Hilux Alternator?
Submitted: Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 08:55
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Joshuah
G'day,
I had the heart-palpatating pleasure of not being able to start my car on the
boat ramp with an incoming tide yesterday. It was short-lived, thankfully and I managed to get it going, just!
At home I checked the battery volts with the motor running and she was not above 12.5v
I disconnected all battery hang-ons - spots and aux battery and tried again - no difference. Having nothing to fear, I got the hose and hosed down the starter motor (new, but sounded like it was sticking) and the alternator. After that - 13.6v.
Seems to go okay now, but i'm curious why this happened? I'll now check the leads to all these again, but what should I be looking for? Is it time to replace the alternator?
She's a 1998 3.0L diesel Hilux. The alternator has the vacuum pump mounted on the alternator too.
Thanks.
Reply By: Battery Value Pty Ltd - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 09:48
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 09:48
any electrical contacts (plug/socket) on the alternator to be cleaned?
checked brushes and sliprings for wear and tear?
and the belt tension?
cheers, Peter
AnswerID:
469441
Follow Up By: Joshuah - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 10:59
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 10:59
Thanks Peter.
It was dusk when this was unfolding so I didn't climb under or over her to thoroughly. I'm planning to have better look this afternoon, and i'll certainly be checking the contacts and cleaning them.
The belt tension is good. - I'm beginning to think it may have been sticky brush but that's a biggish job for me to check.
FollowupID:
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Follow Up By: James L2 - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 11:18
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 11:18
You can get a portable battery boost box pretty cheap these days.
I have one in the car just in case, you never know!
if you have one in the car, you can go about life as normal and wait to see if this happens again, might have been a weird one off!
Jim
FollowupID:
743864
Reply By: 178 - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 13:21
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 13:21
Had the same thing happen to me with landcruiser and it was a big tide too. Ended up at the auto elect.and had the starter overhauled. I had the same thing happening some years before and in both cases the battery was old. Wont let it happen again. Present battery is 800CCA so it spins the motor with no effort. In both instances I was told contacts were US. Different auto elects by the way. Johnno
AnswerID:
469472
Follow Up By: Joshuah - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 13:37
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 13:37
Thanks 178.
The battery is about 6 weeks old, but i'm keeping an eye on it. What do you mean by contacts? Brushes?
I think i had about an hour before the sea would have claimed her...
Joshua
FollowupID:
743875
Follow Up By: 178 - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 14:51
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 14:51
Don`t know what they look like but would understand they would be the the contacts in the solenoid for the starter. I have to trust the people with the knowledge and hope I get the right advice. Isn`t it amazing how fast the tide seems to rise in that situation. Johnno
FollowupID:
743884
Reply By: Hilux fan - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 16:41
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 16:41
Sounds like you might have washed some crud loose with the hose. If you spend a lot of time at the
boat ramp you could be getting a build up of salt in the works. You don't have to get it wet with salt
water to get it into the system. When I used to spend a lot of time scuba diving (aaah, those pre-kid days), any mechanical or electrical stuff that went near the sea got washed off with fresh
water and was given a liberal spray of WD-40 (our dive club bought the stuff in 10L drums). Seemed to keep things going. Electrical contacts in particular seemed to gunge up easily with a bit of salt in the air.
Get an auto electrician to check the alternator before replacing it.
Colin
AnswerID:
469496
Reply By: nowimnumberone - Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 18:17
Tuesday, Nov 08, 2011 at 18:17
if your checking you power at the alternator
it should be reading around 14-14.2 volts
not to sure about your model hilux but almost every car i check is 14 or over
cheers
AnswerID:
469503
Reply By: Joshuah - Wednesday, Nov 09, 2011 at 07:13
Wednesday, Nov 09, 2011 at 07:13
Well, I cleaned the contacts from the Battery to the Alternator. I couldn't undo the 3-wired plug at the back and access was tight, so it got a good jiggle, which I'm not too happy about. I tried with multi-grips and screw-driver but I was just doing plug damage.
In any case, after that and idling, it went to 14.1v. Unheard of on this car!
I degreased a small leak on the power-steering unit and connected the spotlights and aux battery lead, but then only got to 13.8v. Not sure if it was the
water splash or something else, but it seems to be charging at least.
I'm beginning to think I have a bung regulator. Either way, i'll have another go this morning.
If anyone has tips on how to remove the plug, let me know.
Cheers.
Joshua.
AnswerID:
469523