Fried Alternator

[omw41]

1988 Commanche 4 cyclinder 168K...Ok so I go to Big Lots. I come out with my purchase, get in to start the truck...nothing, and I mean nothing. I think I smell "electric." I go out, open the hood, and there is smoke coming out of the alternator. This has to be a no-brainer, right? It has to be the alternator, right? From the looks of it it has never been changed.

 

The thing I do not understand, is I had no warning at all. No warning lights or anything in the days before it quit. I have AutoZone, Advance, everything is close by. I know there will be a core charge, so I will take the old one out first, but does anyone know if the "new" one I buy will come with the pulley? Any other tips on this repair? I'm lucky. My truck has no power steering or AC or anything to make it complicated except taking out an alternator that has been in there for 24 years. :rotf:

Get out the breaker bars and WD 40. :wall:

 

BTW, this is a great site with really knowledgeable folks on it. Thanks again. :thumbsup:

[mountainman]

Take the alt and the batt to your fav auto parts store and have them both tested. Its likely that the batt is toast and the alt has been carrying it on its shoulders for a long time. Thats what toasted the alt.

Once you figure out what is good and what is bad then put the new parts back.

Before doing that, inspect and or replace both cables going to the battery. They are likely corroded internally if they are very old.

Clean the ground contact points at both ends.

Also check the lead from the alt to the battery. The one that charges the system.

I added one directly from the alt to my battery on my MJ.

Also the one from the positive batt lead to the main fuse box, was heavily internally corroded on my truck.

I replaced it also. :)

 

After this lil charging system tune up, you should be good for a few years before youll need to love on it again. :wrench:

[Dadinator]

Not an expert, but if the battery was toast, would he have been able to start the truck?

 

Anyway, the alternator in the TJ went south last week. Also no warning. It didn't smoke, it simply locked up.

Started the Jeep and massive belt squeal. Looked at it and the pulley was not turning.

 

 

Your new alternator will come with a pulley. Check online. As I said above, I just bought one for the TJ.

Checked Autozone, Advance Auto and OReilly online. Best price they had for that application was $96. I got one on ebay for $69 with free shipping. It was the same part number as the one at Advance Auto.

Got it in and installed yesterday. Works fine.

 

Good Luck!

[omw41]

Thanks guys.

 

I bought the truck about 10 months ago. It was not what I would consider "abused," but it was rarely maintained.

 

It is always good advice to check things before throwing money away. I can check the battery at home with my charger; it has that option, but I can tell just by looking at it that the alternator is going to need to be replaced. If it's not the problem, it soon will be. In my experience, an alternator and a water pump are usually a given on any used car purchase where the ride has 100,000+.

 

When I bought it, one of the first things I did was replace the battery terminals, and cables, so I hope that's all still good, although after things "fried" yesterday, who knows? It was the weirdest thing. I have never actually seen an alternator "smoke" like that.

 

Thanks for the pricing points on the alternator.

I think I'll look online for a good price.

 

As I write this, my wife is out at the Big Lots right now waiting on the tow truck. Now that's a good woman!

[omw41]

Dadinator:

 

I really like the look of your truck. What size tires are those and will they fit stock rims? Also, the paint job looks cool. Did you do it yourself? As soon as I finish reading the instructions on how to post pictures, I'll post my truck.

Excellent!

The wrecker is here. :wavey:

[mountainman]

Most batt chargers can not load test a battery or determine if it has a bad cell. So definitely take it with you to get the alt and have them check it properly.

Also look at the date on it. In las vegas batteries will not last longer than 2 years in most cases. Evaporation rate is too high.

Other states with some humidity some have seen 10+ years from batteries. But these days unless its an interstate it usually won't last over 5 years.

many batteries can have a dead cell and still start the car for years. Yet they are taxing the crap out of the alternator during that time.

 

Sounds like a great wife to me... hehe.

[omw41]

Sorry for the size. I am still figuring out how to resize. I read Pete's "how to" post for posting pictures and it was real easy to follow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Harley]

Mine did something similar except for it was over charging. It was fine one day and then next morning started it up and the voltage was too high and all my lights were flickering. No warning at all.

and hes right about the batteries here. If we get 2 yrs out of em its considered lucky! They don't agree with the desert heat.

 

I also agree about the good wife. Maybe she can teach mine how to do that. HAHA

[skidoo_j]

:rotf:

Get out the breaker bars and WD 40. :wall:

 

 

I no longer use wd40 for much of anything. Maybe cleaning water off a part that i just washed. WD-40 doesnt' break up rust very well any longer. I think they changed their formula about 15 years ago. I remember my grandfather using it as starting fluid, and the crap that you buy now good luck lighting that, even the aerosol is hard to light while spraying.

 

 

 

I've started using PB-blaster. I'll spray it on the nuts and bolts a few days in advance on really bad stuff. I also have a can in the garage that i use to catch the drippings and use it to soak the nuts and bolts in. PB seems to actually dissolve the rust. And often eliminates the need for breaker bars and I don't recall the last time I used an extension on a breaker bar since i started pb-blaster. I've found that if it doesn't come out i let it soak with multiple applications of PB or I tend to snap the bolt off and have to drill and chase threads later.

