06 Acura RSX charging system light. (at wits end!)

Hey folks,

Sorry about the length of this post.

I’ve about had it with my roommates 2006 RSX 2.0 l. It has an automatic trans, and I believe it is the base model. The charging system light has been plaguing us for months now. It died on him in October, so we jumped it, and I didn’t expect it to start the next day when I went to work on it. Not only did it start, it ran fine for weeks. We drove on a long trip with no problem.

I found that the positive terminal was loose and wouldn’t tighten, so I replaced both terminals with good brass ones. The car runs for about twenty minutes after being jumped, then the idiot light comes on, and we bring it back in fear of being stranded like in October. The battery tested bad after sitting dead for an extended period, so we replaced it today. The light came on after 20 minutes of driving again. I have checked the body ground running from the battery under the fuse block, and it looks fine. I have checked the belt, tensioner, etc. and there are no signs of slippage at the alternator or anywhere else. The battery ground strap/bracket at the engine block looks corroded, but not catastrophically so.

For whatever reason, power is not making it into the battery, but I’m stumped. The car only has 89K miles on it. Does anyone have any advice on where I should go from here? I’m beginning to think alternator, but I’m skeptical. Is there anywhere else I should look before having the alternator tested? Its a pain in the ass to remove. Are there any grounds or other electrical connections that commonly cause problems?

I see on forums everywhere that lots of people are having similar issues, and many have thrown parts at the problem to no avail. I’m not about to do that. The car needed a new battery anyway, so I don’t feel too badly, but I want to solve the problem before this battery goes bad too. Am I mistaken, or does this car have an external voltage regulator? Is there an easy way to test it? I have very limited tools. If anyone has solved this issue before, I’d love to know what worked for you.

Thanks.