Dead Battery/Charging system question

[wjchun]

Hi,

I should've made my post here instead of the CAM GEN 5 area.

I've got a 2004 Camry LE still under warranty until December 2006. The battery recently went out. It looks like the battery has been boiling over for a few months. I replaced the battery with an aftermarket and the car works find(didn't want to deal with the hassle of towing the car to the dealer at night). Also, I checked the voltage with no load and with the car running to make sure the alternator was charging the battery, alls seems fine.

My question. Is it worthwhile to have the charging system checked out by the dealer? I'd hate for the battery/charging system to potentially conk out on me once the car is out of warranty.

Thanks!

Warren

[wjchun]

I called the dealer. They said that they have only seen it twice where the alternator was the culprit for a burnt out battery. It was for a car that had 300k miles and another car with 1000 miles. So...it was just a dead battery.

[ASG14]

^ You do know your batter was probably still under warentee, right?

Toyota Brand Batteries are the best I have ever uses. My old Camry and my Dad's amry both have the OEM Battery last 8 years.

[Mike Gerber]

2 thoughts come to mind after reading your thread.

First, you can check the charging system yourself with a DVM. Just set the meter to 20 volts DC, start the car, and touch the 2 leads to the battery terminals. You should see up to 14.7 volts. Anything over that and the alternator may be overcharging the battery.

Second, I have seen the internal regulator go out in some alternators causing the alternator to overcharge the battery. However, when this does happen, it is usually accompanied by some of the car's light bulbs burning out. If you haven't had to replace any light bulbs lately, you are probably OK and it was just a defective battery.

Mike