1) I just rebuilt my starter, new contacts, plunger? It was doing a click, click, then starter. Thought that killed my batteries, so I got them tested and they replaced one of my batteries, but they put it back with one that has 50 less cranking amps, is it bad to have one at 900 and one at 850?

2) Just went away for 2 days and tried to start it. Batteries are too low to start it. Alternator bad? What could be draining them? All of my connections are clean and tight.

 

You want to make absolutely certain that both batteries are the same. It's recommended to replace both at the same time as the old one will kill the new one in short order from overcharging. Your alt could be bad, or you may have simply blown the main fuse to the power distribution center . Easiest way to check for current leak is to hook up an ammeter and check current, then remove fuses one by one to find the offending circuit. Good luck.

 

With both batteries disconnected from each other and the truck an hour or so...you should see around 12.6 volts or better each with a digital volt meter.

 

I just jump started it. The battery gauge was at 14 after driving for a few mins. Then I turned it off and back on again and it was fluctuating between 11 and 13 every couple seconds.

I gotta go chew someone out at Pepboys to give me the right battery, they're the ones who gave me the lower amp one. It was a 3 year free replacement, so to replace both, I'll just fry the other one.

 

my truck was flucatuating like that also. i wnet down to the local starter, alternator shop and they rebuilt it for $53. not too bad i think

 

Could be a bad alternator.
When you replace a battery, you should replace them both. The batteries should be the same brand and size. One bad cell will drain both batteries and lead-acids don't like to be in a discharged state for very long. The 14V on your gauge will just show a "top charge" that your alternator is giving to the batts. I just had to replace mine after the tranny started to do the O/D hunt and then finally the starter would not crank the engine.

 

I bought the alternator rebuild kit from Kragen for $90, it was the most complete kit I could find, and they got it same day. Fostertruck was $27 for just brushes, and Larry B's was $35 for brushes and bearings, but I didn't have time to wait. I should have time to do it tomorrow morning.

The battery pepboys wouldn't replace is boiling everytime I turn off my truck and you can smell it, gotta take care of that.

Where do I check the voltage with the fuses, and what kind of numbers should I see?

 

Wow, looks like a pretty bad short in the system since the voltmeter in the instrument panel shows normal/14v when the engine is running.
Maybe someone knows how to trace it down.

 

If the passenger side battery is the one that is boiling, your problem is caused by a poor connection to the driver side battery. The PCM samples voltage from the driver side battery and if the connections are dirty or loose the PCM thinks everything is OK but will overcharge the passenger side battery.

 

I finished rebuilding the alternator. The copper portion that spins around inside the brushes was grooved about 1/32 deep. Is that suppose to happen? Can an alternator shop resleeve it? I reinstalled everything on the truck. I'm going tomorrow to fix the battery problems, then I'll have to figure out how to test my fuses.

 

...that must have been the grid heater cycling, but it took whatever charge was left and then couldn't start.

 

Thanks for all the help. Everything works great!

 

The only thing is to buy at Pep Boys, Wax maybe

 

Can you explain how the PCM gets voltage from the driver-side battery when it's positive terminal is the same electrical point as the passenger-side battery's positive terminal? They are wired in parallel so, according to electrical theory, voltage will be constant. Does the PCM get it's "sample" from the cable side of the clamp or does it have a separate sample root into the battery? Now I'm confused. I thought I had two batteries to double my current capabilities while still having a 12V system..

 

They need a bunk room so's you can sleep while they change yer tires.
The last set I bought several years ago took all day...good prices but the slowest shop in the country. 2 hours to process a road hazzard.
Ain't been back.