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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 115
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Joined: Jun 2001
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Ran three errands today. Car would not start to bring my home. Did not leave lights on. Engine did not crank. Lights on console flickered. Jumped it. Drove three minutes varying RPM between 1K & 4K due to traffic, then car died again. Jumped car again. Drove another minute at 1K RPM. Parked car. Died again. Charging warning light never came on during drive. Car has just enough juice to light cabin light and operate power doors. So... does this sound like a dead battery or malfunctioning alternator?  I have a 2.5L MTX...
1999 Cougar V6 MTX
Borla stainless, dual exhuast
ST200 struts, rear strut tower brace
Roush springs, rear sway bar, bodykit
Steeda Tri/X, Powerslot rotors, Falken Ziex 512
Awaiting install: GMK CAI
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1,176
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CEG'er
Joined: Nov 2001
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Sounds like battery, Have it checked......
An ounce of prevention provides a pound of cure!
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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 5,600
Addicted CEG\'er
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Addicted CEG\'er
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Originally posted by btrautman:
Sounds like battery, Have it checked......
some places will do it for free. have you killed your battery recently or badly in the past? giving a battery a serious discharge can hurt battery life. if its old it might just be bad, or if you gave it a good discharge a while ago it may just be time to replace it.
many parts stores will also throw a charge onto your battery if it will take one. doesnt sound like it wants too though.
#4559 of 6535 born on Feb 17, 1998
Black 1998.5 CSVT
FOR SALE [cleaning house]: SVT rear swaybar. Reasonable offer and its yours!
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Posts: 888
Veteran CEG\'er
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first things first... you need a good charged up battery to operate a car... and to keep it good and charged you need an alternator that will supply the juice to the battery....
no one here can tell you what one it is.. if you keep on getting jumps and the battery is pulled down too much then yuo gonna get another battery and put it in and it will start right up... but if its the alternator then when that battery goes down like 10 minutes of driving then you gonna not have any power left in the battery(eventhough it was new).....
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 115
CEG\'er
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OP
CEG\'er
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 115 |
yeah, i was pretty much thinking i would replace the battery and if the new one died prematurely, then i must need to replace the alternator...
1999 Cougar V6 MTX
Borla stainless, dual exhuast
ST200 struts, rear strut tower brace
Roush springs, rear sway bar, bodykit
Steeda Tri/X, Powerslot rotors, Falken Ziex 512
Awaiting install: GMK CAI
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 750
Veteran CEG\'er
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Veteran CEG\'er
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 750 |
megafuse
if that goes out, you'll never see the charging light (at least I didn't), and your battery is not charged.
grab an ohmmeter and measure the resistance between the alternator terminals and the battery.
Tiv
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 115
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 115 |
where is the megafuse? is it in-line with the harness and covered in elec tape?
i took the car to goodyear, and they say that the alternator is bad. it measured 13.5 Volts but was exhibiting a "ripple" charge or something to do with the waveform not being currect.
elsewhere i have read that the altenator output may be smoothed by modifying the voltage sensor (regulator?), as in the image below:
1999 Cougar V6 MTX
Borla stainless, dual exhuast
ST200 struts, rear strut tower brace
Roush springs, rear sway bar, bodykit
Steeda Tri/X, Powerslot rotors, Falken Ziex 512
Awaiting install: GMK CAI
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 750
Veteran CEG\'er
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 750 |
Originally posted by SoopaCooga:
where is the megafuse? is it in-line with the harness and covered in elec tape?
Yes, for me ('97 Zetec Contour) it was behind the engine in a longish rectangular black plastic box. Its an inline fuse, accessible from above.
Tiv
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