new to fords... a few questions

[bs3focus]

Hi all,

I'm new to Fords. I have a Focus 1.8 diesel estate that a brought a few weeks ago... It now is not starting without a charge pack... A mate tells me that checking the voltage of the battery when it's running & when its not to find out if the issue is the battery or the alternator. Does anyone know what the normal voltage should read for a battery in these 2 states?

Also I noticed there is no coolant... I'm hoping this is just from a split pipe somewhere... should I be buying red or blue coolant? It's a '99 T reg.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Regards

bs3focus

[Sponsor]

[sailor]

Well, 12.63 is the std. voltage for a fully charged std. car battery, and 14 & change is what you should see with it running. Might be a bit lower if all the lights etc. are on at idle, but once off idle it should show 14 plus. (14.1, 14.25 for example) 15 or more would be overcharging... and if the battery isn't up to full charge it might be lower as well.

BUT, (and it's a big one) this will NOT tell you if the battery is good - that takes a load test to see if it will put out adequate current to DO anything...

Over here, many places will do that for free - assuming that they'll be able to sell you a battery if you need one.

AND, FWIW, you can't be SURE if the charging system is working right unless a known good battery is hooked up to the system, so get that battery tested FIRST to make sure that is OK.

Can't answer the coolant color question, as colors are NOT standardized within a country, much less worldwide. PREFER to use the Ford factory fill of long life coolant the cars came with over here....

Cheers!

[samishii23]

Pro-tip for checking if the battery or alternator is bad. Get vehicle to start, then unhook battery cable. If the car stays running, the alt is good, and the battery chances are, is bad.

[sailor]

Careful samishii, that tip's been known to fry GOOD alternators....