Battery Died, now alternator won't charge new battery

[bigben805]

Hi,

I left my lights on and my battery died, so I jumped my car to start it. I drove my car for a about an hour to recharge the battery, but it did not charge back up. My battery light stays on all the time. All my electronics went out (dash lights, stereo, etc) but the car stayed on running. I took the battery and got it tested and charged at Autozone, they said it was still a good battery. I drove again and after about an hour of driving the battery died again. The battery light still stayed on after I had the battery charged. So I decided to buy a new battery and put it in, but my battery light still stayed on, meaning to me that this new battery would still die if I drove it. So I took the car to Autozone and had them test my system. His computer says that my Voltage Regulator was no good. I bought a new one,but have not put it on. Could this be my problem? or could I have blown a fuse? Before I take out my alternator to change the regulator (which I have never done before) I wanted to see what you guys thought. Also is there any tricks to fixing or cleaning this device?

I just need to change the Voltage Regulator, I figured out how to do this, so it seems no big deal.

My new question is that my local parts store has an exact replacement for this item, but it's about $70 ouch!. They also have a lower end one for about $30 bucks, but the lower end one does not look like the one I have on my car. It does not show the part that actually fits into the alternator. It only shows the electrical part and the electric plug. The higher priced one looks pretty much exactly like my original. What do you guys think I should do?

I was able to find this beauty at my local junk yard for only $40 bucks.

 

[reapereviltwin]

See if this thread are what your looking for. Hope it helps!!

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1722521#post1722521

The belt and alternator are not hard to remove/replace. I couldn't find a thread with pics of the procdure. A Haynes or a Chilton manuel has excellant information.

 

[bigben805]

See if this thread are what your looking for. Hope it helps!!

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1722521#post1722521

The belt and alternator are not hard to remove/replace. I couldn't find a thread with pics of the procdure. A Haynes or a Chilton manuel has excellant information.

good link, lots of info.

 

[Turdle]

Is there an alternator fuse on 1st gen? Since it was jump started you may want to check this. 2nd gen does have an alternator fuse.

 

[something9000]

i would charge that battery using a battery charger before replacing parts..also take the cables off and clean the terminals good and put them back on..i had this problem and got another year out of my battery..if that doesnt work voltage test the alt at your local autoparts store..they can also test the battery but i would charge it first

 

[bigben805]

Hi,

I bought a new battery after my first one died yesterday. I am now trying to determine if when I jumped my car if I burned a fuse or damaged an electrical part.

I'm wondering if i could of damaged my voltage regulator when I jumped the car? because this is when I noticed that it quit showing the correct voltage on my dashboard.

I guess I'll have to just go down to my local junk yard and buy a used alternator and see what happens.

 

[Roadrunner777]

There is a fuse for the field line, if I recall, it is one of the small ones in the under-hood distribution box.