Need Help on Mahindra 7520 4WD (Electrical)

[CuzPat62]

Today while bush-hogging, the light on my dash that is the battery symbol came on.

I turned tractor off several times and it started right back up but the light came on again every time.

At dark, I turned on my lights and finished the bush-hogging in the dark for about 1.5 hours.

When I got home I turned my tractor off and tried to restart it but all it would do is click.

The battery is drained.

Now my question is this:

Is the battery bad and that is why the battery light came on or is the alternator not charging the battery and thats the reason the light came on?

How do I know which it is?

I don't want to buy both an alternator and a battery.

Thanks for any help.

 

[Turbys_1700]

How old is the battery? Take it to an auto parts retailer and get it load tested.

 

[CuzPat62]

It's around 1.5 to 2 years old.

 

[idaho2]

Yep, get the battery load tested. Happened to my 5530,, Bad battery, replaced it and no issues since. That was 2 years ago.

idaho2

 

[Dave M7040]

I think you are not charging. I cannot envision how a battery, which started the tractor before the work started, could fail so completely that the charging system turned on its light.

You need to invest in a cheap, less than $10 multimeter and measure the voltage going into the battery after you boost it to get started .

If you get such a meter, dont use it with the dial set as shown in the photo but rather at the 20 to the left of the center position.

I will be surprised if you measure anything like a high 13+ volts at a medium engine speed.

If you have a wiring diagram, plse post it so I can review.

Dave M7040

 

[SedonaDave]

At rest check battery voltage, running check voltage(12.6).....It must min. over 13 volts(13.7-14.7) running to recharge battery....If not take it to a auto parts store and load check, either battery or alternator.

And of course you checked the water level of batteries lately?

 

[Gaowlpoop]

Be sure to charge the battery with a plug in battery charger before you do any testing. The alternator is not designed to charge a dead battery, it is only designed to bring the battery back up after starting the tractor.

My bet is on a bad alternator.

 

[burzynsr]

I go with the alternator also. Charge the battery, check the voltage on battery, start the tractor, check the alt. output, if it is good buy a battery.

 

[DavesTractor]

Check battery cables for corrosion, and make sure to check the negative cable where it grounds itself at the tractor frame or engine. It could be a bad alternator, but we really do not see many failures - more often, bad connections.

 

[Gaowlpoop]

I completely failed to consider the cable connections to the battery and the starter/ground. Good idea and one of the first things to check before you start throwing money at the problem.

It would not hurt to clean all the connections with a wire brush even if they look good.