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Cadillac Repair/Battery cable installstion

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Expert: - 8/14/2011


Question
@001 cadillac catera base
problem battery not being charged. Checked system at advance auto. Can you give directions for install of positive and negative battery cables.

Answer
Pos cable (+) red goes to starter and Neg (-) Black goes to frame.

As far as advanced checking, these are parts people and not technicians. Very simple system. On some Cadillacs PCM controls charging. On most PCM (Powertrain control module A/K/A computer) charging system controls PCM and voltmeter in instrument panel.
I have no clue as to what this "check" of the system entailed. You can still have 13.2 volts at the battery, but if the amperage is not there from the alternator you will have a discharge condition.

First, the battery needs to be fully charged for good testing. The battery could be missing water and have a burned cell. If the alternator is not putting out and a GM's scream or sing when charging.
If the battery is in fact good, the only things that can be bad are the alternator or PCM. Nothing else. Not cables for sure.

You might be best off taking the car over to a service center (NOT A DEALER. Don't trust a parts guy to do a technician's job. They have the equipment and knowledge and in reality, I don't want you changing parts on a guess. PCM diagnoses is something you cannot do without equipment and its obvious the guy at advance had no clue.



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Rob Painter

Expertise

Alarm system questions cannot be answered on this forum. These systems are not what I can answer. Without being physically at the vehicle and not knowing what kind of electrical service has been done on the vehicle, there is no possible way to give an accurate answer over the internet. My expertise is in Ignition/key based anti-theft systems. These issues include GM VATS (resistor chip in key blade) PASSLOCK (MRD)-ignition lock rotation based, no special ignition key and the PKIII Transponder (computer chip in key) systems. These systems are not alarm based and are integral with the starting of the engine. This is why I cannot diagnose alarm problems without physically looking at the vehicle: Alarm systems are a completely different annimal than ignition key/lock based anti-theft system. Many alarm questions come from vehicles 10 years old, and since older, many hands that had been involved over the years.I am an expert in all GM factory (ignition/key based)systems. Alarm system questions pose to many situations beyond my knowledge as to what has been done to the vehicle over the years. Some guy may have actually wired the stereo into the alarm system. Who knows? Over my past 30 years in vehicle wiring repair, I have seen unbelievable wiring disaters done by guys that consider themselves "mechanics." I have seen stereos and alarms intalled using surgical tape. I have seen modules burn up, un-fused circuits, wiring jambed between the doors and even lamp cord used for a starter kill. To answer alarm questions over the internet without examining the vehicle is like asking; What does it take to remove a dent?

Experience

Education/Credentials-ASE certified. 11 years with a GM dealer and 17 years with a repair facility dealing with only the repair of theft recovered vehicles.

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