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Rapid clicking at startup

fymbscu

Member
Joined
January 8, 2011
Messages
34
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8
City, State
Rowland Heights, CA
Year, Model & Trim Level
'99 Explorer Sport
Pulling out of a parking lot about a mile from home returning from my morning shift, the radio station suddenly went funky, like there was static and muted voices. Changing the station didn't fix the issue; none of the stations worked! I thought my radio was failing. Then I experienced some hesitation while accelerating. Finally, turning into my neighborhood, the station came back on. Once I parked and turned the motor off, I tried to restart and all I got was a rapid clicking sound.

The battery reads 12.1 on my voltmeter. I also had to add distilled water to all of the battery cells. Date on the battery is 10/17.

I have a portable Sears battery charger/starter and in starter mode the Explorer started right up. I let it idle for 10 minutes and then tried to start without the charger connected and back to the clicking sound. I've set up the 10 amp charger but only have about 4 hours before I need to head to my evening shift. Not sure that will be long enough to recharge the battery. Any recommendations?
 



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Likely the battery is near end of life. I'd take a different vehicle, or get a battery at Walmart (call ahead to make sure they have a group 65 in stock) on my way to work, or if you think you can get a jump at work, take jumper cables along.

However you're also having the problem while driving so first thing first, I'd check the battery clamps for corrosion, and start thinking about whether it is just the battery or alternator causing the battery to fail. Once the vehicle is running I'd measure voltage to see if climbing towards 14.4V to indicate the alternator is putting a charge in.

"IF" everything else were good, 4 hours at 10 amps would be enough to put a useful level of charge in the battery with it already at 12.1V, but since there is some other problem, I wouldn't count on it, even if it starts in 4 hours it may not hold a charge long enough to get back home by itself.

Besides the battery and alternator, another thing to check for is parasitic drain, in case some other subsystem is draining the battery when it shouldn't and this is wearing it out and leaving a low voltage state.
 






Okay, I just got a little over 3 hours at 10 amps on the charger and the dial had moved into the green zone. I got a 14+ reading on my voltmeter. The car started up right away without assistance. I think I'm good for the trip tonight.

I've packed the starter & extension cords just in case as a jump would be harder to come by tonight.

I guess I lost track of my battery maintenance because of covid and not travelling as much day to day. Hopefully that was the bulk of the issue, which has now been addresssed. But I plan to hit up an Autozone on the way home and see what their diagnostics tell me.

Thanks for your perspective J_C.
 






I had no problem starting the car in the afternoon and drove to back to work largely without the accessories. After work the car started again without issue and I took it to Autozone. The initial assessment of the battery before starting the car was that it was a good strong battery. Once the car was started, the scanner read low battery and the tech said that he could not test the rest of the electrical system due to that reading. This happened to be at closing time, so I wonder whether his statement that he couldn't test further was an honest one?

I put my voltmeter on the battery this morning and got a reading of 12.43V with the engine off and 14.26V with the engine running. The car started up right away.

This quote:
Get the battery checked. Can use a voltmeter too. Sitting still, not running, should be 12.6V +/-, running about 14.3V +/-. Anything less when off, battery is toast. Anything less when running, alternator is toast too. It wouldn't hurt to get the alternator tested, otherwise you'll kill a new battery just as quick. Also make sure to check the water level if you can in the battery.
from this 2013 post: Rapid clicking when starting the car has served as my guide up to now. While my numbers don't exactly match zpn_by's specs, they mirror them enough to suggest to me that the alternator is probably okay.

I also found this quote from OptimaJim:
Maintaining at least 12.4 volts at all times in any battery will help extend it's lifespan, regardless of brand.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
from here: How to charge the battery ?.

So, maybe my battery is okay for now? I will do a 2amp charge today and will continue to watch it for the next few days. I only drive Thurs/Sat/Sun this week. Does it sound like I am on track here?

Was also wondering about "reconditioning" the battery instead of simply replacing it. Ran across several websites offering to sell how-to's in this regard. The most detail I found was to replace the existing electrolyte with dissolved magnesium sulfate (Epsom Salts) in distilled water. I actually found some advertisements for reconditioning batteries in Popular Mechanics magazine dating back to the 1980s. Anyone care to weigh in on the subject?
 






The only thing the autozone guy can test is what his box can do, he's not going to take a multimeter and probe around (nor would you necessarily want someone with an unknown technical background do this to your vehicle) , just do the free test they are trained to do.

After further consideration, since it progressed while driving after successfully starting on its own, you must have either a bad battery connection from a loose clamp or corrosion (could be at the alternator lug instead of battery lug but that's less common) or an intermittent flaky alternator, possibly getting worse as it warms up. Another less likely possibility is bad belt tension causing alternator pulley slippage.
 






Given that your measurements differ from what the Autozone person had makes me suspect that it could be a connection issue - especially if his tester clamped on the cable lug and your voltmeter is poked into the battery post.

The old school acid test for the alternator is to start the vehicle, then remove the lug from the positive battery terminal. If it continues to run, the alternator is functioning correctly. If it dies, then it is time to check the entire charging system. I have found loose connections, old wires that the insulation turned brittle with heat and oils and fell off so that the wire shorted out, all in addition to a failing alternator.

As for reconditioning batteries.... Junk yards do it all the time
 






It’s hard on the alternator to unplug the battery from the circuit while it’s running. Just run the motor. If the alternator isn’t charging the battery won’t mask the problem for more than a few minutes.
 






