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DirtTime

By DirtTime,
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DirtTime Mentor

DirtTime

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Last Spring on opening day of turkey season, my Jeep once again had a hissy fit, I have posted about it, so not going to re-hash. This morning I got the same "whir--whi--------wh---------------------nothing, then that dreaded click-click of a bad alternator.

 

Will be talking to the neighbor who does some small work for us and have him run some tests and diagnostics.

 

I am no mechanic, and I will be honest, I know almost nothing about working on cars. What I thought, if it's the alternator, the vehicle  will usually not start with a jump, if it does, it will not start again after you turn it off. If it's just the battery, the car will start with a jump, but then start up will be weak.

 

Anyone have any insight here?

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DirtTime Mentor

DirtTime

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5 minutes ago, Belo said:

On a serious note. You can get your alt and battery tested for free so it’ll take the guess work out of it. Could also be as simple as a bad connection. Cables and connections clean and tight?


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Connections are clean. 

5 minutes ago, Lawdwaz said:

What'd you find last spring?????????

Battery was dead, replaced via warranty. Alternator was good. Bought a charger.

 

I am not sure the reading from the alt test were factual. I think it has a core malfunction and draining the battery, or a wiring issue, but like I said, I don't know jack about this stuff.

 

Through the warmer weather it was OK, started getting that "whir---whir----vroom in late August. Got worse and worse. 

 

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DirtTime Mentor

DirtTime

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1 minute ago, Rob... said:

Connections are clean. 

Battery was dead, replaced via warranty. Alternator was good. Bought a charger.

 

I am not sure the reading from the alt test were factual. I think it has a core malfunction and draining the battery, or a wiring issue, but like I said, I don't know jack about this stuff.

 

Through the warmer weather it was OK, started getting that "whir---whir----vroom in late August. Got worse and worse. 

 

I know that may not make sense, but as the temps warmed up it was reliable. When the wet weather hit, it got wonky again.

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G-Man Veteran

G-Man

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7 hours ago, Rob... said:

I know that may not make sense, but as the temps warmed up it was reliable. When the wet weather hit, it got wonky again.

sounds like you have a short draining the battery..cold usually..means damp. just enough humidity to make.connnection to drain..

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Bionic Rising Star

Bionic

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Follow G-Man and RobH's suggestion.  Dampness can suck down juice.  Recheck all connections, alternator, battery could even be bad again,  batteries now a days are crap.  

See if your neighbor can run a test to see if the alternator is charging too.  Could have a bad cell in the battery too, theres a test you can do to see if the battery holds a charge too.

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LET EM GROW Experienced

LET EM GROW

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could be a bad alternator. I have a brand new one in my dodge 2500 as well as a new battery. And my alternator will stop working when a truck sits at idle in gear. Like at a stop light. touch the accelerator and it functions"more properly" I just haven't had the time to replace it. But its definetly a bad alt. 

Id say your alternator is weak, or you have a ground/connection issue. Something is drawing power unless your Alt is just not charging your battery. Check the terminal clamps, they may not be tight enough around the terminals. 

 

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Moho81 Mentor

Moho81

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I’d say the simple answer is the alternator. Last year it might have passed the test but just barely leading it to look like a bad battery.

Now it’s even worse draining the battery faster. With A bad alternator the vehicle will take a jump multiple times but you will notice lights and such to be dim or not functioning because it’s not charging the battery like it should.


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Nomad Grand Master

Nomad

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Awhile back i would  pull the Buick out if the garage so I could work in there . Often leave it in driveway over night , next day dead happened 2 x  It seems the ignition switch / key  was worn and even though I shut it off and pulled key out, it wasn’t all the way in off position . I’m guessing key as wife drove it and it never happened with her .

Thats my guess as if I made sure it was in ,locked  position it never happened again .

 

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moog5050 Mentor

moog5050

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Its funny the small things that can draw on the battery.  I had to replace a small switch connected to my shifter because it was not signaling that the truck was in park which in turn left the dash lights on.  Ford wanted $380 to replace the entire shifter.  My buddy and I replaced it in 30 min with a new switch at a cost of less than $50.  All good.

