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james puglia
New member
Username: Jvp3
Post Number: 1
Registered: 07-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, July 16, 2009 - 12:12 pm: | 
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I have a Max IV. bought a new battery in December. started it once and ran it. would not start again unless with jumper cables. same thing happening over summer. not sure if battery is bad or should I be looking at the alternator. will run fine and then kind of konk out..will not turn over unless battery..any ideas of what it is and where I can get an alternaotr |
Erich Kelter
Advanced Member
Username: Fisherman
Post Number: 118
Registered: 11-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, July 16, 2009 - 12:32 pm: |
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It could be a couple of things, bad battery, bad connections, bad alternator. Take the battery remove the cables, and charge it overnight, let it sit for 12 hours without using it, then check the voltage with a digital meter, should read 12.6 to 12.65 volts for a fully charged battery. You might want to check the fluid level if it's a regular lead acid battery. If you check the voltage right after charging you'll most likely get a false high reading(12.65 to over 13.5 volts). Secondly, remove and clean connections at the battery, corrsion can prevent proper recharing by the alternator. Last, once the battery has been charged and installed, check the voltage before you start the motor, then start the motor and check the voltage reading just past idle speed, it should go up to 13.5 to 14 volts. If it doesn't then you may well have an alternator problem. Good luck, let us know the outcome. |
gregg g
Intermediate Member
Username: Brushcutter
Post Number: 51
Registered: 09-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, July 16, 2009 - 10:59 pm: |
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Also along with what Erich said check the ground strap at the motor to frame. Bad grounds can cause a lot of hair pulling and head scratching, good luck. |
Tim
Member
Username: Hammr
Post Number: 44
Registered: 12-2008
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, July 17, 2009 - 02:15 pm: |
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I had something very similar when I got my Argo. There were so many bad wiring connections due to "field maintenance" by the previous owner that the battery seemed to drain out after running it. I too thought it was a battery at first but did some investigation and determined it was a faulty voltage regulator. I would never see the volt meter on the Argo move, so I initially assumed it was just one of the other things that had worn out on the old girl. I used a multimeter on the engine connections while it was running and determined there was no current at all, meaning the Argo fan would run off the battery and of course drain it. I replaced the regulator and the old battery is still working fine. I suspect that all the shorts in the system had some relevence to the regulator going but I am not a mechanic. |
Erich Kelter
Advanced Member
Username: Fisherman
Post Number: 119
Registered: 11-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, July 20, 2009 - 04:06 pm: |
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Nice tip Tim, will remember that one for the future. |
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