Le Problemo... with the old girl

[912UK]

Not the wife. the car..

Our car does sit in the pampered garage quite alot and when we take it out it's cleaned and looked after and all that.. As usual the battery was dead and as this battery just does not want to last I just bought a new one..

So fitted that all sorted off we go for a 2.5hr drive to Hereford from Southampton.. prob right past PCGB Cornbury House but I didn't have time to find it.. because..!!

Just as the last part of the dual carridge way comes to a sudden hault and a round about and single lane down to Gloucester.. the car just seamed odd.. would not tick over well!! and then just died !! Arrr 8months Pregant wife in the passenger seat and I am left to get out and push the Cab to the side of the road.. The offers of help where over whelming, honest loads of poeple just sat there and watched me push the car [&:]

Anyway I then noticed the battery Volt guage showed 10volts on the battery the NEW ONE !!!!!

now don't ask me why but have a spare VW T5 battery which i was ment to put in my Camper ( VWT5 ) and didn't as i managed to get some life back in the old one and it's been fine ever since. ) so I happened to have this T5 battery in the boot of the Cab as I needed it to jump start the car after 2 months of storage I just connected my jump leads to the T5 battery and she started!!! volt guage read 12V JUST!!

so a detour into Gloucester!! to find a Halfords.. Bought a 12V super dooper Charger and headed for a freinds hotel opp the Police HQ. 40'mins of charge and a cup of tea.. I even jump started the car off another car to save every ounce of current in the battery..

Off we went and we made it 2 hrs late but we made it to Eastnor Castle for the wedding well now the after wedding as we were abit late [&o] and then I managed to smuggle the two car batteries inside to chagre them [] next morning as if my magic I had two batteries both reading 13.4V yhay!!!

so back in to the car and headed home. I ran the one battery for about 1.5hrs before pulling over and conecting the second battery to help us make it all the way back to Southampton.. too frightend to turn anything with Electric current on .. including the wipers.. infact you get used to not using them it was ok.. no radio no nothing!! we made it !!! Guage read 11volts..

So Alternator??

it did work before as I had it in Chris Turners and it was dead when I went to pick it up.. once jumped I was on the motorway and it was charging up a treat..

so is there any other things it could be??

Was going to check and remake the earth contact to make sure..
I just wounder by jump starting it with the leads might have spiked the electrical cct on the Alternator in some way..

other than the car drove a dream some nice road in Hereford, although I do need a motor way with in 15mins of where I live I couldn't live out that way with out one []

any surgestions please would be VERY greatful thanks

1992 3.0S2 944 Cab

 

[Frenchy]

Do you have a multi meter ? when the battery is just standing you should get 11.5 to 13.5 Volts, check again with the engine runing you should be getting a reading of 14 volts +.
It will fix !!

 

[912UK]

I have to say I did follow an RAC van in to Newbury services and I was thinking the same as you.. but he then turned off to go under the motorway so tomorrows job is just what you say.. I will do that and and I am sure it's not going to work so I will clean the earths and then do it again and see..

At one stage say 1.hrs in to the return journey it looked like it was going up... but it soon dropped again..

still we got home and with the 8 months gone lady of the house still in tatcked

 

[944 man]

If you have an electricity leak, then the glovebox lamp is the first port of call. The easiest way to find out where the electricity is going, is to buy a plug in blade fuse type meter. You remove each fuse in turn with everything off and the key removed; and keep going until you find a circuit that shoud be closed with current passing through.

Clicky link to the tool...

Unbelievably useful.


Simon

 

[Mike_Pollock]

I would be very wary of the wires to the alternator and the alternator / rectifier itself.

Remember wires can look out ok but can be almost broken - my guess is alternator for what its worth

Fully charged battery should last for the sorts of time yours have, suggesting nothing is being put in.

If its a drain, its 200+watt of drain (120 direct of the alternator and 80 to drain the battery in an hour) that would fry any wiring in a car!

 

[912UK]

I will look into all this tomorrow thanks for some heads up there.. Useful tool I have to say I think I will be buying one of those anyway. Thanks

I have a local guy who rebuilds these things so I am hopeful it's some thing he can do.

Just Alternators and starters I think he is called. If I get it off the car and up to him he normaly does a quick free test on it and then go from there..

Would be good to get it totaly sorted that for sure.. don't like having to run two batteries on the car.. but it's working temp..

 

[vitesse]

Good tool for a modern car with blade type fuses-does it come with an adapter for the older type fuses ie. circular & the coloured plastic ones torped o shape?

 

[Northern924]

Alternator bushes been checked recently?? Worn ones were the reason mine failed me one dark night on the way home from Tow Law!

This is how bad mine had got, guess they were the originals and if so 170k off one set ain't too shabby

 

[912UK]

89,950 miles so far and orginal so looks like it might not be but I will check once it's out.

 

[Hilux]

If a good battery runs down when you are on a journey then put a meter on the alternator output when the cars running - it should be putting out 13 - 14 volts, if not then its regulator may be u/s or the alternator is.

It doesnt take much drop below 12v for components to stop working.

 

[912UK]

Ok the wife has used the car today as Audi having a hissy fit and the alarm going off all the time..bl**y daily's

anyway she just came back to out with the meter and nothing well nothing being added into the battery that's for sure

11.40 standing and 11.40/39 running

so nothing going in..

now I had a quick look at the alternator I can't see any real wires coming off it????

other than ONE single thick black wire.. is this the wires and they are in a case?

I would not mind checking it out before I take it apart..

 

[Mike_Pollock]

I had a tensioning bracket bolt break and the car got me to within 400yds of home before dying! It was showing approx 6 volts on the meter.

 

[912UK]

I have looked at the belts ( new ) and they all look tight still? nothing looks out of place?

 

[912UK]

Oh the joys..

now the starter has packed in [&:]



BUT I just had a look under there and it turns out the wire to the back of it is loose !!!!!!!!

So I just tightened it up and she starts first time every time phew..

I picked up a spare Alternator from a Tipec memeber who very kindly let me have it for £30 also a DMV relay for £10. So I can now get the old girl up and running again.. Send off the orginal one away and then have it serviced and repaired and then I am all back to normal again with some spare parts if any one else needs them..

I have been alowed to use a 2 post ramp on Friday to fit it phew!! no crawling under neath.. in the wet ( bloody summer )

 

[912UK]

UPDATE

well since tightening that nut with the wire..

she's been totaly fine?? so much so I have charged up the old 944 battery and it's holding fine?? so it's that neutal return wire that was causing all the problems..

I wish all fixes where that easy LOL