No Juice...

[MikR0n]

Yesrtday my buick died . Im not getting any power from the battery just a bit of juice for the dashboard readout. But before my car died I have a few symptoms i noticed. There was a noise coming from my alternater few peopel said it could have been a bearing. Yesterday after leaving work my Anitlock break lights went on my battery light came on and my service engine soon light came on all at the same time. Went to the autoparts store to see if they could test my alternator. They told me their tester is broken. After leaving there shortly i go to start up my car its dead. turning the key i hear this weird sound coming from my speakers a really fast pitch thumping.The radio was blinking at the same speed juice was there enuff to make that noise. After i got a jump from the auto place i drove home emediatly. I tired to leavfe my car running on their suggestion but it died again. I can get it jump started but it continues to keep on dieing.. I have a replacement battery but i cant seem to remove that bar that blocks it...

[GTP Dad]

Two items, change or recharge the battery and replace the alternator. If the car dies once you start it then the alternator is not working. If the battery were fully charged then the car would run until it dies. An alternator will not recharge a dead or dying battery. When you replace the alternator you may want to replace the serpentine belt as well.

[tri-power]

To test the alternator yourself, charge the battery and start the car. Now remove the negative battery terminal while the car is running. If the car stalls then you have a bad alternator. As far as the thumping in the speakers, thats because your voltage is too low to operate.

[MikR0n]

i didnt have to try all of that after putting in a new battery today i ran the car for a couple hours i noticed right away the it was being drained. the car just died again a half our ago.

[tri-power]

Test the alternator first. You should be able to go to any major auto parts store or like a sears auto and find out if the alternator is bad or if you have a drain in your wiring.

[lsawyer_1111]

My advice is NOT to disconnect the battery while the car is running as suggested above. Your car has a computer onboard and this type of test runs a high risk of frying the computer. These computers usually run $250+ to replace. Put a full charge on the battery and run it to the nearest auto parts store that will do the test for you with the right equipment.

[tri-power]

If you read above, it was stated that he went to the parts store and their tester was broken. I was offering an alternative to eliminate the problem.