Hello all. I just bought a 96 850 turbo on Friday. The guy said it would need a new battery and was supposed to replace it but didn't by the time I bought it. So when I went to look at it we jumped it and got it going. He knocked off some of the price for the price of a new battery. Just by looking at it the battery looks fairly new. He said it has been sitting since July.

I got the car home and everything was fine. Started it again later that night with no issues and went to a friends house. Several hours later I went to the store close to his house. When I went to leave the store it wouldn't start. I left it there and went back and got it jumped the next morning. When I went to leave later that night it started fine twice. I took it home and left it for the entire next day. It was dead this morning when I went to start it. Does this sound like a battery or alternator issue?

 

Take it to Autozone or another auto parts place that has a battery tester. They will put it under a load and it will show how low it drops. If it goes well below the CCA (Cold Cranking Amps) number then you'll need a new battery. An old one can be charged, it just won't hold a charge for very long.

 

you need to have it tested. if you dont have time or dont have one readily available, you can do a simple test on your own. with the car running, disconnect the negative cable from the battery. if the car continues to run just fine, the alternator is fine. If you have a multimeter, even better. now you can read how much voltage it is generating. anything above 14v with the car running should be fine. below 14v i would get it tested.