1quickTXVette

Hey guys I have a problem that I am so frustrated with and need your help. Here's the full story it is kind of long so bear with me here. On Thursday I went to start the car and only got a click. Not the typical dead battery click click click but just a single click which I think was the sound of the starter solenoid but wouldn't attempt to crank. After clicking start about 10 times it finally attempted to start and fired right up and ran normal. It did this 3 times that day and hasn't done it before or since then. On Saturday I noticed the voltage was lower in the mid 11s and would slowly creep down 0.1 every few minutes. I was on my way to a friend's house to diagnose the problem and stopped to get us some food where it got too low on voltage, the dash lights started going haywire and died in the drive through line. I had to push the car to the parking lot where we got under it and noticed a loose connection to the starter solenoid and the wire covering was getting cracked and chared. I had to call a wrecker to tow it to a friend's house that has a lift where we tried to tighten the connection. As soon as we applied torque to the nut the terminal snapped off. We assumed that the loose connection caused a short and was draining the system and the alternator couldn't keep up. I took the starter off and took it to a local battery shop where they replaced the solenoid. I put the starter back on and went to drive it around to test it out and the problem is still there; the voltage would slowly drop and I barely made it back to the garage before it would've died on me once again. When we put jumper cables to it, the battery began to charge back up and we got it up to 13v. We are thinking it has to be the alternator and that the starter solenoid being loose was just a coincidence. I guess I will have to call another flat bed to come get it and take it to the battery shop being it would die before I get it across town to have them diagnose the problem. What do you guys think, do you think it must be the alternator is not working anymore and isn't keeping the systems charged up? Also, I have an A&A kit and was wondering if I'll be able to get the alternator out without issue or if the supercharger kit will need to be partially taken apart? The tensioner is my worry, in that I am unsure if the shop will be able to get to it without taking the kit apart. Do any of you with the kit know if I will be able to get the alternator out easily. I don't think you can get to the tensioner from the top but do you know if you can from the bottom? Thanks in advance guys. I am so frustrated right now and don't know what to do.

jon6.0

Holy crap that was hard to read, lol. It could be as simple as a bad cell in your battery. Take it off and bring it to an O'Reilly Auto or a similar auto parts place that can test the battery to see if it's good or not. Alternator is on the drivers side, so it shouldn't be too bad to swap out.

1quickTXVette

I had the battery checked on Sunday and it tested the battery was good but only needed a charge (I'm guessing from the alternator not keeping it charged) we have charged it successfully, it would hold a charge. The alternator itself is easy to remove, I only worry about getting to the tensioner from the bottom.

ravill

The tensioner on the A and A kit is on the passenger side and is easy to loosen/tighten.

Just loosen it and take off your alternator.

Jeffro_510

The charging system for the most part is 3 main components: The battery, the Starter, and the alternator.
Since you already replaced the solenoid on the starter, i would count it out for the time being.
Most of our Local commercial auto parts stores will test the battery and alternator for free. I would bring them both in.
I had a similar issue recently, the 3 month old Delco Alternator had already crapped out. I had ruled it out completely, until i replaced the battery (under warranty) and the starter. Only after those 2 things did i take the alternator in to get checked, and sure enough that was the problem, it was replaced (under warranty) and i was good to go.
One thing about batteries, that if you drive for even a few hours with a bad alternator, the battery (in most cases) starts loosing cells, and will also need to be replaced.
One thing that i do recommend if your car is not a true daily driver, is a battery tender. In the last 2 years, i am on my 4th battery.

MARSC6

Make sure your battery connection is good. I've had issues with the GM clamps.

1quickTXVette

Okay guys here's an update and still no luck. We bought a remanufactured alternator from autozone and got it in started the car up and it is still not charging the battery back up. We checked the voltage at the alternator and it checked out at 5v 12v as it should, so the pcm should be sending the correct signals to tell it to charge the system. What else could it be guys.

MARSC6

Did you check the battery connectors? I just went through something very similar.

1quickTXVette

Yes, it has an amp for the sound system hooked up to it so you can't tighten it down all the way; but they have been that way for about a year and has never had an issue before. I took off the amp cables from the battery and tightened the nuts down so the connection was tight still giving me the same issue

1quickTXVette

I just had the old alternator bench tester at OReilly and it checked out good. Another thing to to add is that the horn fuse is fine but the horns have been not working since Christmas. I haven't fixed them because the supercharger intercooler tube is in the way and just haven't had time to take it in to have it fixed. I don't think that could be causing the issue because I haven't had any problems with it until now and has been several months.

drivinfast

sounds very similar to a problem I had. bought a new battery, installed it and been good ever since. and ++ on the battery tender suggestion

1quickTXVette

I just had the battery load tested again and this time it failed and I received a new battery. When I tested it on Saturday all it said was it required it a charge but this time it registered to replace the battery. The alternator put out 0v whether the car is on or off last night so I feel like the battery isn't the problem. Can a defective battery cause the alternator to put out 0v or would it still be putting out the full 13.2 voltage with a bad battery pointing to the battery not being the issue at hand?

5 Liter Eater

I believe there's a fusable link in one of the wires to the alternator, I believe it's the big one back to the battery (through the starter) but not sure. Could be one of the smaller ones. Assuming it's the big one then the fusable link could have blown. Disconnect the big wire from the alternator and battery and check for continuity.

1quickTXVette

I took it in to the dealership today and they put the scan tool on it. It is showing the pcm terminal (not sure if that was the proper term) L is not functioning correctly. F is told that the alternator needs to charge the battery and L is supposed to excite the alternator to actually do it's job which is not happening. So basically the pcm is being told that the alternator needs to turn on but the command to start charging never reaches the alternator. He told me it is either the pcm Itself, a loose connection going into the pcm, or a bad ground somewhere. I am taking it back there Saturday morning to have him work on it and get it fixed! I will let you guys know what I find out at that point! Thank you for all of your help and suggestions guys!

Driftns2k

Sorry to revive this from the dead. But what was the issue? I'm having the same problem. Battery and alternator have been replaced. My next step is checking wires for continuity.