Help Needed - Intermitten Charging System Warning
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Joined: Oct 2016
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2003 C320
Help Needed - Intermitten Charging System Warning
Looking for some ideas..
6 weeks ago I replaced my alternator and have been having no issues. The alternator was definitely bad at the time as it looks like it was the original alternator that came with the vehicle (170k miles now) and was generating 0 voltage. After being replaced it behaved normally.
Beginning about 2 weeks ago I am now intermittently getting a charging system event error.
When this happens I check the voltage and it is pushing 14 volts no problem and seems to have no issues charging the battery. Sometimes I will get the alert within the first 30 seconds of the car starting and sometimes it won’t alert for 2 hours if at all.
Today I got the alert and all of a sudden I was only generating 11 volts. I stop the car and restart it and am now again operating regularly at 13.8-14volts and no error.
Does this sound like I have a bad alternator/voltage regulator?
Will a battery, that needs replaced, show these same type of symptoms?
Am I maybe looking at a bad battery cable?
I am obviously thinking of doing a warranty exchange on the alternator but trying to decide if I should go ahead and just replace the battery as well.. I’ve double and triple checked all of the connections from the battery to alternator to the body.
Note: serpentine belt was just recently changed as well as the idler and tensioner pulley.
6 weeks ago I replaced my alternator and have been having no issues. The alternator was definitely bad at the time as it looks like it was the original alternator that came with the vehicle (170k miles now) and was generating 0 voltage. After being replaced it behaved normally.
Beginning about 2 weeks ago I am now intermittently getting a charging system event error.
When this happens I check the voltage and it is pushing 14 volts no problem and seems to have no issues charging the battery. Sometimes I will get the alert within the first 30 seconds of the car starting and sometimes it won’t alert for 2 hours if at all.
Today I got the alert and all of a sudden I was only generating 11 volts. I stop the car and restart it and am now again operating regularly at 13.8-14volts and no error.
Does this sound like I have a bad alternator/voltage regulator?
Will a battery, that needs replaced, show these same type of symptoms?
Am I maybe looking at a bad battery cable?
I am obviously thinking of doing a warranty exchange on the alternator but trying to decide if I should go ahead and just replace the battery as well.. I’ve double and triple checked all of the connections from the battery to alternator to the body.
Note: serpentine belt was just recently changed as well as the idler and tensioner pulley.
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