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alternator tested good.. but was it?

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    #1

    alternator tested good.. but was it?

    okay, im having the electrical problems that say your alternator is eating a dick.. ill be driving down the road and the electrical system gets slowly weaker and weaker. radio shuts itself off, lights are dimmer and dimmer.. basically the battery is starting to die. shut it off and i dont have enough juice to start it, so i get a jump start. happened a few times to me.

    i took my car to o'reilly's and a friend works there. he used the voltmeter to test the alternator from the battery posts, and it was saying that the alternator was good. we tested the battery(i had been jump started earlier, wasnt sure if that affects it or not) and the battery tested good too.

    went back inside out of the single digit cold, and thats when a customer i now refer to as 'the dude' was standing by the counter talking to an employee. now, you all know the type.. its a guy at the autoparts store that believes he knows everything about your car before even asking what you drive.

    the dude started asking me what was happening and was telling me its the alternator.. 'it tested good' i say..

    then he told me that when the alternator is at idle its gonna test fine, but when its at a higher rpm a diode inside of it fails and stops charging the battery.

    now, is this a possibilty? could my alternator be good at idle, but shit the bed when im driving? takes about a half hour for the symptoms to begin when im driving it....

    on a side note, i did put a cd player in it(replaced the factory stereo) but that was about 2 months before anything was acting up.

    please help me
    92 lx
    automatic
    slow

    but its clean!..kinda
    Tags: None
    #2
    Have you checked your grounds?I don't know if that helped at all but it is an idea.
    Originally posted by 92dm
    I was actually just being a smart ass, and not really contributing to this at all.
    VOUCHES
    Bought from: cb95spd

    Comment

      #3
      not yet. are you referring to the ground wire that goes right to the alternator, or the ground wire to the valve cover? the valve cover one is good. ill check the one to the alternator. i pray to god that it was loose.. haha

      any more advice is appreciated
      92 lx
      automatic
      slow

      but its clean!..kinda

      Comment

        #4
        i'd just check them all and don't forget the one under the thermostat housing.

        just for shits and giggles, check to see if your cables are nice and snug on the terminals.

        Comment

          #5
          ive now checked all of the grounds everywhere, and the battery cables are properly tightened.

          does anybody know for sure if an alternator can operate properly at idle, and fail at a higher rpm?

          or would the voltage be too low at idle if it were a bad alternator?
          92 lx
          automatic
          slow

          but its clean!..kinda

          Comment

            #6
            Is your alt. belt tight?

            Comment

              #7
              Yes! Your alternator can operate fine at idle but not at a higher RPM, it also can work fine for a short time and then cut out. I've replaced more than a few alternators that tested fine but would die after driving for a while.

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