From: michael.trew@att.net   
      
   I can't process how this is happening.  I have an old car battery in one   
   of my cars.  It is worn out enough that it died on the first freeze that   
   we had, sitting 2-3 days without starting.  Said battery has also been   
   leaking a bit of acid from around the terminals, and they are corroded.   
      
   So, lately, the alternator belt has been squealing if I slow to an idle   
   (1993 Geo Metro), and the airbag light randomly flashes.  The alternator   
   belt is not worn and is torqued properly.  I've noticed other electrical   
   oddities such as the gas gauge going up and down (at almost the same   
   rate as the throttle/RPM increase/decrease).   
      
   Finally, I pulled it this evening and threw another tested good (checked   
   12.7 v) battery in the car.  I am about to go drive to my evening shift   
   at work.  I decided to test the old battery with the same voltage   
   tester, and it tested at 27 V!!  I can't find any info on a web search   
   about this issue.   
      
   I checked it twice, and even put it on a charger for a minute to see if   
   that would make a difference.  The cheap HF trickle charger showed   
   "fully charged"... then it tested at 27.2 V after unplugging it.   
   Hopefully it hasn't damaged the ECM in the car, or something.   
      
   Does anyone know how the voltage of a 12 V car battery can double or   
   more, just with regular usage?  Possibly the cells in the battery   
   shorting, or something?  I thought that shorted cells decreased the   
   voltage, not increased it.  What an odd issue; thanks for the insight.   
      
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