[DML] Re: Bad alternator?

["David Teitelbaum" <jtrealty@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

You have a couple of problems, but lets take them in order. First is
the "short" or battery drain. Usually because the courtesy lights on
the door stay on with the door closed. Do you have the rubber tips on
the door plungers? Do you have a master battery switch? The next time
you leave the car sit for a couple of days pull the wires off the door
switches and see if the battery stays up. Now, because the battery was
low any bad/dirty connections which may have just worked with a fully
charged battery won't with the lower voltage. Clean and tighten all
the connections on the firewall around the white ballast resistors,
this is ignition. Was the car left outside those couple of days? If so
you may have water in the spark plug wells shorting out the ignition
wires. Dry them out and try again with a fully charged battery and
then replace the ignition wires at your next opertunity. A "slow
charge" is not 2 hours. More like overnight. The Ducey is NO GOOD! It
will leave you with a chronically under-charged battery which will
fail sooner. Batteries do not like being chronically undercharged and
do not last long under those conditions. It is also much harder on the
wiring with the voltage always being below what it should causing the
current to be higher to run the car causing more heat in the
electrical system. Recahrge and load-test the battery. Replace the
alternator. Test for battery drains. If the voltage gets too low the
pump won't run so the motor won't start.
David Teitelbaum
vin 10757



--- In dmcnews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "dmcjosh85" <dmcjosh85@xxxx> wrote:
> So I have a bit of a situation here, you see after having my DMC sit 
> for 2-3 days untouched I sit down and turn to key to find that 
> though it cranks the engine will not fire up. after all why should 
> it: the battery guage is slightly lower than what it usually is. Now 
> right now my quick fix for this is to set the battery on the slow 
> charge for 2 hours or so than its ready to roll and the car fires 
> right up. 
> 
> Now I know what your thinking? Bad Battery right? well the battery 
> is a brand new optima battery and ive only had to recharge the thing 
> becuase of my DMC about..5-6 times. As far as the alternator goes in 
> this story, it is still the original Ducellier 80 watt alternator 
> which I know to already be showing the signs of age and underpower 
> since everytime I rub the gas every bulb on the car gets somewhat 
> brighter. 
> 
> In anycase, I have to recharge my battery if I end up letting the 
> DMC sit for such a short time. is this somehow tied into my 
> alternator or is there another factor that I should be aware of in 
> all this? 
> 
> Thanks DML
> ~Josh Tidwell | VIN 4463







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