80 mile trip

[tornado666]

just got back from an 80 mile trip in the new surf(well when i say new i mean new to me..it is actually 20 years old),but ran very smooth,temp gauge fine in fact all gauges were fine,stopped when i got home and will now not start(flat battery),any clues guys?i presume the alternater works as no battery light was coming on while driving,could it just be a duff battery(guy i bought it from recons its a new battery)he did mention the new cd player and saying maybe a loose wire was draining the battery?

[yoshie]

Stick a volt meter on the battery terminals, you should have a reading of about 14.4 volts if the alt is charging properly.
Clearly you need to charge battery and get truck running first.

[tornado666]

Stick a volt meter on the battery terminals, you should have a reading of about 14.4 volts if the alt is charging properly.
Clearly you need to charge battery and get truck running first.

dont want to sound stupid but which battery as there are 2

[rbaz]

dont want to sound stupid but which battery as there are 2

Check all the battery terminals make sure they are clean and tighten up properly. Also check the earths make sure they have a good connection to the body then check the voltage once you get the truck running at either battery. (check both should be the same)
if he only replaced 1 battery the other could be at fault.

[Vultch]

Any one, they connected in parallel to act as one big battery, engine off it should be roughly 12 engine on 14 as yoshie says.
If the surf has been sitting a while and the cold weather does batteries no favours. Give them a charge

[tornado666]

dont want to sound stupid but which battery as there are 2

omg....now i do feel stupid ive just lifted the bonnet and there is only 1 battery....thought all surfs had 2,battery is brand new last sunday.

[lord_flashart]

Check the belts, they don't always squeek when they are loose but it may not be charging properly.

[Growler]

Still need to check the voltage, as some nice person may have removed the battery warning light bulb

[tornado666]

Still need to check the voltage, as some nice person may have removed the battery warning light bulb

as well as my other battery?...so should i have 2 or just the 1 battery?its a 1990(h reg)

[Vultch]

As far as I know some Surfs might only have one battery, the Surfs engine bay is pretty cramped, if you have two both batteries sit at the front one behind each headlight...

[tornado666]

As far as I know some Surfs might only have one battery, the Surfs engine bay is pretty cramped, if you have two both batteries sit at the front one behind each headlight...

must be just the 1 then as there is no other battery tray.anyone got a 1990 surf that can confim that it only has 1?

[Vultch]

Its only got one then , there would be a big hole "car battery sized" with a battery tray looking lonely

[Vultch]

with key in ignition, before you crank, all warning lights should light up as a check do you have a battery/charging light, and the voltmeter on your dash, its its vague but i take it was somewhere halfway up its scale

[tornado666]

update,alternater wasnt charging due to loose drive belt...tightned belt and all is now fine.thanks a lot guys.