G'day all.
I've noticed in the mornings lately that my dash lights are dimmer than usual, until I get 400-500m down the road when they brighten suddenly.
I had an issue after filling up yesterday when the bastard wouldn't start...draining the battery very quickly! I'm not running any spotties or driving lights, I don't have a monster stereo (not even running my amp ATM), no air con or thermo's. I do have electronic dizzy. I have replaced the coil with a new one. (2nd hand one came with dizzy)
When the missus jump started it fired instantly...
Can anyone solve this dillema?
Do I need to have my alternator checked? Is it worth getting a more powerful(?) one?
Sorry about the jargon, I know SFA about electrics....I dare say I'm about to learn!
Cheers
Charge me
Started by
knoath
, Jan 09 2006 11:28 AM
10 replies to this topic
#1
knoath
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Posted 09 January 2006 - 11:28 AM
#2
_Yella SLuR_
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Posted 09 January 2006 - 11:33 AM
New brushes/regulator to the alternator. It's the black box attached to the back of the Alternator. Remove, unclip the wire, and whack in a new one.
#3
knoath
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Posted 09 January 2006 - 11:56 AM
Cheers Yella SLuR, and what's the damage on these doo-dahs?
#4
rodomo
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Posted 09 January 2006 - 08:23 PM
About $65 retail @ Repco, can do better if you shop of have a mate in the know.
RACV MAN
RACV MAN
#5
_Yella SLuR_
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Posted 10 January 2006 - 11:22 AM
$65.00??? Regulator/Brush assemblies about $35.00, not spensive at all.
Learnt about these things when I was 16. Charge light starts coming on faintly, then progressively more and more, til you go for a drive on a rainy day. Your headlights gradually get dimmer and dimmer, your indicators go real slow till it sucks the life outa the battery, and voila, your stranded in pouring rain. True story, although possibly an extreme case --> youngens.
Learnt about these things when I was 16. Charge light starts coming on faintly, then progressively more and more, til you go for a drive on a rainy day. Your headlights gradually get dimmer and dimmer, your indicators go real slow till it sucks the life outa the battery, and voila, your stranded in pouring rain. True story, although possibly an extreme case --> youngens.
#6
knoath
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Posted 11 January 2006 - 07:13 AM
Hmmm... wouldn't start again after stopping for refreshments yesterday. Air temp about 30c, engine bay quite warm. Up with the bonnet, coupla can wait and fired up. I'm wondering, does the heat affect the regulator or am I barking up the wrong tree?
Getting harder to fire more often.
Ta
Getting harder to fire more often.
Ta
#7
_Yella SLuR_
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Posted 11 January 2006 - 07:36 AM
Nup, your battery is gradually dieing due to lack of adequate charge.
#8
knoath
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Posted 11 January 2006 - 08:45 AM
So does this mean my alternator is not coping with the load?
#9
_Yella SLuR_
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Posted 11 January 2006 - 10:39 AM
Yes, sorta, because the brushes in the alternator that pick up the current off the windings are only making intermittent contact, so the battery isn't getting the full charge from the alternator. Further, most likely at idle, if there isn't enough power coming from the alternator, the car will draw the additional power required from the battery to feed everything. So sooner or later you end up with a dead battery.
New regulator (which includes the brushes --> black box on back of the alternator) should fix all this. Very rare for the windings to become faulty. If the alternator has been on there a while, could pay to get a newy, as the only other thing that happens with them is that the bearings wear over time.
New regulator (which includes the brushes --> black box on back of the alternator) should fix all this. Very rare for the windings to become faulty. If the alternator has been on there a while, could pay to get a newy, as the only other thing that happens with them is that the bearings wear over time.
Edited by Yella SLuR, 11 January 2006 - 10:40 AM.
#10
MRLXSS
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Posted 11 January 2006 - 11:48 AM
haha yeah it happened to me! just about 2 weeks after i got it on the road! notice the amp gauge dropping, so i turn of the headlights, still dropping... turn off the fan, open the window, still dropping, manually control the wipers, still dropping.... pull over turn the thermos off... still dropping... finally car conks out, in the pissing rain and im stranded... wait about 20min rain stops i give it a kick in the guts and somehow it starts, i get home, get myself a new alt! Never had a problem again!!!Learnt about these things when I was 16. Charge light starts coming on faintly, then progressively more and more, til you go for a drive on a rainy day. Your headlights gradually get dimmer and dimmer, your indicators go real slow till it sucks the life outa the battery, and voila, your stranded in pouring rain. True story, although possibly an extreme case --> youngens.
#11
_Yella SLuR_
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Posted 11 January 2006 - 12:41 PM
Pity we didn't have the forums back then hey? That's the way it goes, everything just start's shutting down. For some strange reasons it only happens when it rains.
With the brushes they are metal on metal (prolly copper on copper) connection, so sooner or later the poor things waste away. You coulda saved some bucks by just changing the regulator, but a new alternator doesn't hurt every 100,000 or so kilometres.
With the brushes they are metal on metal (prolly copper on copper) connection, so sooner or later the poor things waste away. You coulda saved some bucks by just changing the regulator, but a new alternator doesn't hurt every 100,000 or so kilometres.
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