Jeff,
Sounds like the battery to me..... How old is it??
Your voltages sound good, you should get 14.5v - 15.5v at the battery
with the car running, this shows the alt. and the regulator are working.
Try the easiest thing first - clean the terminals..... You would be
supprised at how many times this is the problem. Dirty contacts at the
terminals will not allow enough amperage to be supplied to the starter,
while still allowing the battery to be charged (less amperage required
to charge - over a longer period of time).
If this dosen't help - you can have it "load tested" at most parts
stores or battery places. This is a test that tells how much cranking
amps are in the battery. Also check to see if there is enough water in
the cells, the water should cover the plates. (be careful, the gas
created by a battery is explosive). If the plates are not covered you
can add distilled water (not tap water), but don't over fill.
Hope this helps,
Kevin V.
Jeffrey H. Boatright wrote:
>
> My wife's Saturn is sluggish to start. It turns over slowly, but it
> does start. However, it's getting more sluggish. If this were linear,
> I'd say she has about three more start cycles left. Voltage at the
> battery terminals with the engine shut off is 13V. With the engine
> running it's 15V. When I put the battery charger on it the first
> time, the little amp meter on the charger went to 0 (zero) and
> stayed. I tested this on the Sprite battery (LBC content!!) and the
> meter jumped up to 6 amps then slowly went down to 2 amps. After
> running the Saturn for 5 minutes, I put the charger back on it and
> the little amp meter jumped to 4 amps then slowly went down to 2 amps.
>
> I think the battery is dying. Are there other tests to determine
> whether the alternator is the problem, or other components? Note, the
> voltage regulator is part of the alternator on this car. If one goes,
> the whole thing must be replaced.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jeff
> --
>
> __________________________________________________
> Jeffrey H. Boatright, PhD
> Assistant Professor, Emory Eye Center, Atlanta, GA
> Senior Editor, Molecular Vision
> <http://www.molvis.org/molvis>
> <mailto: jboatri@emory.edu>
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