Battery/Alternator issue? Help.

[Donner]

Alright, thanks Dan!

Stor, you're going for a test drive in sub zero weather? Yikes!

 

[storlied]

I can't now, it won't start.. when it does.. things act funny.. I don't want to be stuck on the side of the road, I don't have an autozone here.. what more common places would do a check for free?

I don't Think it's the battery, if it's the alternator.. how much would it cost for a shop to replace it?.. This is bs, I don't have the money for this... WHY ME!?

 

[storlied]

If I manage to start it, would leaving it running for a little bit help?

 

[storlied]

Alright, did a quick test. Started it up, unplugged the negative terminal from the battery and the truck died, that would mean it's my alternator.. right?

 

[WhiteLimited]

well, i guess that's the same as Starbux coffee when it's 80 degrees, no? What batt do you have?

Haha ice cream? Give me my Star Bucks any day!






Back to the subject at hand. To start off I did not read all the on going posts. But what this sound like to me is what happened to my Dodge buddy few weeks back. His battery was stock and had a lot of miles on it...He kept the charger on it all nite drove it over to my house we worked on his truck and played with it...He started to pull out and it died...So we left a charger on it for a while he finally got home and it died on him again. Mind you that this stock battery had 200,000+ miles on it...He went out and bought a Yellow Top battery...No problems since...

BUT, if you got 11 and 10 valts while it is running I would say its your voltage regulator...Witch is built into the alternator in these trucks so you would have to replace the hole thing...

Good junk of money to fix....

 

[storlied]

From the test I just did, would it point to the alternator?
Where can I bring the truck to get it replaced?

 

[storlied]

From my haynes manual, it doesn't seem that hard at all to replace it myself.. is it hard? The hard part seems to be getting the belt off and back on...

 

[storlied]

Alright, is there any good guide to getting the belt off and back on and adjust it correctly? I've found a rebuilt alternator for 177$. Either I'll do it myself if it warms up, or I'll pay my bodyshop guy to do it for $65.

 

[storlied]

Anyone have a guide of how to take the belt off on the 5.0, and to put it back on and tighten it right?

 

[Donner]

I vote body shop. How cold is there now? If I see any info on how to, I'll pass it along, but body shop (there's nowhere else to get it done?)

 

[storlied]

This is just the bodyshop I go to for my body work, I trust him, he's a good guy. He has let me yank parts of this 99 Sport he has in his yard for free.

Every other place is more expensive.

 

[storlied]

I've got a good understanding of how to replace the actual alternator, but the belt looks a bit more complicated.

 

[hunterdan]

The test you did by yanking the negative terminal is not one that I recommend... Doing so could send a high voltage spike through your wiring harness essentially frying everything in the vehicle. If I were you I would invest in a decent multimeter. You can get a decent one for about $30 and will be very useful for many other projects.

Dan

 

[storlied]

I found the test idea on google and many people had suggested it to me, so I gave it a try. Found the problem.
So let me get a few facts straight, to get the belt off.. I use.. what exactly to pull the tensioner? Once the belt is off, replacing this alternator is as easy as unplugging everything and unbolting it from the engine block, which it's held on by two bolts... and just to the opposite of removal for installation... is it all as simple as that?

 

[Donner]

One more day and the bodyshop will install it... Man, Dan gave you great advice on how to spare your electrical system... that test you ran is dangerous - later for gooogle - do you know how much it will cost if you destroy your electrical system? You'll need a new vehicle.

 

[storlied]

I'll keep that in mind, as an easier safer way without a volt thingmajig.. I could use my radar detector, the test would be.. if the voltage doesn't come up to 14v while the truck is running, the alt isn't performing correctly.

 

[storlied]

If a car battery completely dies, like all the power is used up.. are they permanantly dead?

 

[winsorcoke]

Anyone have a guide of how to take the belt off on the 5.0, and to put it back on and tighten it right?

I'm not to familiar with the 5.0, but every ford I've worked on had a belt tensioner. All you do is stick a ratchet in the square hole and turn it to relieve the tension. It's spring loaded and their should be an arrow that points the direction you want to turn it. Their should also be a sticker somewhere under the hood that shows the way the belt goes around everything.

 

[storlied]

Sounds good to me, I've pretty much got this covered.. I just need to get the alternator..................................

And I'm concerned with my slow dying battery.. I hope it can be re-charged...

It's getting worse for no reason.. Maybe getting in and out of the car for crap.. Just turned off my radar detector that's no longer saying 11-12 volts, but now it's saying LOW VOLTAGE. So I hope when I get the new alternator in I can get everything back up and running.......................

 

[hunterdan]

If you don't have access to a battery charger, take it to Autozone or someplace that can do a battery load test off the vehicle. Usually this test requires a fully charged battery, but if its not fully charged, the tester will charge the battery, usually an hour or so, then do a load test on it. THis will serve 2 purposes for you, test your battery, and charge it. This is almost always a free service at those types of stores. Good luck...

Dan