring battery into a heated area. wait 3 hrs to make sure the battery is not frozen . battery will freeze if not charged. then after is all warmed up connect a charger to the battery for a few hours. then when charged start vehicle measure the voltage at the battery eng on...if 10 deg f out should be 14.75 volts or 15 volts.

if the voltage is below 13 volts the alternator is bad.

if the voltage is good then with the battery charge drive to auto store to have the charged battery load tested. cold weather reveals weak batteries.

[ColoradoSilverado]

That's what happened to me, battery seemed fine until the night time temperature dropped to about 5 and I tried to start it in the morning...