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Five Seasons Grand Master

Five Seasons

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10 hours ago, Rob... said:

I know that may not make sense, but as the temps warmed up it was reliable. When the wet weather hit, it got wonky again.

it does make sense. Wetter colder weather will often highlight a bad connection. As mentioned it may not be just at the battery, but somewhere in the electrical starter system. Also could be the alt or starter beginning to go bad. I know my lawn mower has been giving me trouble for the last month and it wasn't until the last mow a week ago in colder damp weather that the solenoid finally failed on me.

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Al Bundy Newbie

Al Bundy

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By whir whir I assume you mean the engine turned over at least a little then wouldn't start. If you get it running do the following.  Point the jeep at a wall/garage doors at night. Turn all other lights off. Turn on jeep lights.  Take note of the brightness or lack thereof. Rev the engine while watching the wall where your lights are pointed.  If the lights get brighter, battery is taking a charge. Alternator is doing its job.  Dash lights should also increase inbrightness but may be harder to tell. Hope that your alternator is bad.. I had an electrical gremlin in two vehicles and oh man. Not fun. One the horn would go off at random times. Pulled the fuse and that was the end of the issue, but no horn for me. Other electrical issue started out the doors would unlock when I hit a bump.  I ignored it and locked the doors. THen it started to leave lights on, such as interior dome. Then it migrated to the alarm system. System would go off at a whim.  I pulled the alarm system fuse and that did the trick.  If I Had to actually find the short or pay someone to do it.. not fun.  Good luck.

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DirtTime Mentor

DirtTime

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12 hours ago, G-Man said:

sounds like you have a short draining the battery..cold usually..means damp. just enough humidity to make.connnection to drain..

I'm leaning that way as well.

12 hours ago, Robhuntandfish said:

bad wire - somewhere.  Or a selenoid.  esp if battery is new.  Somewhere you have a bad connection 

I'm thinking wire or alternator. Doesn't seem the starter or soleniod. When those have gone bad in the past it was much different from what's going on now.

12 hours ago, Lawdwaz said:

Who put the new battery in, you?

If so, I’d check connections for tightness and corrosion. 

One other thing to mull over; was a door left ajar and the dome light lit?

No I didn't put the battery in myself, it was done in shop. No corrosion on posts or the terminal ends. No lights left on or jars ajar.

9 hours ago, wooly said:

Sounds like you might have blown the drive shaft...8) :beee: :swoon:

Be honest now, or we can't help you,lol

I think it might be low inner tire fluid.

1 hour ago, Al Bundy said:

By whir whir I assume you mean the engine turned over at least a little then wouldn't start. If you get it running do the following.  Point the jeep at a wall/garage doors at night. Turn all other lights off. Turn on jeep lights.  Take note of the brightness or lack thereof. Rev the engine while watching the wall where your lights are pointed.  If the lights get brighter, battery is taking a charge. Alternator is doing its job.  Dash lights should also increase inbrightness but may be harder to tell. Hope that your alternator is bad.. I had an electrical gremlin in two vehicles and oh man. Not fun. One the horn would go off at random times. Pulled the fuse and that was the end of the issue, but no horn for me. Other electrical issue started out the doors would unlock when I hit a bump.  I ignored it and locked the doors. THen it started to leave lights on, such as interior dome. Then it migrated to the alarm system. System would go off at a whim.  I pulled the alarm system fuse and that did the trick.  If I Had to actually find the short or pay someone to do it.. not fun.  Good luck.

Yes, that's what I mean by "whir----whir----".

 

 

I went out today and though it was slow and ugly, it did actually fire up. I let it run for about 15 minutes, then took a 20 minute drive to try and charge things back up. waited an hour, and it started, but was still slow and ugly. Actually, I think I'll try it now.

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rob-c Experienced

rob-c

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3 minutes ago, Bionic said:

Speaking of tires,  did you happen to change your summer air, for winter air?

Now that’s just silly, everyone knows that the gas stations that charge a dollar for 30 seconds of air use that special all weather air. 

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