QuestionMy husband installed the battery on his truck and accidentally reversed the polarity. I have replaced the battery cable to the solenoid and all the fuses in the cab. Headlights, etc work and car will crank and start and then die. I figure it is the alternator but would like to know if it could be anything else before I go to the expense of replacing alternator.
AnswerI have one idea for you, when starting a car, when you turn the key to start, one circuit is in play that lets the car start up, but when you turn the key back to "run" another circuit comes on. You may have fried the ignition key system.
That is a guess. I do not have the electrical expertise to help much more than this, but I would guess that a good service manual might be able to address this problem.
I really don't think it is the alternator though, because even if the alternator isn't making juice, the truck should still run if the battery is healthy.
Sorry I couldn't help more.
Don
