Alternator Charging System problem

JERRY32

MEMBER
2006 NISSAN MURANO
66,000 MILES

I have the S model with approximately 66,000 miles.
For the last month or so it has not started at various times, not in the morning but after returning to the car from shopping or wherever, there would be no power, lights, radio, etc. When I opened the hood and would barely touch the battery connectors in case they might be loose, then closed the hood and got back in car lights were on, started right up, no problem. I just thought it was loose connections and would tighten them at home and thought that was the issue, until yesterday.
This time in parking lot same thing happened the car restarted but then stalled about ten seconds after driving. It restarted but seemed like power failure dashboard lights blinking like crazy, on and off. A bystander helped jump off car which took several tries finally from zero power, then to clicking then started and got home after one more episode with getting jumped off. I though the battery was totally dead as was several years old and decided to get new one with a little higher amps though in the back of my mind I knew alternator could be a possibility. But I installed the battery and it drove well a few miles, but decided to go back to auto store and get alternator tested as saw the sign for that, and the results are attached (hope you can view). The test showed: No voltage; drain test: 3.18A suspect. The guy called it a leak and said not just the bad alternator but something else making that electrical leak.

I asked if I should still drive and he advised maybe for two weeks then it would not be driveable. I guess meaning the alternator might be totally dead or maybe the new battery or not exactly sure.
Today while driving to drop off my kid I thought I might have felt a power loss just for a second while driving, but not sure as no lights came on just the feeling you get when you have stalled but it continued without hesitation to the house.
So just wondering what next step would be? Thanks so much!

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7 Replies

RASMATAZ

MECHANIC
75,992 POSTS

Double check all connections, clean and tight free of corrosion. See below.

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Monday, December 12th, 2011 AT 6:09 AM

CSMITH1967

MEMBER
1 POST

I have a 2006 Murano. Battery is year and a half old. The other day I was driving and I noticed the red lights for battery and brakes were on. Car ran fine. Brake fluid was full. New brakes all around car in last two months.

So I am driving and the car seems to stall. I shift to neutral and tap the gas to make sure engine is off before I hit key. The engine revs fine. So I drop back into drive and car puts at 1,000 rpm. Barely creeps along.

I park it and go get trailer and jumper cables. I jump start it and charge battery for ten minutes then drive it onto trailer, no problems.

I get home and fully charge battery with charger. I use OBD II tester and get PO420 code. Emissions system?

I use alternator check function on my battery charger and it says "alternator check - alternator voltage bad."

So I am thinking the PO420 code is not related. Alternator bad? Bad connection? Car has 170,000 miles on it.

Thoughts?

Thanks,
Craig

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Thursday, June 14th, 2018 AT 6:41 AM

KHLOW2008

MECHANIC
41,814 POSTS

Hi Craig,
The problem could be related but the main cause should be the failed alternator.

Insufficient battery voltage due to improper charging could cause sensors to provide wrong information to the computer.

Have the charging problem rectified, clear the codes and go for a test drive. If trouble does not come back, you are good.

K H Low

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Saturday, June 16th, 2018 AT 11:11 PM

DANYDEE

MEMBER
2 POSTS
2005 NISSAN MURANO
4WD
AUTOMATIC
208,500 MILES

Alternator went and was replaced. 1 week later alternator went again and replaced (thought was faulty alternator) new one in now and lights are flickering (not the icons) but alternator and battery are reading as charged. Dealership said transmission problems (and want to sell me a new car) but would that cause lights to flicker? Worried that it's going to die on me again and not fun with 2 young kids. Wondering if it's worth trying to figure out the problem. Have a video of lights flickering if that helps.

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Monday, March 11th, 2019 AT 12:09 PM (Merged)

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,910 POSTS

Before you go any further, how old is the battery? GM has a real big problem with repeat generator failures caused by the huge voltage spikes they develop. As the battery ages and the lead flakes off the plates, it loses its ability to dampen and absorb those spikes. They can damage the generator's internal diodes and voltage regulator and interfere with computer sensor signals. It's not uncommon to go through four to six replacement generators in the life of the vehicle.

Most import cars such as yours use a similar generator design but with not quite so many repeat failures. Regardless, when you have multiple failures so close together, suspect the battery unless it is less than about two years old. Also check the battery cable connections. Without going into my really long-winded reply at this time, it is very easy to destroy multiple computers by trying to run the engine with the battery disconnected. That was a real poor trick uneducated mechanics did decades ago. That won't hurt older cars but you must never do that on cars with computers. A loose or dirty cable connection mimics that removed cable. The battery is needed to help the voltage regulator do its job. An old battery, a loose cable connection, or heaven-forbid, a disconnected battery removes it from the circuit and prevents the regulator from holding system voltage steady. Computers really hate unstable supply voltage. You see that as flickering lights.