The Nissan Altima is a sedan that was introduced in 1993. It wasn't a best-selling car to begin with, but it gained popularity over the years as Nissan improved its overall design and handling. When the alternator begins to go bad, your Altima will lose power, and eventually you won't be able to crank it at all. A jump-start to the battery will get you home, but it won't fix the problem. Test your alternator now to make sure it has enough power.
Connect the voltmeter leads to the battery posts. Attach the positive lead of the voltmeter to the positive battery post, and the negative lead to the negative battery post. Make sure you do it in that order. The positives are red and the negatives are black for easy identification.
Check the reading on the voltmeter while the engine is still off. The meter should be showing a voltage of between 12.5 and 12.8, the appropriate reading for a healthy battery. It's important to know whether the battery is strong when you're testing the alternator.
Prop the voltmeter up and crank the engine. With the engine running, the voltmeter picks up the volts coming from the alternator that supply the battery with power.
Gauge the reading on the meter's screen. An alternator in good working condition reads between 13.6 and 14.3 volts. Anything less is a sign of a weak alternator.
