battery light mystery?? - Benzworld.org

peregrine · 12-04-2007, 02:51 PM

hi everyone,
i have been experiencing something wierd.
over 4 years the car has stalled approx 5 times, and the battery light is the only light coming on??
i have checked the battery fluid and its full of water.
i am not inclined fully on electrical so any help here is appreciated. and i also have checked the data base here.

thanks in advance.

92 500 SEL

keyhole · 12-04-2007, 03:02 PM

When you say 'stalled', do you mean:

a) the car refused to start?
b) the engine was running, then stopped suddenly?

peregrine · 12-04-2007, 04:59 PM

hi,
at first it stalled while i was driving, the other day is stalled while i was in traffic at a stand still, and 2 weeks ago, stalled while driving. battery light came on when it stallled at a stand still in trafffic.??

puzzled about this?
thank you.

92 500 SEL

peregrine · 12-04-2007, 05:00 PM

never had a problem starting up in the morning or evening. and when it stalls it always fires up no problem.

peregrine · 12-04-2007, 05:47 PM

hi,
i read into the site and came across the belt tension.
i noticed my belt tension is not as tight as i remember, how can i check belt tension?? could this be my problem??

NZ Benz · 12-04-2007, 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peregrine

hi,
i read into the site and came across the belt tension.
i noticed my belt tension is not as tight as i remember, how can i check belt tension?? could this be my problem??

From memory if that is the case your in luck as the belt tensioner pully can be adjusted on the earlier cars, I don't know where it is though sorry as I've never had to do it.

MikeJT · 12-05-2007, 11:56 AM

May be I am missing something here but wouldn't you expect the battery light to come on if the engine stalls? - the alternator's not turning so the battery isn't charging. Even if the battery light came on while the engine was running, this would not necessarily cause the engine to stall as long as the battery had adequate charge in it. This sounds more like an intermittent fault on the ignition circuit to me.

telechronos · 12-05-2007, 04:06 PM

I always go for the simplest things first. I guess from your first post that the only check of your battery is to determine if there is sufficient acid in it. It is not clear that you have ever changed the battery or checked it for output both with the engine running and with the engine off. In my experience, these cars are really sensitive to a low or worn out battery. When you are sitting at a stop light and idling, it may well be that the alternator is not able to charge the battery sufficiently to keep it running. Before doing anything esoteric, I would want to be satisfied that both the alternator and the battery are putting out the necessary voltage.

This comment is to be valued at the going rate of $.02. Good luck!

Telechronos

1999 S500 Grand Edition (mileage 38,063)
1984 380SL
1987 BMW L7
1969 Factory Stick Pontiac Grand Prix SJ
1955 MG TF1500

peregrine · 12-05-2007, 04:33 PM

thanks gentlemen,
i guess a voltmeter is enough to check the alt and bat.
if so i will have to invest in a voltmeter. and i will check the forum database on how to use it.

as per the ignition circuit, would that be the tune up parts, ie,...plugs, ign coil, wires,. crank sensor.??
good day.

92 500 SEL

MikeJT · 12-07-2007, 02:45 AM

I guess I feel that a bad battery would not last four years while always starting the car. Try starting the car with the headlights on - if they stay reasonably bright while the car starts, I doubt that there is much wrong with the battery.

I would say that it is a very difficult problem to diagnose and that you may not be able to nail it down until the fault occurs more frequently - I hope I'm wrong. Perhaps Forum contributors who know all about engine fault codes could advise you on what to look for in that department.