> The other problem is with cranking over. The car is very hard to crank
> unless I jumper it. It has had this problem in the past and I've twice
> replaced the battery (bad each time). Each time it helps for a while
> and then it starts acting up again. Could I be undercharging or over-
> charging it?
What made you think the battery was bad? If it was just because the needle
on one of those battery load testers plunged downward when the load was put
on, it doesn't mean anything. The only satisfactory way that I've found to
test a battery is to check each cell with a hydrometer. If they're all evenly
discharged, your battery is simply not charged. If one or more cells are
significantly less charged than the others, its a bad battery.
I would tend to think that your problem isn't the battery at all, but your
alternator (generator?). The best way to check these is with a clamp-on
ammeter and a battery load tester. You clamp the ammeter to either battery
lead, and put the load tester on the battery. Start the car, rev it up to
3000 rpm or so, and flip the load switch on the battery tester. You then
read the alternator/generator output current on the ammeter. It should be
over 30 amps. Also try it just above idle. You should get at least 10 amps
or so (I've seen them go bad such that at higher rpms they charge, but it
doesn't really start until you're at 3000 rpm or higher).
If you don't have access to a clamp-on ammeter, but you do have a battery load
tester, you could rev the engine to 2000 rpm, making sure that the throttle is
held exactly steady. Then turn on the load switch on the battery load tester,
and listen to hear if the engine has more load on it. A car with a good
alternator will slow down noticeably when the battery is under load. This
method would work best if you had a known good midget to compare it to.
Joe
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