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Nash, not exactly Posted by Notnoel [Email]  (#23) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Notnoel) on Sat, 15 Dec 2007 05:32:53
In Reply to: Re: Alternator ground questions, Nashvegas, Fri, 14 Dec 2007 20:49:43 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
I am replacing an alternator that was replaced about a year and a half ago. When I bought the car the alternator was bad (as well as the rear main seal, and torn CV joint boots, and a host of other parts). I hadn't really any time for such a large repair, so I took it to the dealer where they fixed the rear main seal and repacked the CV joints, and while they were in there, the mechanic installed a used alternator they had on hand and replaced the brushes on the alternator and all seemed fine. About three months later the alternator failed.
Since it was under warranty, I purchased and had them replace the alternator with a rebuilt model with a lifetime guarantee (the one they had just replaced). My most recent failure had nothing to do with the brushes (I tried a new set)or the tightness of the belt. Based on my searches of past posts, it appears I had a diode burned out, since my charging light on the dash board only dimly glowed at low RPM (< 1500 to 2000 rpm), and when checked with a voltmeter, delivered 13.5 volts to the battery at higher RPMs. This was similar to the failure pattern of the previous rebuilt unit: Lose the charge at low RPM, then progressively fail over a month's time.
Since I have now installing the fourth alternator in less than two years, my guess is that I lose diodes one at a time, until the alternator fails utterly. My thought was that if the main ground was via the aluminum housing (a poor conductor), this set up would lead to excess resistance in the charging circuit, and ultimately lead to a cascade failure of the diodes. How's that for overthinking this?
posted by 70.21.9...
, Fri, 14 Dec 2007 20:39:28
, Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:39:29, Sat, 15 Dec 2007 05:32:53 <-- Viewing This Message, Sat, 15 Dec 2007 10:19:59, Sat, 15 Dec 2007 12:36:12
, Sun, 16 Dec 2007 03:07:22
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