After a 12 hour trickle charge at 2 amps, the gauge had just nudged into the green area and my voltmeter read 13.40V. I didn't try to start it last night.

This morning the battery read 12.85V and after an easy start read 12.34V. The battery terminals are clean and tight. I have had corrosion there in the past, but the last time I cleaned them up, over a year ago, I lathered them with petroleum jelly and they still look good. It is true that I had been poking the battery posts for my readings, but today I went through the lugs as well as the posts and got identical readings both ways. After turning the engine back off, voltmeter reading was 12.82V.

I had to replace the negative battery cable several years ago, prior and not directly related to replacing the battery in 2017. Visual inspection of the alternator reveals nothing untoward.
 






Easy starts to and from work this morning. After work headed to an O'Reilly Auto Parts for a battery/electrical test. More successful than the Autozone I tried on Tuesday. Was told battery was good but in the last quarter of its useful life. After starting the car, starter was good but was told the voltage regulator failed its test. Was told it was integral to the alternator and needed to be replaced.

Round trip this morning was about 18 miles. Voltage reading when home with the engine off was 12.44V.

Got me to thinking that something in the regulator snapped as I dipped through the gutter depression from the parking lot to the road when the radio suddenly went wonky Tuesday morning. Any chance to repair the voltage regulator rather than replace the alternator?
 






IIRC you can get the regulator, maybe only in an entire rebuilt kit? If this is the original alternator it is due for an entire rebuild, or replacement, unless you have very low miles on the vehicle.
 






I'm pretty sure I replaced the alternator once before, most likely in Dec 2010/Jan 2011. I won't be able to verify that until later this evening or in the morning. The Explorer just crested over 214,000 miles.

I took a pic of the voltage regulator to look at. It is stamped Motorcraft and the part number reads F77U-10316-AA. This 3G ALTERNATOR REPAIR KIT For FORD VOLTAGE REGULATOR BRUSH BEARING SET SLIP RING on Ebay claims to be compatible. The brand is listed as: LActrical. Will that do the job?
 






^ My '98 4.0L SOHC came with a 4G alternator. I don't know the differences between the rebuild kits but the one linked states only for 3G.
 






I'm pretty sure I replaced the alternator once before, most likely in Dec 2010/Jan 2011. I won't be able to verify that until later this evening or in the morning. The Explorer just crested over 214,000 miles.

I took a pic of the voltage regulator to look at. It is stamped Motorcraft and the part number reads F77U-10316-AA. This 3G ALTERNATOR REPAIR KIT For FORD VOLTAGE REGULATOR BRUSH BEARING SET SLIP RING on Ebay claims to be compatible. The brand is listed as: LActrical. Will that do the job?
If you are comfortable opening up your alternator... and if the parts match your alternator... then have at it
 






Check your system for AC voltage. You should have 0VAC. If you have more than 0VAC, one of the diodes failed.
 






As you brought it up C420sailor, I should clarify that O'Reilly said all of the diodes were good. Didn't recognize the significance of this until you brought it up.

It took longer than expected, but a deep dive into my auto receipts show that I replaced the alternator in August of 2004. The 2010/2011 incident, which originally got me posting on this forum, was resolved with a battery replacement in Dec 2010 and finally replacement of the negative battery cable in Mar 2011.

Undecided about replacing the voltage regulator or rebuilding the alternator as well. Gathering info to make sure I can handle the rebuild. The shop that supplied the alternator in 2004 is out of business today. O'Reilly's alternator prices are double what I paid in 2004.
 






The shop that supplied the alternator in 2004 is out of business today. O'Reilly's alternator prices are double what I paid in 2004.
Boy Howdy, don't we all know how this is.... Good shops disappear and prices triple.
 






The few good shops I know are all on mandatory OT because of the inflated used car prices. Everyone is trying to keep their old stuff rolling as long as possible, hoping cars will come down.

Thanks, Toyota for your LEAN manufacturing processes, and just-in-time supply chains that the entire world has adopted because it’s “cheaper”. Not cheap when you can’t build anything .
 






For a 2004 replaced alternator, it's time to replace or rebuild it. The 3G models are very common and reliable, I'd hunt for a shop to rebuild it, here they would take about a day. 35 years ago we had two places that would do it while you waited, one's gone and the other is a tiny shop that's a one many operation, he's covered up now.

Demand for everything is high right now, it's pushing prices up fast; without relief in the supplies, they will stay high.

The 3G units can be upgraded easily compared to the 4G, there are many high amp choices for the 3G, with different stators etc.
 






Pardon my temporary threadjack but, what would happen if I put a 130 amp alternator on my 2000 4.0 OHV when the original was 95 amp? The reason I ask is that the gauge on the dash shows it a little bit more towards the low side when all the other Explorers I have has the gauge right in the middle.
 



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Pardon my temporary threadjack but, what would happen if I put a 130 amp alternator on my 2000 4.0 OHV when the original was 95 amp? The reason I ask is that the gauge on the dash shows it a little bit more towards the low side when all the other Explorers I have has the gauge right in the middle.

Do it if you think it's needed, that's the typical size for most late model vehicles given the electrical demands. It won't hurt anything to have a bigger OEM unit.

I installed a 130amp model on my 91 XLT years ago, when the old one died finally. The 99 I bought came with the wrong alternator(they grabbed one, the 3G), so it was unneeded until the day my 91 OHV had to have one.
 






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