I'm the original owner on a 2010 Equinox 2.4L. Having issues with the Battery Saver Active message coming on. Just replaced the alternator thinking it was the voltage regulator, but that didn't do it. Battery is less than 1 year old. Below are details of the issue. Feel like it's probably some connection issue somewhere, but not sure where to look. Anyone have any suggestions on where to begin?
- Multimeter shows battery having 12.6V when car is off with no major drain
- Start the car and meter shows it going to about 10V when starting then shoots up to over 14V as engine starts
- Letting car idle shows battery staying around the 14.5V range
- Putting load on system (headlights, radio, AC, etc.) never show an immediate drain
- Seeing a somewhat random drop in voltage at the battery when car is running to under 13V
- Can't find a single item that causes the issue. Just turning on the HVAC fan (with no AC) can see the issue happen
- When I see battery drop below 13V it slowly starts climbing back up to over 14V within a couple minutes. It feels like the alternator is asleep on the job and suddenly realizes it needs to start working
- After waiting a couple minutes the battery gets back up to around 15V and stays there. Have seen it stay as high as 15.3V when giving it throttle.
- Youtube video of the issue can be seen below