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1995 Nissan Altima battery issue
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subana
New User
Jul 24, 2011, 11:13 PM
Post #1 of 5
(2956 views)
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1995 Nissan Altima battery issue
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I have a 1995 Nissan Altima 4 door sedan (I think it's a GX or GL but not sure about that), 2.4 L engine It has about 125,000 miles on it
Last week I went to my car to get something out of it. There is a button inside the driver's door that locks/unlocks all of the doors at the same time but when I pushed that button, it didn't unlock the doors. I pushed the button to lock the doors & that didn't work either. Then I tried to start the car & it wouldn't start either! I had someone replace the battery & that worked pretty well. It started immediately! In fact, the guy who put the battery in started it, then turned it off several times to prove that it was working. The rest of the day I didn't drive it. About 12 hrs later, I was going to go to the store but it wouldn't start again! Although this time I could see that the dome light inside the car was dimly lit. Apparently it didn't have enough power to start the car. When the guy was replacing the battery he seemed to have some problems attaching one of the post cables to the battery, so that could be an issue.
A long time ago, someone told me the alternator had a bad diode & it should be replaced. I decided to wait since I didn't have the money for it at the time. He said that was fine but when it goes out, I might find myself stranded. And this was about 5 or 6 years ago! I would have thought the alternator would have failed before now.
I am in no way an auto mechanic! I'm just trying to figure out how much it will likely cost to get it fixed. I've also seen some articles on the internet which say that when the lock button (in the driver's door) malfunctions, it could drain some power from the battery. Basically, I can't figure out why the battery lost so much power in 12 hours while it hadn't even been driven!
One other thing about the door locking problem, after I pushed the button to try to unlock the doors, now my key won't even lock the door from the outside! I don't know if that's important.
Anyway, any advice you can offer me will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
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subana
New User
Jul 25, 2011, 4:14 AM
Post #3 of 5
(2944 views)
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Re: 1995 Nissan Altima battery issue
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the dome was on but I believe that was when the door was open. I just now went to check it out again & now the dome light is off with the door closed or open....
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Hammer Time
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
Jul 25, 2011, 4:17 AM
Post #4 of 5
(2941 views)
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Re: 1995 Nissan Altima battery issue
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You will need a digital ammeter and a jumper wire with clips on the ends to do this.
First rig any door switches so you can have a door open without triggering the interior lights and unplug the hood light. Remove one battery cable and attach the meter in series between the battery cable and battery post. Take the jumper wire and also attach it the same way. Leave the jumper wire on for at least 10 minutes to expire all the automatic timers. Now remove the jumper wire and read the meter. Anything over 50ma is too much draw. The way you locate this is to start removing fuses one at a time until the meter drops to normal level. This will be the circuit with something staying on. Determine what components are part of that circuit and check them individually until the problem is isolated.
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We offer help in answering questions, clarifying things or giving advice but we are not a substitute for an on-site inspection by a professional.
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subana
New User
Jul 25, 2011, 5:59 AM
Post #5 of 5
(2933 views)
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Re: 1995 Nissan Altima battery issue
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this is way too technical for me but at least I can have the mechanic do that for me. Thanks
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