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"Battery Not Charging" message

58K views 19 replies 9 participants last post by  mtarggart 
#1 ·
Last week soon after a hard acceleration to get into traffic the battery light came on and a Battery Not Charging message appeared. Consulting my Haynes manual I read that the only two possibilities to a battery not charging would be the battery or the alternator.

I removed the battery and took it to Auto Zone and it tested good. I then replaced the alternator. (The vehicle has 160K on it and the alternator has been making noise for well over a year so I decided to simply replace it.)

I just cranked the Envoy up and the light and warning message are still there. There is an slight inconsistency to this though. The first time I cranked the car it was there. The second time it did not appear until the engine had run about a minute. When left to idle there seems to be a cycling of some sorts as if the load on the engine changes or goes from a fast idle to a slow idle. After about 3-4 cycles of this the engine finally dies during one of the slow idle periods.

On a side note that might be related. The check engine light had come on a week or two earlier and I have to admit I didn't scan until last Friday. While taking the batter to be tested I rented a scanner. When I replaced the battery the CEL had gone out and the scan read "No Codes". The CEL light remains off.

Any help offered is appreciated.

Stuart
 
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#4 · (Edited)
I cleaned it about 6 months ago. Think it needs it again so soon? How does a dirty TB affect the battery charging?


Sounds like one of 2 things, possible dirty throttle body as previously said . Belt tension not as tight as it should be . If you have your defroster on then the AC compressor will cycle on and off like you are describing. Turn off defroster and see if its still cycling .
The Envoy has an automatic belt tensioner so I assume the belt is tight enough. I'm pretty sure the belt was replaced about 12K miles ago as I replaced the water pump, idler pulley and fan clutch.
 
#3 ·
battery



Sounds like one of 2 things, possible dirty throttle body as previously said . Belt tension not as tight as it should be . If you have your defroster on then the AC compressor will cycle on and off like you are describing. Turn off defroster and see if its still cycling .
 
#7 ·
i had a battery not charging message before... 1st problem was alternator wasnt charging after shop removed and reinstalled... put new one it.. tested it and it said not charging, we pulled out the DMM and it was charging fine... ordered a new plug that attaches to the alt. message went away... :m2:
 
#11 · (Edited)
I did an inspection of the tensioner and it is steady while the engine is running not bouncing around like a loose belt might cause. In addition the indexing mark on the tensioner is between the marks on the assembly and belt looks good. I just went and bought a meter and found that the alternator is not charging. This is a new alternator just installed Saturday morning. The heavy cable going from the alternator to the battery appears to be intact, not showing any signs of abrasion. Next step?
 
#12 ·
...I just went and bought a meter and found that the alternator is not charging. This is a new alternator just installed Saturday morning... Next step?
A brand new alt being bad doesn't seem too likely although it could be possible. Where/how did you measure the voltage? :undecided That could affect your readings. If the new alternator is indeed bad, I'd say next step is to take it back for an exchange or a refund. :m2:
 
#14 ·
That does prove that the battery isn't charging, but doesn't give us the whole picture yet. I would try it by putting the positive probe on the positive output of the alternator to make sure the alternator is/isn't putting out the 14.5V it's supposed to when running.

If it is pushing the right voltage, it probably a problem with your wiring somewhere. If it's not, then time to go back to that shop and have them exchange it.
 
#15 ·
I would try it by putting the positive probe on the positive output of the alternator to make sure the alternator is/isn't putting out the 14.5V it's supposed to when running.
To be clear I'm correct. There is only one output of any gauge on the alternator, a heavy black cable runs from it towards the battery. There is also a plug with two small gauge (20?) wires that goes into the wiring harness. The heavy cable is connected to the positive output you mention correct?
 
#17 ·
The area around my alternator is much more crowded than yours, I'd love to have the room to work like that! I tried my best to test at the back of the alternator but my DMM only has the sharp probes not alligators. I'm working by myself so I'm not confident in the readings (which were all over the scale.)

I'm afraid it's throw my hands up time. I've had this vehicle in the garage too long and to make matters worse MY daily driver threw a serpentine belt Saturday afternoon. So now my car and my wife's Envoy are idle. I just need to get this thing running so I'm seriously considering taking it to a garage as soon as my car is done. Wonder how far I can go in the Envoy with this problem, I mean without a battery charging?
 
#20 · (Edited)
BATTERY NOT CHARGING = Bad Alternator (for me, anyway)

I realize this post is several years old, but I wanted to contribute to the anyone else who might be running into this same issue.

I had the same problem. Instrument cluster started reading "BATTERY NOT CHARGING" Friday morning, but if I starting driving, once the engine got up to around 2000RPM, the light would go out. It didn't do it the rest of the day. But Saturday, when I started looking into the issue more, the message would almost never go away.

I did everything that I could find in the way of testing, short of taking the battery and alternator in to have them tested, since this is my only transportation; 2003 TB SWB with 213K miles. I think this was the original alternator. I usually keep all of my receipts and could not find where it had been replaced. I bought it in Nov. 2007 with 54K miles on it, so it could have been replaced before then, but it still lasted a long time.

I checked the cables to make sure they were not corroded. I checked the battery voltage before and after starting. Before starting the engine, the voltage was around 12.2V. After starting, the battery voltage would drop to 11.7 and continue to drop slowly afterwards until the alternator kicked in, then the voltage would go up to 14.4V. Problem was, the time it took the alternator to kick in varied.

So, I charged the battery up and drove 11 miles into town to AutoZone. I normally go to Advance Auto Parts, but AutoZone was the only place with a lifetime warranty on the alternator, except for Rock Auto, but I didn't feel like I could wait for the part to arrive.

I've suspected the alternator had been going bad for some time. Even though everyone says not to trust what the volt gauge on the dash, it would always fluctuate between 13.5-15.5V. After changing the alternator, the needle stays at 14.5V.

I've read many posts that say, when the engine is cold and it is cold outside, that the "BATTERY NOT CHARGING" message is normal; it is not normal. There is a problem and it should be addressed sooner rather than later. I've also read that a lot of people have only cleaned the throttle body to get rid of the error. I just don't see how this is possible. It might fix rough idling issues, especially when using the A/C, but fixing this issue is a stretch. It should probably be done in conjunction with replacing the alternator or any time the battery is disconnected for more than 20-30 minutes, if it has not been done recently.
 
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