Originally Posted by mach4 (Post 3433630)

You are absolutely correct!

All I was suggesting was that most of the electrical issue posts start with something along the lines of "all of a sudden my car would't start", and then a string of helpful suggestions ensue. Since the first sign of trouble is only the result of a period of time where the problem existed previously, it would be nice to conveniently at a glance reference the battery voltage before starting and monitor the voltage while driving as early warning of an electrical problem headed toward a non-start situation, often in less than optimal conditions. I realize that volt meters that plug into the cigar lighter do not provide that information (unless they are plugged in at the time) and are therefore less than useful. A cheap HF multimeter is preferred for troubleshooting, but it's kind of inconvenient to try to get a voltage reading while driving as manipulating those little probes are tricky one handed and popping the hood to get a battery reading all the time is kind of a pain.

Recognizing the lack of utility I didn't get one of those cheap cigar volt meters, choosing to add voltage monitoring to my other system status monitors - fuel pressure, EGT, trans temp, oil temp, intake temp, engine bay temp, boost and vacuum.

Originally Posted by mach4 (Post 3433605)

When I had my alternator issue last sumer, I resolved not to drive without a volt meter as a warning and monitoring system for the alternator and battery. While I ended up incorporating a voltage monitor in my Arduino/Android bluetooth engine monitoring gauge setup, my original thought was to just get one of these
off dBay


http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...1&d=1422034054

....actually, I still may for the other cars.

Originally Posted by JHZR2 (Post 3434343)

+1 to this. There are a few brands of these and I do recommend them. For convenience, there are some that have a voltmeter and USB charger in one.

Very useful tool.

OP, the voltage regulators on these cars don't take the battery voltage as high as is desirable, and so that doesn't help. Neither does GA summer heat. 4 years on a battery in a hot climate, if perpetually undercharged, can be condemnation time.