1998 stratus 2.0L, Battery Light, Alternator Problem?

by Jon
(Bellevue, WA)

My 1998 stratus' battery light went on during my commute to work today and the gauges started 'twitching'. I managed to get to my office but after being parked for a few hours, the battery is completely dead (interior lights work, but not enough juice to crank the engine). It has been making a 'chirping' sound periodically over the last few months, usually in the morning.

I'm guessing that my alternator is dead since I just had the serpentine belt replaced about a 1.5 years ago (I think the serpentine rotates the alternator) and the battery is less than 2 years old.

Does this sound like a reasonable evaluation? If so, the big question becomes... what is the procedure to replace it? I assume I'll have to release the serpentine belt tensioner and then unbolt the alternator though I am unsure how to do either of those things, in what order or if there's something else that must be done first (or second, thirt, etc).

I'm obviously not a mechanic by any stretch of the imagination though if I know what to do I can be sorta competent ;)

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!



Steve Says,

There are several things to try in this case. There are really only two tests that you should have to do to figure out this battery problem or alternator problem. Since your battery light came on we know that the battery is not getting charged by the alternator or that the battery is not able to take the charge that the alternator is trying to give it.

You need to first have your battery "load tested". You should be able to have this done at any auto parts store. This will put a load on the battery to see if it is bad. A battery can seem fine when you just check the voltage with a voltmeter, but yet still be bad when you do this test. This will tell you if you have battery problems.

While they are doing this load test on the battery they can also do a load test on the alternator. It is a similar test as they do to the battery...they simply put a load on the alternator to see if it can handle all the needs of the charging system on your car.

Once you have these tests done you should know the answer to your car question. I hope this helps!