and how to i test battery?

my car barely turns over when i turn the key but it always starts - but just barely.

is it my alternator, my battery, or my starter, or other ??

jim

Using a volt meter (a digital one is easier to use) check to see if you have 13.8 to 14.5 volts at the battery when the car is idling. It should not drop below 13 volts when the lights are turned on.

do i have the dial on the right setting?

do i look at the most middle row of numvers - 10,20,30,40,50 ??

Yes... you have it set right. Now you have to figure out which scale to use.

"is it my alternator, my battery, or my starter, or other ??"

Yes. The Cap'n

cap'n - YOU FUNNY : )

--

my car is 1975 914 with 1973 2.0 engine

here is a pic of the tester with engine running - and not running - jim

i get similar reading not running as i do with my subaru impreza.

If I am reading the scales correctly ... your battery voltage (not running) is 33 VDC and running it is 37 VDC .... so the alt is working.

However, I don't think your meter is set correctly. Does the indicator needle set on "0" when not connected to anything? If not, you have to zero the needle with the screw on the front face of the multimeter. It should read in the range of 12 VDC to 14 VDC (on the 50 scale) (assuming the voltage regulator is working correctly).

EDIT: If you zeroed the meter using the right hand zero you need to zero the meter using the left hand zero. Reading from right to left the readings would be 17 VDC at rest and 14 VDC running, which would indicate the alternator is not functioning.

To many problems here... the meter appears to be reading incorrectly ... I need an aspirin.

i gotta get a me a good meter - this one is fine for checking for power so i dod not get electrocuted but maybe not good for much else? jim

Cheapie Rat Shack $20 digital multimeters are more than good enough for most uses on our cars... And much simpler to read, too!

--DD

Even one of these $3 Harbor Freight specials is good enough for things like this.

If you want to spend some bucks for a good one, it's hard to beat Fluke multimeters.