Getting ****ed off

As the title says, I'm getting ****ed off with my alternator/battery/what ever is in between. It's a 200tdi



The battery kept dying so I changed it for a new one, this battery had died a few weeks ago due to leaving the lights on, so I thought that the cold was affecting it in its fragile state.



So new battery on, car starts, happy days. Next morning car doesn't start again!!



Start it with someone else's battery fine and put my battery back on hoping the alternator would charge it back up on the way to work (15 miles away).



Got to work and turned the engine off, then tried to start it straight away and it just clicked!



Had a look at the terminals and saw that the cable from the alternator had come away from the battery terminal so I replaced the connection and refitted, drove home and still no charge.



So I have replaced the alternator with a brand new one. But guess what.... Still no charge!



The multi meter is reading 14.05 volts with the engine running of the battery and off the back of the alternator (with out lights, radio ect on)



The battery is reading 12.66 volts with the engine off.



The battery warning light is extinguishing when the ignition is started, but what I have noticed is it comes on when I turn the engine off.



Any ideas?? Tried everything in all the searches I have done

Hmm...

What's the condition of the cable from alternator to battery? Any possible damage and shorts?

Sounds like something maybe shorting and draining the battery?

Always worth checking the earths, though, if you can jump it I assume they are ok.

I would say its bad earth

Bump said:

Hmm...

What's the condition of the cable from alternator to battery? Any possible damage and shorts?

Sounds like something maybe shorting and draining the battery?

Always worth checking the earths, though, if you can jump it I assume they are ok.

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Sorry, I should of said I can't jump it, I can only get it started by putting a fresh battery on it

I would check the earth from starter to chassis they have a habit of fraying at the chassis end

yep, if your battery light is coming on after the engine is turned off then youve created a short somewhere.

Basically your grounding the battery so the charge isnt going into the battery, its finding an easier way to ground.

Be systematic in checking your wiring all the way through. It will most likely be an easy find.

oh ok, def check your earths as above then... you could be damaging something else too...

Forgot to add that my indicators have stopped working as well, fuses fine but they all don't work. Related or coincidence?

could have fried a wire, could be again a bad earth and a coincidence... do you have a multimeter and do you know how to use it (i don't mean that in an aggressive manner)

someone local maybe able to come and help you out, you've got a major issue, but, probably quite a simple one to find and fix if you know what you're looking for.

Yeh I do

How every, I'm not the best at electrics. Looks like I'm just going to have a look at every wire and conection

gil said:

How every, I'm not the best at electrics. Looks like I'm just going to have a look at every wire and conection

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Start at the battery and follow the earth and live wires, look for places where its shorted on the body work, like going through the bulkhead or into the battery box. Also check connectors, they could have worked loose over the years. If that all checks out then you have to start removing fuses and checking for an earth fault systematically on each circuit.

keep posting your progress, we will have you sorted.

Will do, thanks for the support ginga. Going to start first thing in the morning

Right all fuses pulled and only a slight drop in vaults. How ever I have just found two things dodgy




And were the hell is this from?

Looks like it's worth tidying those wires up irrespective of whether they're the major part of the problem.

If it's draining a battery that quickly, it suggests to me that the short must be somewhere substantial. Otherwise you'd get the smell of insulation cooking, fuses blowing and maybe a small fire. So I suspect it's leaking through some pretty meaty components. For example the starter motor itself or the alternator, or somewhere along the cable that goes between these and the battery.

Well changed the starter motor took it for a 20mile drive, still no charge getting taken up by the battery

Hmm. So the alternator's belting out a good load of juice, the starter's sound - I assume you've checked for any sign of continuity between the starter terminals and earth. So that leaves the wiring. Land Rover wiring does deteriorate inside those black plastic corrugated tubes they're so keen on. It has happened to me. Maybe it's time to start getting the wires out of the sheathing and checking them where possible. It'll need to be a fairly low resistance short to be able to drain the battery so quickly and prevent charging.

Also, whilst you say you've had the fuses out, did you try each circuit with a meter to see if there's any continuity between the load side of the fuse bay and earth (with everything switched off, of course)? It's got to be getting away somewhere.

Brown said:

I assume you've checked for any sign of continuity between the starter terminals and earth.

Also, whilst you say you've had the fuses out, did you try each circuit with a meter to see if there's any continuity between the load side of the fuse bay and earth (with everything switched off, of course)? It's got to be getting away somewhere.

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Nope, I haven't, will get straight on those two things. Like I said I'm 'special' when it comes to electrics

I'd get a new cable from the back of the alternator to the battery.

You don't need to go to Land Rover for this, any vehicle electrics place will sell you a thick cable with two crimps on the end.

If you really struggle let me know and i'll make you one up, but, postage will be a killer because of the weight, so, try locally first.