I bought a battery in July, and now my multimeter is reading 11.5V with no load.

My alternator isn't so great. I know that because when i replaced the battery in July, the multimeter read the battery at 13.8V with the engine running, and 12V with no load. From what I read, I guess it's supposed to read 14.5~ when there's a load across it? But I recharged the battery in September-- knowing that the alternator was weak.

So, starting today, the car won't run and the reading is 11.5V with out a load. Would the battery die like that because the alternator is running weak, even though I recharge the battery periodically? Or is there something else? Like a bad ground-- would that cause the battery to die quickly?

Really appreciate your help, thanks ahead.

'97 A4 quattro 2.8L 12v

 

replace the battery

 

^ I'll see your replace the battery and raise you a replace the alternator too. Should do the trick.