Battery or alternator

darrcow

03 opel saffira

just driven approx. 80 km this evening head lights on all the way. I get about 3 km from home and the battery warning light comes on. the head light start to dim. then airbag warning light and abs warning light comes on. then I loose power steering. when I get home I switch off the engine and then try to start again and nothing so is it battery or alternator or both

thanks :mad:

KK4SAM

Check your belts

whupdedo

Could be a faulty earth ???

Red Nissan

Add loose fanbelt to that list.

Essentially you got home with a flat battery. 03, so the battery and the alternator is past due replacement anyway, not knowing your service history, but it could even be a loose connection.

Red Nissan

whupdedo wrote: »

Could be a faulty earth ???

As a routine, on a ten year old car, changing out the battery connections and earth terminals is positively recommended.

johnayo

Most likely the Alternator.

dooroy

If all belt(s) OK then alternator .

Avns1s

Red Nissan wrote: »

As a routine, on a ten year old car, changing out the battery connections and earth terminals is positively recommended.

What????

The vast majority of cars go to the crusher with their original battery leads and connections! In rare cases, where corrosion is allowed to build up for an extended period, there may be a problem. It's very rare to see a car with battery leads and connections needing replacing, cleaning maybe, but not replacing.
I would be replacing them - if they need replacing, but not as a matter of course/routine.

Red Nissan

Avns1s wrote: »

I would be replacing them - if they need replacing, but not as a matter of course/routine.

It's only a handyman's job and about a tenner in cash for the parts. It's amazing the conditions that a sporadically loose connection can cause, poor running, staling or nearly staling, weak morning starts, radio interference, radio reset, radio changing stations, mileometer resets, non functioning switches, fuse blowing, poor charging, door unlocking, hazards activating, flickering lights.

It's not always obvious and a hand inspection may not show any cause for concern. I've been tracking these problems with by old bus, changed the negative terminal clamp as it was really hard to tighten down and I even gave the positive connection a tap of a light hammer, no movement. Following day no start, the positive connection was loose, so I've surmised that it was loosening and tightening on its own. It wasn't the first time it seem tight enough, yet was not obviously making and maintaining proper contact.