I have a 1999 Toyota 4Runner. The other day I left my hazard lights on overnight and it drained the battery. I recharged the battery at home and drove the car around but the battery soon died. I noticed the terminals were a little loose so maybe the battery wasn't recharging properly. The AAA guy checked the battery and said it was an alternator problem. But I'm sure that's not really the case because maybe the problem was really just the loose terminal.

I've since returned the battery since it was under warranty. I just installed the new battery and am going on a longish trip tomorrow to the mountains snowboarding. The check battery light is still on. Is this telling me I have an alternator problem or does that check battery light just need to be reset or something? Maybe I should just change out the alternator to be safe. Just want to be sure I'm not gonna have a problem on the road this weekend. Any thoughts?