How far can you drive once the battery light comes on?
You can drive the car with the battery light on but you will only have on average 15 minutes. After roughly 15 minutes, your car will run out of electrical power and the car will stall.
What to do if your car battery light is not working?
Get the alternator or wiring fixed, and properly recharge the battery at the same time. The folks at AutoZone can always help with battery and charging system issues, both on the car, and with the parts off the car.
What causes a car battery light to illuminate while driving?
As you know, the alternator is responsible for keeping the battery fully charged as you are driving the vehicle. But if you have a bad alternator, then it won’t be able to keep the battery charged. This will cause the car battery light to illuminate once there is an inconsistency in the charge.
What should voltage be for car battery light?
It’s relatively easy to check the function of the alternator with a multimeter. The voltage should be between 13.6 volts and 14.6 volts. If the voltage is less than 12 volts, the battery light is triggered and you’ll likely need to replace the alternator.
How long does it take for a battery light to go off?
The exact amount of time that your car will be able to function with the battery light on depends on many factors, but assuming that the alternator is the issue (this is the most common issue) it is likely that your car will lose battery power after 30 minutes to an hour of driving.
What to do when your battery light comes on while driving?
If the battery light comes on while the engine is running and the vehicle is being driven, this indicates a problem with the charging system. Step 1: Turn off everything that draws power.
What does a car battery warning light mean?
If the voltage created by the electrical charging system is too low, a battery warning light illuminates to indicate that the battery cannot be properly charged. Without a charging battery, the vehicle will not stay running for long.
It’s relatively easy to check the function of the alternator with a multimeter. The voltage should be between 13.6 volts and 14.6 volts. If the voltage is less than 12 volts, the battery light is triggered and you’ll likely need to replace the alternator.
Why does my car battery light come on every time I start the car?
Every time the vehicle starts up, the battery warning light should briefly turn on, then back off after a few seconds. This is a system test that indicates the battery light on the dash, along with any monitored components of the charging system, are working as expected.