ok so the car is breaking down again :(

[rastaman]

well in addition to the problem i have with the car sputtering under hard acceleration until the secondaries open, i have a new problem...
now, when my revs hit about 4k rpm and above, my battery light comes on....does this mean my alternator is on its way out? or could it just mean the battery is actually dying? I've had the car almost four years, and the whole time i've had the original battery, and the original alternator (i know, what a shock!).

and oh yeah, my sunroof just broke today too. all in all, i'm having a splendid phuckin week.

i hate to be one of those people who ***** and moan about their car, but god damn it's such a kick in the nuts cuz i worked so hard to get my car EXACTLY the way i want it for this summer and now everything seems like its falling apart :(

i need a hug :grouphug:

and air tools :evil:

[starshower]

awwwww...poor ajay needs a hug :grouphug:
sorry to hear your coug doesn't like you:(

doesn't vish have some airtools??

if it makes you feel any better, i looked at my bumper and realized that the paint which is on there and 1 year old is chipping :cry: so now i will be repainting the bumper for the 4th time. and i'm still dealing with the aftermath of exploding juice from 2 yrs ago - i just keep finding more. so you're not alone :)

[AtomicInternet]

The batt light is definately an alternator sign. I had it on mine intermitently for about a year before mine went. When it finally did go, there was no mistaking it.

You better get it fixed before Cougarfest, otherwise I won't have that big fat Cougar ass to watch for 14 hours.

[rastaman]

ok, so my next question then is, what do i do with the alternator? i still haven't heard of an aftermarket solution, so getting this one rebuilt is probably the best option, correct? now, call me stupid, but if i take it to a shop and say "thou shalt rebuild my alternator", will they know what to do? i sure as hell don't ;) do they need to rebuild it to any particular specifications? what does this rebuilding entail exactly?

[lauraq]

Ajay, speak to Dom about this. He is the king of Alternators for this car. (Not a good title). He had 4 or 5 of them.

[PuckPuck]

DO NOT buy another ford alternator.

Bring it to just about any "Starter & Alternator" shop.. you may want to ask around for recommendations around you. Bring the alternator in the morning, pick it up at night. Just walk in and say "thou shalt rebuild this". Cost is about 150-200$ CDN depending on the shop, and labour rates. I had this done, and my alternator has run a constant 14.7-14.9 volts since. Running that voltage makes stereo louder too :)

Oh and it's a good time to replace that battery to. But if you can wait until fall for it, cause CDN tire always has crazy battery sales in mid/late fall (think of thoses cdn tire commercials in the middle of a blizzard)

YellowPages.ca - Starters & Alternator businesses in Scarborough area (http://www.yellowpages.ca/searchBusiness.do?action=homeSearch&cityId=SCARBORO&provinceId=ON&categoryId=00042900&categoryName=Alternators+%26+Starters&categorySym=alternator&business=&len=10)

[rastaman]

yeah, that's what i was thinking, might as well replace and relocate the battery :)
me thinks its time for an optima yellow top :)

edit: maybe is should just come down to windsor for a weekend and enlist some help for operation resurrection :tongue:

[Housecat]

Rasta:

In most cases what is happening to the Ford alternators could very well go wrong with any aftermarket alternator, or rebuild. It gets very, very hot where the alternator is located, thus causing the alternator casing to crack. I see this all the time. Usually the internal workings of the alternator are o.k., but cracking of the case causes the problem.

THere isn't a lot you can do here.

Good Luck!

[PuckPuck]

Originally posted by: Housecat
Rasta:

In most cases what is happening to the Ford alternators could very well go wrong with any aftermarket alternator, or rebuild. It gets very, very hot where the alternator is located, thus causing the alternator casing to crack. I see this all the time. Usually the internal workings of the alternator are o.k., but cracking of the case causes the problem.

THere isn't a lot you can do here.

Good Luck!


ummm have you actually seen a cracked alternator casing from a cougar?

the problem with the ford alternators is actually a small solder made on the rotor which ends up corroding and breaking off. That's why I say get it rebuilt by a professional who will use better soldering materials and processes.

