is this a battery problem or alternator problem?

Lady_Luck · 12-31-2008, 11:13 AM

ok- yesterday afternoon i went to start my jeep and it turned on for half a second and then died. i tried to crank her up several more times, gave her a minute to breathe, tried again and still no luck. so i tried again and gave it some gas and she would run while i was gasing it, but the second i took my foot off the gas, she would stall out.

so i cranked her up again, kept the rpm's running at 2000 for a minute or two, put my left foot on the brake to put in in reverse while still keeping my right foot consistent on the gas, backed out of the driveway,and repeated the whole gas/brake simultaneously to put it in drive. didn't have anymore problems after that. is my alternator going out or is my battery maybe not charging it well enough while the car is running? what do i need to look for? pics always help! thanks!

Mike Cooper · 12-31-2008, 11:38 AM

Take it to a battery shop, they wont even charge you to see if your battery is holding a good charge, if it is holding a charge, could be altinator. I would also check for corrosion on the battery.

**the88thpianoman** · 12-31-2008, 11:43 AM

Could also be a TPS/IAC problem.

kc8ztw · 12-31-2008, 11:47 AM

to me it sounds like you Idle Air Controller is bad. this is what controls the amount of air going into the engine at idle. this is a common chysler thing. it is located on the back of the throttle body, sometimes cleaning them off helps because they get carbon build up on them and well as the rest of the throttle body and intake.
Do you have a engine light on?

CMARJEEP · 12-31-2008, 12:17 PM

Same thing happened to me when my battery went bad. I popped a new one in and she ran good as new.

BlackShuck · 12-31-2008, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CMARJEEP

Same thing happened to me when my battery went bad. I popped a new one in and she ran good as new.

x2 I had the same symptoms earlier this year. A new battery solved it, even though I didn't think it would

CrazyDrivinJoe · 12-31-2008, 12:21 PM

test the batteryX2

Lady_Luck · 12-31-2008, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kc8ztw

to me it sounds like you Idle Air Controller is bad. this is what controls the amount of air going into the engine at idle. this is a common chysler thing. it is located on the back of the throttle body, sometimes cleaning them off helps because they get carbon build up on them and well as the rest of the throttle body and intake.
Do you have a engine light on?

yes i HAD a light on for a day or two- ignored it, it turned off, it came back on a week later (last night), and realized i have a water pump problem that i need to fix before my engine starts overheating- but would that cause my jeep to not start properly? i feel like these are two seperate problems because of the timing. my engine still isn't overheating yet and i plan on fixing that this week-

no corrosion on the battery and i didn't stall out at the stop sign at the end of my street when i was idled right after pulling out of the drive way- it only happened when i was trying to start it... ugh

kc8ztw · 12-31-2008, 02:24 PM

water pump issue wont cause the engine not to start, do you know what the exact codes where that it threw.
i would also have a draw test done on the battery though cause thats easy and free... goto NAPA for that

Haleyrz · 12-31-2008, 02:40 PM

I'd say battery too...but when you turn it on look at the gauges. Does anything drop? I just had my alternator start to die when my battery gauge dropped off and the check gauge light came on and would go to normal when the rpm went up. Cleaned the battery and terminals, had it tested and was fine. Dropped in the new alternator and it doesn't happen anymore. But if its a starting issue i say battery. how old is it? Most batteries should have the month and year it was purchased on it.

Oh and, is there any corrosion on your battery or terminals? maybe you can clean them and see if that helps?

spuddybuddy · 12-31-2008, 03:33 PM

Battery, mine did it last year. Walmart does battery checks for free and if your nice to the person there they will give you their employee discount on a new one. Still a good idea to clean out the TB / IAC as well.

Lady_Luck · 01-01-2009, 10:47 AM

no corrosion- i'll have to check about the guages- if this turns out to be a problem with the alternator, what kind of prices am i looking at? thanks for all the help

txtumbleweed · 01-01-2009, 10:54 AM

Original battery? If so, you are on borrowed time anyway. My bet is battery - been there done that.

Check your fault codes while you are at it:
http://www.wjjeeps.com/faultcodes.htm

Haleyrz · 01-01-2009, 02:08 PM

IF it is the alternator, I just paided $160 for a 120amp alt plus tax minus a $75 return for my 90 amp core (when i get time to return it) so it will end up being about $115. However I got a friends employee discount and the store i got it at already has really good prices. I've heard iffy things about napa and the other chain stores selling japanese alternators and they crap out after a few years. The one I got has a lifetime warranty and is american made. Its weird that the one for the 4.7L is cheaper than the 4.0L lol. Here is a link.

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/se...and%20Cherokee

Lady_Luck · 01-02-2009, 08:04 AM

great- all this helps out a lot guys -appreciate it- thanks again