Ok so I was having a problem with my battery going dead so I had both the alternator and battery checked, as I know that having one which is bad can cause the other to go bad as well.
It turned out that indeed both the alternator and the battery were bad. I replaced both ensuring that all batter and alternator connection were clean and free of corosion. I also check all ground connections to make sure they were good as well. The serpentine belt is nice and snug and appears to still be free of cracks and over wear.
My problem is that I am still having a problem with the alternator not properly charging the battery. With the engine running, I unhooked the negetive battery cable (yes I know its not necessarily a good idea, now, but at the time I didn't.) The engine died right away which suggested to me the alternator wasnt working, which I know couldnt possibly be true because I had just purchased it brand new as previously stated.
What else is there that I should check that could be causing this problem? I know the voltage regulator is built into the alternator so that isnt a problem but after that, I really have no clue where to check?
thanks for any advice and help Jeremy