Hey everyone, first post. My wife’s van doesn’t sound very strong when she starts it. I replaced the battery and it would fire up instantly! But now after a month, we are back to it barely starting. My first thought was the alternator, so I metered it out. While the van was running I was getting 13.5-13.6 output with the lights, radio, wipers and fan running. Does this sound too low? Any other suggestions? It’s a 2000 caravan with the 3 litre engine. Thanks in advance for any help!

 

One other thing…. If I give the van a jumpstart it fires up instantly!

 

You may want to make sure the battery is good first. Have it tested.

 

I just bought a new battery a month ago. The van had this problem a couple months ago, and the battery looked pretty rough. I bought a new battery and the van would fire up instantly for a couple weeks, now we’re back to slow starting. I was thinking the alternator…. It’s putting out 13.5-13.6 with wipers, fan and high beams running. Is that enough?

 

You should be at 13.5 to 14.2 volts. Make sure all your ground connections are good. Before replacing any parts.