I have a 1990 toyota -runner. Recently went out to start it and found the battery completely dead. It started up right away with a boost. I put a trickle charge on it over night..but the battery will no longer hold a charge. It is still dead with just the dash lights barley lighting up. Previous to this I noticed fluctuation in the voltage guage when using signal lights, and more noise than usual coming from te non-factory radio. Is this a sign that the altenator is fried too? I changed both the battery and the altenator 4-years ago. Or is this fluctuation due to the fact that the battery was weak and it was just getting power from the altenator and then the battery just died completely? What is the best home method for testing an altenator? Is it better/cheaper or even possible to have the altenator rebuilt?
Any thoughts on this?
Cheers Jason Greely, Ontario, Canada