 

 

Just my opinion I'm sure others may love WD-40 and not use pb at all, but I personally use Pb-blaster and love it.

[35 Dollars]

Just my opinion I'm sure others may love WD-40 and not use pb at all, but I personally use Pb-blaster and love it.

 

I find that WD40 also gets really sticky over time. It may work at first, but it becomes a glue later on.

 

You may have lost a ground on your alternator, too. I had that happen on my LT1, and it really messed with the charging system - fortunately everything was new and it didn't hurt anything.

[Dadinator]

many batteries can have a dead cell and still start the car for years. Yet they are taxing the crap out of the alternator during that time.

 

Never thought about a dead cell taxing the alternator. Food for thought. Thanks.

[Dadinator]

Dadinator:

 

I really like the look of your truck. What size tires are those and will they fit stock rims? Also, the paint job looks cool. Did you do it yourself? As soon as I finish reading the instructions on how to post pictures, I'll post my truck.

Excellent!

The wrecker is here. :wavey:

 

Hey, thanks!

 

They are 31 X 10.5 X 15.

 

They will probably fit stock wheels, but do better on a 8 inch rim. I think the rims you have on there are only 6 inches wide.

 

The paint doesn't look as cool in person. :D It's just rattle can satin black.

But it covers everything. I did it that way on purpose. I don't want to have to worry about a nice paint job on my truck. I worry too much about it on my bike and car. If I scratch the truck, I just get out the rattle can and touch it up.

 

If you haven't yet, go over to my build thread and see the history of the old truck. A link in my signature.

[Dadinator]

 

Man that is an old school wing.

What year is it?

Looks good.

[omw41]

It's a 1979 Goldwing. You have a Vulcan right? That's a great touring bike. I had a 1988 Vulcan SE 1600.. Now that was a bike! I'm about to buy the wife a 1976 KZ 400. It's her first bike.

 

I am down with the rattle can. It looked flat black though. When I got my truck (I paid 600.00 for it), the guy had painted it silver with a paintbrush. I ran out to Wal-Mart, bought about 8 cans of their 99 cent primer and went to work. You sound just like me when it comes to the "touching up" thing. Thanks for the info on the tires and rims. I am going to do that on mine. I am going to check out your thread too.

[Dadinator]

It's a 1979 Goldwing. You have a Vulcan right? That's a great touring bike. I had a 1988 Vulcan SE 1600.. Now that was a bike! I'm about to buy the wife a 1976 KZ 400. It's her first bike.

 

I am down with the rattle can. It looked flat black though. When I got my truck (I paid 600.00 for it), the guy had painted it silver with a paintbrush. I ran out to Wal-Mart, bought about 8 cans of their 99 cent primer and went to work. You sound just like me when it comes to the "touching up" thing. Thanks for the info on the tires and rims. I am going to do that on mine. I am going to check out your thread too.

 

I told the wife I thought it was 70's. Looks to be in great shape. How many miles are on it?

I used to have a KZ550 back in the early 80's.

 

Mine is a 2008 Vulcan 2000. Love that bike. We're on the 4th season with it and have put just over 27K on it.

[omw41]

The miles are at 48k. I paid 1600 for the bike. I bought it two years ago. It had 32k on it then. I drove it home from Fredericksburg (100 miles)? It needed tires, and cleaning up. I also did the timing belts because the guy was not sure if it had been done or not.

My Goldwing had the full Vetter package, but I took off the rear section because I did not like the extra weight, or the way it handled. Also it makes it tough to get to the rear brakes and any other stuff that is back there like the shaft drive. Even simple wheel cleaning is compromised. You can pop the side bags off, but there is still a huge bracket that gets in the way. Vetter was after market. The product was well made and its sitting in my garage ready to be put back on. I'm not putting Craig Vetter down or anything. The guy is a living legend in the motorcycle world.

 

http://craigvetter.com/pages/CV_Lecture ... outCV.html

 

I added a 70s era sissybar and the right soft luggage will strap up to that nicely and give me enough for three days on the road. 8)

 

The 79 (mine) is the last of the Generation 1 Goldwings. Generation 1 is 1974 to 1979. :brows:

 

Honda did not come out with their own Goldwing faring packages until the generation change in 1980. :yes:

 

You're in Kentucky. I'm in Virginia. Should we ride and meet halfway? :rotfl2:

 

Back to the truck, and Mountainman's points. There is something I don't get. If there is a dead cell in the battery, would the battery show as fully charged on my home battery charger? I have a decent Black and Decker. It's about a 40.00 dollar unit.

 

I'm getting ready to go out now and start tearing things down. First out will be the battery, but there is no doubt the alternator has got to come out.

 

Oh yeah. I was looking online. What amp alternator do I get? I saw a few choices. I have no AC and no power steering. It's a Commanche Base.

[omw41]

After looking at the battery, I am just going to replace it too. It is over 7 years old and it's a 2 year battery, so it just makes sense. Special thnaks to Mountainman because if he had not pointed it out I guarantee I would have just never given it a second thought. :bowdown:

[mountainman]

Glad i can help man. :)