mlopezart

Problem 1:
Okay so of course here I am all happy with this car since I just got it. BUT, I'm on my third battery since last week and the latest one is now at 75%u0025 and it's brand new since this morning! Autozone checked all 3 (battery, alternator, starter) with a multimeter and said the starter and alternator were bad. I've determined that it is not the starter since the car, even at a very low charge, it starts up right away---no clicks or anything (untill the battery dies completely which it has before). The alternator is probably the culprit---will be getting it checked, as long as the others again, tomorrow morning. Before I go buying an alternator, am I missing anything?

Problem 2:
There is a "Check Gages" light on but haven't gotten around to it because of this battery issue. I've read it may be the oil pressure since my oil gauge fluctuates past the halfway mark (3/4 of the way almost). What's the best way to get this fixed?

I can't wait to fully enjoy this car without these problems! Any ideas?

Injuneer

What does the dash voltage gauge indicate at idle? If the alternator is not charging the battery, system voltage will drop, and when the voltage drops into the red, the "Check Gauges" light will come on.

Both problems may be related.

mlopezart

The image refers to a 1999 camaro--- my dash voltage is between the 8 and 13, somewhere around 10 or 11 v. It stays there until after a couple of days then starts winding down. The Autozone guy after checking my second battery said it was a bad battery because it wasn't keeping its charge---that's why I exchanged it (thank you warranty) for another brand new battery (Interstate M-75). I drove for about 10 minutes and checked it---The guy this time said it was at 75%u0025 already! The voltage on the dash does not show above the 13 mark.

rod442

Sounds for sure like an alternator problem. get it properly tested, and stop wasting batteries, lol.

AL SS590 M6

What he ^^^^^ said.

Marc 85Z28

What the hell does that mean?

This is problem #3. Autozone is not capable of properly testing a starter or alternator.

Replace the alternator already. Your check gauges light is telling you system voltage is low.

mlopezart

whoops, sorry for the typo about the 75 percent (when you type the percent sign in this forum it gives you "u0025". weird.). So I went to a Goodyear close by here and they got the car up on a lift to check the alternator itself, not through the battery like Autozone did. By doing that they made sure it wasn't any cables or something that was draining my battery. It definitely was the alternator. So I got one (reman), and proceeded to get dirty. With it installed (thank you google! that was tough! but doable), the magic happened---the check gage light is now gone! There was an odd squealing when I"d rev the engine with the new alternator so I removed, greased, and replaced the whole belt. The squealing was still there! The odd thing was when I started to actually drive it, it went away

Anyway, the oil pressure is now back to normal, check gage light is now off, voltage is now at around 13, idle is now smoother, and squealing is gone. YES!! Thank you guys for the feedback!!

I found these excellent multi-angle pictures that helped me out a whole lot during the replacement (it's an LS2 but its the closest to LS1 pics that I found. If you guys find pics this clear for an LS1 let me know!):

http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/TKLS2/

Marc 85Z28

Good to hear that it's fixed. But about that 75%u0025... That's gibberish at best. Nobody knows what that means!

mlopezart

ok, 10 volts as opposed to 12.6v. man you're giving me a hard time!

mlopezart

Okay so everything's cool except one thing: Squealing alternator or belt! Apparently the screeching never went away---usually in the morning. Here's the thread for that issue and thanks guys for all the help

https://www.camaroz28.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=794494