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Old 12-12-2017, 03:12 PM
crelli4007 crelli4007 is offline
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Default Failure to charge/Battery Light

So my battery light popped on the other day. I made it home without issue. Unable to problem solve the issue before work the next day, so I was forced to take the truck to work. On the way home it started to loose power when trying to accelerate. Then the truck started sputtering and misfiring. It gave of the smell of poor combustion, like the fuel mix is bad. When I finally limped home and parked the truck and turned it off. Out of sheer curiosity I turned the truck off and tried to turn it back on. The battery was dead enough to not start the truck. The next day I replaced the alternator and the serpentine belt. I also took the battery to get charged and tested. The battery came back as fine and was completely charged. I hooked the battery back up after replacing the alternator and the battery light is still on. The truck is still sputtering and running rough. It will not stay at a constant idle RPM of 1000 unless some gas is given and even then that doesn’t always work. Any help with a place to start would be amazing. I am going to replace the spark plug wires and spark plugs, Incase one of the wires is worn out and causing a short. However that would not explain the battery not charging issue. I have read about fusible links but don’t know where to find them on my 1998 3.0 V6 Ranger.
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Old 12-12-2017, 03:29 PM
99Ranger376 99Ranger376 is offline
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Default Re: Failure to charge/Battery Light

Check your fusible link


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2011 Ranger XLT 4x4 3.73 8.8" Trac-lok #1 T-bars, K -springs, LineX bedliner, General Grabber AT2's, Tonnopro tri-fold, CoverKing Realtree AP seat covers, OEM pre-keys, axle spacers, Bilstein 4600's, Hellwig AAL. Ziebart Undercoat
'98 Ranger XLT 2WD (sold)
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Old 12-12-2017, 06:07 PM
dvrich dvrich is offline
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Default Re: Failure to charge/Battery Light

How many volts at the battery and alternator when idling. Most reman alternators are made in China nowadays so it could be bad out of the box.
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Old 12-12-2017, 07:31 PM
99Ranger376 99Ranger376 is offline
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Default Re: Failure to charge/Battery Light

Quote:
Originally Posted by dvrich View Post
How many volts at the battery and alternator when idling. Most reman alternators are made in China nowadays so it could be bad out of the box.


That is true, I got a bad one the other day when I replaced my friend’s alternator. I always check them in the store.


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2011 Ranger XLT 4x4 3.73 8.8" Trac-lok #1 T-bars, K -springs, LineX bedliner, General Grabber AT2's, Tonnopro tri-fold, CoverKing Realtree AP seat covers, OEM pre-keys, axle spacers, Bilstein 4600's, Hellwig AAL. Ziebart Undercoat
'98 Ranger XLT 2WD (sold)
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Old 01-22-2018, 10:20 AM
jfchiro jfchiro is offline
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Default Re: Failure to charge/Battery Light

I am having a similar issue with my 97 Ranger. The charging light came on for about 2 weeks. When it first appeared, I took it to the local mechanic; he checked the battery terminals with volt meter and it showed it was charging. He stated he had similar issues in the past on other vehicles. Even if he replaced the alternator, it didn't always fix the light issue. He thought this might be due to a regulator on/in the alternator. Ultimately, as long as the battery was charging all was good, just watch it.
I have noticed a sporadic problem with power (wanting to stall out when first putting in gear or idling). But here is the strange thing...I have noticed my gas mileage is worse when the charging light is on. (I say this cause for about 2 weeks the light stayed off and I noticed my gas mileage improve but to the usual range).

So, any help would be grateful.
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