1998 Cadillac DeVille "battery not charging" after replacing alternator

Asked by BeeAlyse1990 Dec 01, 2017 at 12:30 PM about the 1998 Cadillac DeVille Sedan FWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Hi. I have a 1998 Cadillac DeVille. I have had
trouble with what I thought was the alternator. I
have replaced the alternator, battery, and starter.
After replacing these (used parts) I am getting the
"battery not charging" and "service charging
system" messages. I have checked to make sure
battery cables are secure with good connection,
and checked that all wires are connected properly.
Helllllp! What else could be the issue??

2 Answers

70

I have the same problem on my 1989 Cadillac Deville. Please let me know what to do to find out what the problem is? Thank you.

7 people found this helpful.
180

I had the same problem. First, from underneath the car, find the wires that connect to the alternator (two wires with a quick connect that attach to the alternator). When you turn the ignition switch on, you should have a 12 VDC on one of them. If you don't, the controller inside the alternator does not get ''excited'' so it does not send the message to the alternator to start charging. Mine had 9VDC if I remember. I can't say if the problem is from the cumputer cause I don't have the expertise to diagnosed it but what I did was to bring a 12VDC straight from the battery to the alternator and started the car. The alternator started charging right away. Normaly, you should get between 13.8 and 14.8 VDC (on battery terminal or on the voltmeter inside the car) when the alternator is functionning correctly. Since that fixed the problem, I installed a different wire that gets ''energized with 12 VDC) when you turn the switch on. It was supposed to be a tempory fix but it's been like this for 6 months a solved my problem. Hope I was clear enough. Good luck. Denis

17 people found this helpful.

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