# Need help loss of power



## arnaar (Jul 17, 2004)

Hi Everybody!
I have a nissan sentra 1994. I just had problems with the battery and alternator about 4 months ago and I had them replaced. yesterday I was standing at a light and the power all dies. The head lights went out, the power in the inside of the car went and so did the radio and also the emergency blinker. in short everything died. I had to push the car to the side and then I tried again and nothing happened. I let the car be for about 30 minutes the time it took AAA to show up and when he came the car started without a problem. everything was rosy again. Do you guys think it is alternator problem , battery problem or something else. Please help


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## Will (Jan 2, 2004)

Possibly(cheap fix)(cheapest first) a loose battery cable.


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## BennittoMallito (May 20, 2002)

This happened to me once. Check the connections on the alternator. Also many replacement alternators have problems shortly after thier installation. AcDelco I've heard makes very bad ones.


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## Tavel (Aug 21, 2004)

how do you check the connections, do you just visualy inspect/clean them? or do you need to check current as well? 

i was driving yesterday and my check battery light came one, all the lights seem to be very dim(no electricity). and the car starts fine, so its not the battery. when it happened, i heard a buzzing from the dashboard and smelled some burning electronics. the noise and smell went away when i turned the rear defroster off. do alternators produce power surges that damage other componenents when they die? (i know computer power supplies do...so i dont know)

is there a way to check to see if it is indeed the alternator? i have 3 weeks of winter holidy and my girlfriend has her car, so this isn't a really imperitive fix. i can take my time, so whats the best way to ensure i fix the correct item?


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## lovemyser (Mar 14, 2003)

Used to happen to me all the time, these above guys are exactly right. Get a 12 and 10mm wrench/socket, take the heavy gauge wires off the altenator, put on some dielectric grease(auto zone, $0.99) on the terminals and put them back on. Now My guess is its your battery, take the terminals off, and clean them up real good(I always use coke and a wire brush) then tighten them back down, more than likely its just a loose terminal.


And Auto Zone has a Altenator and Battery testor, and they will check both of them for FREE.


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## Tavel (Aug 21, 2004)

alright ill take it to autozone as soon as i get the damn thing out. 

if the alternator is still good, ill try the electrically conductive grease on the terminals. 

then if it's still a no go, it must be the regulator.


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## lovemyser (Mar 14, 2003)

Just a note, but I would check all the connections before I took it to autozone. They have a machine that checks it while its still in the engine bay. If you see a connection that is loose/corroded then thats your problem.


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## Tavel (Aug 21, 2004)

http://www.nissanforums.com/showthread.php?t=79864

read about how its all fixed.


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## arnaar (Jul 17, 2004)

thanks guys for all your help. I t turned out to be the alternator.I jump started it and then the alternator was working and then slowly the voltage started going down. had the alternator replaced. It also turned out that the connection in the alternator was earthed such that my check battery would not light up.
thanks again for all the suggestions


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