My battery isnt being charged at all when driving! The battery light stays on all the time and soon as you stop the engine and start it again its flat!!

Is it the altenater?

Also I gave it some pain on the way home from Ford Fair yesterday and it looks like oil has been coming out of the top of the filler cap, is that normal? Its an xr3i

 

Yes the alternator is shagged, the oil is normal with high miles or a loose cap, they often get blown off as well, check your breather system.
tabetha

 

mine did the same, was the alternator mate

 

Thanks. Would yo recomemmed a new breather system?

 

deffinatley the altenator you can get them reconed for about 25 at auto electritions or just get a new one from an autp factors exchange

as for the oil i would say that the rubber inside the cap is perished but would be worth cleaning the breather pipes out

Tony

 

sound like alternator is faulty check what condition ur alternator belt is in renew with alt.As for the cap it allways happens poping off they should have had a threaded cap it wouldn hapen then oh wel it a ford thing.

 

you need to check the pipes to and from the cam cover, they will probably hard and brittle as well as full of crusty oil.
Theres also a rubber pipe at the back of the engine which also is part of the breather system, check this aswell.

 

Cheers people will do!