[Leo]

Ajay, Check to see if the drive belt for your alt is slipping it usually starts at higher RPM. What parts do you need for your sun roof?

[Lepak91]

I have. When I pulled my alternator out it had a very large crack in it. Of course I replaced it with one from Autozone and I am now having the same problem.

Leo. I've noticed at high rpm's that my belt slips. I have replaced the belt a couple of times and it does this even with brand new belts. It also has done this with my old alternator. Do you think it could be the belt tensioner causing this? How hard would it be to replace this.

[Leo]

Dave, I have noticed a grip difference between various manufactures of belts. Another way to increase the tension on the belt is to try to get the shortest belt that you can get on the pulleys to increase the tensioner pressure on the belt.

[rastaman]

Originally posted by: Leo
Ajay, Check to see if the drive belt for your alt is slipping it usually starts at higher RPM. What parts do you need for your sun roof?

leo, how do i know if it is simply the belt slipping or if the entire alternator needs to be removed and rebuilt?
and as far as the sunroof goes, once i heard something snap and saw it not moving evenly, i closed it up right away. with all the rain we've been getting since mosport, i didn't want to take the chance of having it stuck open. i assume i just need the metal tracks from the 01/02 sunroof, but i'm not sure...i'll have to take a good look at it this weekend...

[HangTime]

Just for the record... my original alternator had a crack in the casing as well.

[rastaman]

so that tiny little line on the top of the egr is what i'm supposed to plug to determine if my dpfe sensor is causing the problem?

http://www.fastcougar.com/forums/attachments/ACF488A%2Ejpg

[ChrisF]

Originally posted by: PuckPuck

Originally posted by: Housecat
Rasta:

In most cases what is happening to the Ford alternators could very well go wrong with any aftermarket alternator, or rebuild. It gets very, very hot where the alternator is located, thus causing the alternator casing to crack. I see this all the time. Usually the internal workings of the alternator are o.k., but cracking of the case causes the problem.

THere isn't a lot you can do here.

Good Luck!


ummm have you actually seen a cracked alternator casing from a cougar?

the problem with the ford alternators is actually a small solder made on the rotor which ends up corroding and breaking off. That's why I say get it rebuilt by a professional who will use better soldering materials and processes.


Cracked like this one?

Me holding my alternator (http://atomicinternet.homeip.net/newmcneco/photos/SuperCharger_09-21-02/tn_P0000028.jpg)

[rastaman]

that pic is tiny....
but anyways, so if my alternator casing is cracked like you guys....is rebuilding it even an option?

[PuckPuck]

Originally posted by: rastaman
that pic is tiny....
but anyways, so if my alternator casing is cracked like you guys....is rebuilding it even an option?

no....

but if your alt housing is fine (like mine was) bring it to a shop and never worry about it again (i sure don't)

[rastaman]

ok puck, so what do you think about this plan to minimize down time for my car:
get an alternator from a junkyard off a contour...get it rebuilt if it is not cracked...
then just do a straight swap...that way no dropping off my alt and waiting for a rebuild...

[PuckPuck]

if you can find 1 day to go without your car you can do it far cheaper by pulling alt off day 1 evening... bring it in shop day 2 morning... pick it up from shop day 2 evening and have it back on car 2 hours later....

just in case you may want to have it pulled off BEFORE the local junkyard with a spare alt laying around closes... this way here if it's cracked you need not worry....

basically only buy the other alt from junkyard if yours is cracked.... this way here you save more money to go boozing and enjoy our newly decrminilazed activities :)

[rastaman]

cool...sounds like a plan...
also, i plugged that hose going to the top of the egr 2 days ago....it didn't help at all with my stuttering problem, and i got a cel today, so i put it back....i guess that means it's not a DPFE problem, and it's something more serious :(

edit: its a good thing such activities are now decriminalized, cuz it makes me less depressed about my car :smoke-g:

[crapgame]

fuel injection does not have secondaries carbs do. spuddering try new plugs and wires. put a new serpintine on the engine and do not forget the tensioner. good luck