Hello!

I have a 2003 Mazda Tribute LX V6 with 67,000 miles on it. Lately it's been having issues with its power. ie The lights flicker, it fails to start, and it even died in the middle of a parking lot the other week.

We have had the battery and alternator checked out and both are fine. What could the problem be?

 

I would check the main Battery cables , Power and earth, with age corrossion can cause some connections to have high resistance and this can cause volt drop intermittently

 

1. Make sure the alternator belt and tension are correct.
2. Make sure the alternator mounting bolts and terminal connections are clean and secure.
3. Make sure the engine block ground connection is clean and secure (don't know where yours is, mine is on the passenger side engine mount).
4. Make sure the grounding bar the battery negative cable is connected to is clean and secure to the chassis.
5. Make sure the battery terminals are clean and both connections tight.
6. Make sure the battery +ve connection to the main (100A) fuse on the engine compartment fuse box is clean and secure.
7. If flattened, make sure your battery is recharged, or else use booster cables to get underway.
8. At fast idle, check that the voltage across the battery + and - terminals is over 14 Volts when fast idling the engine.
If all this is OK, and the problem recurs, you may have a problem with an internal battery strap having come adrift, in which case have it load tested, and replace the battery if need be.