Is there a sound inside the engine compartment or anything, if the alternator may be going out ? How long can an alternator be going out for anyway ? Weeks, months, maybe up to 10 months ?


Replaced the starter last week, car's been running fine after that episode, but today the battery was dead, and I mean 100 percent dead.


Unfortunately, my digital multimeter broke down last week.


Could it also just be a real old battery that has been recharged way too many times ?

 

I had one that whined for about a month before it seized up completely.

 

Could you describe that whine ?

I've had a sound for quite some time now, could be something down there, had some hissing a few times only, but some people said it could be a heater hose, radiator hose something causing this hmmmm kinda like a blower sound.. going up.. and down... up... and down

 

If you have a voltage guage you should see it changing with the rpm if the rergulator is done. If its anything else usually you notice a drop in voltage.

 

the whining sounds like a supercharger..lol atleast on my monte it did..was about 90 degrees out....cruising..with ac on..system thumpin...nothin serious either....and it was the first time i heard that noise and i was like ok..cool...noticed when i was cruising my lights were getting extremely dim and subs would cut out and eventually the cd player would shut off...and would bog like a badass..within 15 minutes of that knowing...i was heading home..about 45 minutes away.and not even 5 minutes had passed and my car died...called dad and came and charged me off the truck and that got me a mile or two...left the car sit over night...came back and started right up still the whining noise..took off trying to get on the high way..and completely dies in the middle of a huge 4 way...had to push it across..charged it for about 20 minutes to a half hour...and got about 10 miles....tryin to haul *** and that was the end of it...tried charging again and starting again and the alternator started smoking!!!! scary!! i'd replace it as soon as possible if you drive it alot....and a new battery would really help....gotta friend with new alternator and new interstate battery and that runs some serious voltage in his camaro!!

 

See that's what's weird too, once the tow truck guy came by and gave my babe a jump, she started up, ran REAL sluggish though (battery had been 100 percent D E A D), so I kept her running, for a long time, drove to some places, and she never died on me.

I can't trust my voltage gauge 100 percent, due to gauge overlays, which may be blocking the needle from moving fully.

I was thinking voltage regulator, since that died on my wife's old SAAB, had to use three batteries to drive back home, maybe 2-3 miles.


So can one rebuild the alternator .. or is it just the voltage regulator that can be rebuilt ?
Would this one work for a standard alternator ?
Powermaster Alternator Rebuild Kits: PWM-912 - summitracing.com


Haven't found a complete rebuild kit online yet.

 

if you rebuild your old alternator yourself, replace the rectifier/diodes, voltage regulator, brushes & both bearings. if the bearings are bad & the rotor has been running against the windings, you will probably have to replace both of them too.
i would recommend just replacing it or taking it to a shop that specializes in rebuilding alternators & starters, not a regular auto repair shop. most places that specializes in starters & alternators can build it to a higher output than what it is now unless it is already a high output.

also, never use your alternator to recharge a dead or low battery, they are not designed to run at near maximum output for very long & it will cause it to over heat & burn out.

 

Yesterday I didn't have a choice, no idea where my old battery charger went, so the alternator had to charge up the battery. I disconnected it over night, came out today and the battery was fully charged.

So maybe I have an open circuit somewhere, right now I disconnected the amp plus the fog lights.

I'm still looking into the alternator deal, since I'll probably need more output anyway, with amp and other things going on.

 

When it's making a supercharger noise it usually means a diode has gone bad, that makes for a weak alternator and one that produces a LOT of heat because it's generating power and with a bad diode it has nowhere to go so it gets converted to heat.

 

As far as the open circut thing I have one too on my auxillery circut drains the battery pretty quick, no clue what it is and the car is currently in too many pieces to troubleshoot.

The whining in the alternator cold be the bearins being worn out especially if it is a case where it siezes afterwards.

 

OK, and what creates a sound that goes up and down up and down, almost like a pump sound ? Maybe somewhat like hmm surging sound ... well maybe less than that

 

Well uhh err emmm I don't have a clue? Regulator kicking in and out? Worn bearings that are moving around?

These are just shots in the dark by the way. I guess you could always get another alternator from a wreckers yard and see if that solves it?

 

Right now I think I'll start with getting a new battery, this one is getting quite worn out and old, and reconnect it during the night, but still keep the amp and fog light circuits disconnected. If it still drains during the night, then something else may be going on. And if it drains, at least I'll have a backup battery.

The CS140 (or are they called CS144 ?) alternators, do they bolt right on, or do they require modifications ?

 

Your setup may be different than my 86, seeing as it's a 91. But when my alternator went kaput I got a beeping-droning noise from under the dash where the breakout box is. I had to replace one of the items in it that looks like a green flasher unit--square but taller than wide. That calmed things down for a few days but the alternator went south shortly thereafter and I got the same beeping-droning noise when that happened. Put in a rebuilt alternator and have motored quite uneventfully since

 

Ah ok, thanks.

I think I'll cover my ***, by getting a new battery, so I can test what draines the system, do the Big 3, and upgrade to a CS144, as soon as I figure out how the heck you can tell whether the CS144 is the 105 Amp or the 140 Amp version.