Ugh.

[Tigg]

It has not been a good automotive day...
I've been driving the G35 lately because the Cougar has had a weird key issue. Sometimes the key doesn't want to turn when I put it in the ignition, and my steering wheel no longer "locks" when the key isn't in. Sometimes it works just fine, other times it's weird. So, I've been limiting how much I drive it, in fear that I'll end up somewhere and not be able to get it to start.

Somehow I managed to get a nail in my tire in the G35 last night. Okay, no big deal, I'll just drive the Cougar to work today and take the tire off later to get it fixed. I take the Cougar and get gas, put air in the tires, take it to the car wash and get it ready to go. No problem...

Go out this morning, in a good mood, happy to be driving it since I haven't lately. Going to work early so that I can leave a few minutes early. Get on 100, get about a mile and a half, all of the dash lights light up. Oh ****. Turn off all the accessories, keep my foot on the gas. Manage to get off at the next exit, which happens to (luckily or unluckily) be where Rich Morton Lincoln, Mercury, Mazda is. Get stuck at the light, of course. Keep it in neutral, with my foot on the gas to keep it running. Light eventually changes, I go, and can't go any faster than about 5 mph. Not that I can tell, since I have no gauges working. It's bucking and barely moving, but I manage to get it the 1/4 mile to turn into the dealer. Got it in the parking lot, parked it and let it idle for a minute. Kept running. Turned it off and left it there for them to diagnose. They'll call me, either today or tomorrow. Yay. I hate that dealer. We don't get along, and they're very rude and condescending. But, that was about as far as I was going to be able to get it.

So, Dad came to pick me up and we start to figure out what's up with the G. After about 30 minutes of trying to get the scissor jack out of the trunk (it's very secured in the hold), we get it jacked up and get the tire off. Only to find that the nail is in the sidewall on the inside. Hooray. 2 new rear tires please, 245/45/18. Ouch.
Should be about $433...

I'm guessing the Cougar is the alternator. We'll see what other BS they come up with.

I'm ready to quit with both of them.

[mherweg]

That sounds a whole lot like what happened to me last week. Cougar is my daily driver, and on my way to work, the alt decided to die on me. I was about 4-5 blocks from work, so I made it in, just barely. All the gauges died on me, and it was a real chore to get it those extra few blocks. Ended up needing an alt, belt, and tensioner.
Sorry to hear about that nail in your tire too, although I gotta laugh a little at your tone - you make it sound like a chore to drive the G35, haha. I'd kill for one of those, this Cougar is getting old, fast.

[Rikenbomb]

Well that totally sucks.

Definitely sounds like an alternator. And nails in sidewalls really suck. So I'm guessing you could be out almost a grand all said and done with both cars.

[skater]

Ouch...that sucks. I'm sorry!

For the Cougar, it's either your alternator or the voltage sensing fuse - mine died one time and although the alt was fine, it wasn't able to charge the battery. The good news is that it's a cheap repair (except that you may also need a new battery); the bad news is that they have to do a charging system test to find that problem. I was out $200 (with battery) when mine did it - better than an alt but still a lot for a $0.20 fuse.

[Tigg]

Yeah, this will be the 3rd alternator, if that is indeed what they diagnose. The first had similar symptoms, minus the "bucking" thing for that last quarter mile. That was new. I'm glad it kept running to get it to the dealer though.

Driving the G isn't a chore at all, it's a fun car. But it runs on premium and gets about 10 mpg less than the cougar. That does add up. And I really do enjoy the cougar, when it's running right.

Yeah, I'm guessing somewhere in that range Henry. Hopefully the dealer doesn't come up with too much crap to blame and try. I'm sure they will... While I was waiting outside, they had one of the tech's out there looking at it and I could see him checking out all the parts. If they come up with too much, I'll just send it up to Dom again. ::sigh::

RJ, I'll keep that in mind and see what they say. That alt is probably about 2 years old. The battery is about a year old. Not sure about the fuse, I imagine it's original or close to it. I'm guessing that not driving it much (it hasn't been out for about a week and a half) wore down the battery and put a lot of load on the alternator this morning.

Here are pictures of the fun with the G.

[CodyTRX]

My alternator light flashes north of about 5,000 RPMS. I've been BABYING it. Our alternators are comfortably tucked far away under the firewall, lol.

[Tigg]

Only the first time my alternator died did I get the 5,000 rpm warning. Not the second time, or this time (if that is the case).

[Rikenbomb]

Well at least it wasn't a 100% brand new alternator that didn't work right in the first place and you had to scramble to get a new one installed.

[Tigg]

Well, it's the alternator.
Should be done tomorrow-ish. Freakin' $575 to fix it.

[Drenalin]

Ouch!
Sorry to hear that Tigg