Battery?

[rocheyu]

I own a 1993 Toyota Camry, 4 Door Sedan with the 2.2L 4 cylinder engine and has 165,000 Kms..
The problem is, if I use a heavy electrical load (like head lights, blower fan, window defroster), the battery drains power and I cannot start the engine after that. This will only happen every time I use a heavy load. But without it, there is no problem starting the engine and the battery has lots of power. The battery is 2 years old and the alternator is 1 year old. I also clean the terminals of the battery and the cable clamps.
Does anyone knows how to test the alternator if it is working? And anybody have an Idea is greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Arnold

[The General]

If you have a multimeter, you can place 1 of the probes on the positive feed to the alternator (usually red) and 1 on the ground side of the battery. Your reading should be in the neighbourhood of 14 volts.

If the car dies while the car is running, the amperage output of the alternator may be weak. You will not be able to check for this on your own.

If the car will not start after a heavy load, it is because the battery takes the hit once the alternator is unable to deliver. A charging system test at a garage should not cost more than 50$. Have the whole system checked.

[rocheyu]

Originally Posted by The General

If you have a multimeter, you can place 1 of the probes on the positive feed to the alternator (usually red) and 1 on the ground side of the battery. Your reading should be in the neighbourhood of 14 volts.

If the car dies while the car is running, the amperage output of the alternator may be weak. You will not be able to check for this on your own.

If the car will not start after a heavy load, it is because the battery takes the hit once the alternator is unable to deliver. A charging system test at a garage should not cost more than 50$. Have the whole system checked.

I did checked the voltage on the positive feed of the alternator and also the terminal of the battery with the engine running and got a result of 14.3 volts. And I also unclamp the positive cable of the battery while the engine run at idle and have no problem at all (engine still run) it didn't die.
Anyway, I'll bring it to a garage to let them check the charging system.
Many thanks for the advice.

Arnold

[The General]

Good luck.

Watch out if the garage says that they cannot find the problem. They may want to blame a faulty circuit somewhere and want to charge you for 50 000 hours of diagnostic labour. Unless you trust the garage, you should look into a second opinion.

Let us know what happens.

[rocheyu]

Originally Posted by The General

Good luck.

Watch out if the garage says that they cannot find the problem. They may want to blame a faulty circuit somewhere and want to charge you for 50 000 hours of diagnostic labour. Unless you trust the garage, you should look into a second opinion.

Let us know what happens.

Thank you for your help and opinion.
I went to the garage that I trust, and the mechanic use a charging system diagnostic machine for $40.00 and the problem is the alternator (bad diode) and the battery. But my alternator just past one year and the battery is a cheaper kind, so, no more warranty. But everything is all well now, I got a new alternator and a new battery and the car starts good again.
Thank you again for your help.

Arnold

[The General]

You're welcome.

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