Re: RC: My Truck Won't Go

["Carolyn Burgess" <carolyn_burgess@hotmail.com>]

Linda:

You said you had the "generator" replaced.  Do you really mean generator, or 
do you mean alternator?  The alternator is what creates the electrical power 
when you are driving and recharges that battery as well.  My feeling is not 
that you have a trickle drain on your electrical system, but that they 1) 
replaced something that wasn't the problem or 2) that they replaced it with 
another part that still doesn't work.  I HATE mechanics and I can't tell you 
how many times the dealership hasn't fixed the problem that I've told them 
about.  It would take about 3 weeks to run down a battery if your alternator 
wasn't working.  This happened to my son and it turned out that the 
alternator that they put in was bad.

Carolyn Burgess


----Original Message Follows----
From: "Linda B. Merims" <lbm@naisp.net>
To: ridecamp@endurance.net
Subject: RC:  My Truck Won't Go
Date: Mon, 17 Sep 2001 12:21:43 -0400


This is endurance-related in the sense that everybody here
has the problem of keeping their trucks going :-)

Looking for ideas...

'86 GMC 3/4 ton HD, 454 V-8.  New engine 33,000 miles ago.

One month ago, the starter went.  Dealer installed new starter.

Three weeks later, it appeared that the generator went.
  Symptoms were:
   1.  Truck started fine.
   2.  Drive 10 miles to feed store.
   3.  When I come out of the feed store, truck barely lurches
       into a start.  I notice that the battery guage is showing
       very low (at just about the red).
   4.  Drive home.  Keep truck running on the theory that it
       will recharge battery and if I want to go somewhere, I
       won't have to worry about getting the truck started.
   5.  2 hrs later, truck stops altogether.  Battery is reading
       in the red.

(At no time did the battery light ever go on.)

Tow guy comes.  Plugged truck into his power source, get it started,
but battery doesn't seem to be charging.  Tow truck to dealers.

Dealer replaces generator.  Recharges battery.

The next morning I come to pick it up.  I can't get it started.
Battery is showing in red.

Dealer replaces battery (big 78, just like the one already in it).

Truck starts immediately, no cranking, battery guage reads 12 volt,
pleasing surge of power.  Rrrrumm, Rrrrummmm!  Gotta love those 454s!

All is well for three weeks.

Drive truck one day.  Don't notice anything about battery.  Havn't
been paying any attention to battery since it was replaced.

Come out to start the truck the next day, and can't get it started.
Battery is reading close to 8 volts, nearly in the red.  It is
reading this from the very start, before I go through the
crank-crank-crank routine.  Truck never starts.  This morning,
it is in the red, even lower than it was yesterday.

What is going on here?


My conclusion is that something is trickle-draining my battery, but
I havn't a clue what it could be.

Any informed ideas welcome...

Linda B. Merims
Stuck driving a 4-cylinder Escort
lbm@naisp.net
Massachusetts, USA


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