I just checked the battery cables at the battery. Will check ground cables and starter connection. Have some dialectric grease that I will use to coat the connections.

Will also check the starter bolts for tightness.

Thanks,

Scott

 

It may just be me, but I have had NO luck on non-ford alternators. The ones from the big box stores do not last nor do the ones I have had rebuilt locally. The same local rebuilders can build any other truck or car alternator except the 97 or so and later ones.

Anyone else have problems with the others lasting as long?

 

That's a tough call.
When I bought my truck with 49,000 miles on it, the factory OE alternator had already been replaced.
I've been installing Bosch rebuilt units on cars for 28 years now and thier track record is very good for me.
I cannot remember the last time one came back on me.

 

Dan,

Where do you get your Bosch remans? Thanks, Les

 

I get them from one of two wholesale warehouses.
I don't know if they have a retail counter or not, but you could ask them.
www.imcparts.net
www.worldpac.com
I think that you will find, however, that PartsGuy Ed will offer a Ford unit for the same cost.
Bosch isn't a cheap knock off part, they are OE suppliers for many of the European vehicles.

 

New alternator is on. Now reading 14V at idle. Good to go (at least until this one dies)!

Thanks,

Scott

 

Can you read the voltage again, but this time put your meter on a/c to read the the alternating current component during the start up so we can get a baseline on a new alternator.
Thanks, Nick

 

Looks like I have the opposite problem now - too much charging voltage! @)#*$)@#*%)!!! Noticed on my drive to work this morning that the battery warning light was lighting up on the dash. However, when I turned the truck off and restarted, it lit off easily. Also noticed that the light wasn't coming on at idle; mainly over 1,200 rpm.

I'll test it again, but looks like I'm headed back to AutoZone for my 3d Duralast Gold alternator in less than a year.

Scott

 

did you ever find out what the problem was? Im having issues with my 2003 f350 7.3l gone through 4 alternators in 2 months and 3 of them have been within a week! I have one new optima and a good motorcraft reading 12v but my battery light continues to stay on and the check engine light is reading low voltage? My truck has failed to start several times and the batteries were reading about 10v still. I swapped them out and got the batteries at 12v but now the brand new alternator i got yesterday seems to have gone out and isnt putting out any voltage now! The alternator is from orielly auto parts and they gave me a brand new one b/c the other 2 remans just went out immediately. Im going to be adding the power and ground directly to the battery from the alt. Today and also adding an extra ground to the starter as well as checking the bolts to make sure they are tight. I will also be cleaning off all the grounds i can find and putting grease on them once they are securely fastened. Any input or info may help and would be appreciated. Thank goodness my batteries and my alt. Are both under warranty! Oh ya mine also was over charging it seems, my battery light would be on and the truck would crank off no problem until it seemed to burn out the alt. And the low battery issues would start again of course.

 

Siccplatinum, Welcome to FTE.

While the original poster to this thread (Scott aka "bulletpruf") abandoned this thread 8 years ago, I can see why you would want to find out what the problem was.

One thing that probably wasn't the problem was what Scott had last guessed... that being the alternator "overcharging." Unless one is actually measuring 15 volts on the truck somewhere, the alternator is not "overcharging", and the battery light is not an indication of an alternator "overcharging."

The battery light illuminates when the voltage from the battery(s) is higher than the voltage from the alternator. That means the alternator voltage is not sufficient enough to charge the batteries. That means undercharging.

You might be better served starting your own thread with your specific problem, because there are several misapplied assumptions made in this old thread that might be better off left abandoned.

In your case, it appears you are using two different batteries (an Optima and a Motorcraft wet cell SLI) of two different chemistries, two different ages, and two different sizes. In a diesel with batteries working in parallel, both batteries should be the same age, chemistry, size, type, and have the same state of charge. Otherwise, current will flow between the batteries, with the weaker battery continually draining the stronger battery until both are weak.

It is hard to follow the sequence of events in your single paragraph without sentence breaks, but it sounds like you may have "swapped out" these batteries with batteries under warranty? Is each battery swapped out like for like, meaning that they are still different from each other? Or are both batteries now the same?

You mentioned that your new batteries now measure "12V". This means that they are only 25% charged. At 50% charge, the batteries would measure 12.20V. At 75% charge, the batteries would show 12.40V. And at 11.80V, the batteries would be considered dead. FULLY CHARGED 12V batteries should read greater than 12.65V with no load (open circuit voltage) after the surface charge from any recent charging has been worn or zapped off. So if your batteries at rest, key off engine off, are reading anything less than 12.6V, then those batteries need to be charged. I would recommend charging them with a plug in the wall battery charger before installing any more new alternators.

The problem with relying on a new alternator to charge weak, mismatched, or only partially charged batteries... is that the brushes in the voltage regulator may not yet match the slip ring radius profile... especially in a low cost wax and oil store alternator made in China. It will take a few revolutions for the slip ring to wear down the brushes in the voltage regulator to create a broader contact area capable of carrying the full current that the alternator is rated to produce. Asking a new, unbroken in alternator to start the truck and simultaneously pour vast volumes of current into charging weak and depleted batteries at the very outset could create a point load contact on the brush that burns it from the high demand. This is just one reason why severely discharged batteries can cause repeated new alternator failure. The batteries never do get fully charged, because the owner keeps relying on the next new warranty wax and oil store alternator to charge them, repeating the cycle over and over.

Break that vicious cycle, get new matching batteries, charge them independently from the truck with a plug in the wall charger (charging at 14.4v), until the batteries read between 12.9V to 13.3V surface charge (as measured with the charger disconnected... 12.9v wet cell lead acid, 13.3V AGM such as Optima), and THEN install your next new alternator. Go from there.

 

Agree, there is just not enough information in the post to diagnose with any accuracy. Also agree the likelihood of having a succession of bad alternators "overcharging" the batteries is probably less than zero.

My two cents

 

Hey, I never ABANDONED this thread! I've been waiting here for 8 years with a dead Excursion! Finally a reply!

Just kidding. Since posting this, I sold the Excursion, moved to Korea for 2 years, then moved to Italy for 3 years, headed back to the states in 2 weeks, but this time I'll be driving a shivverlay - 2001 'Burb with an 8.1. Just couldn't afford another diesel Ex.

And while I don't remember what I had for breakfast this morning (and certainly don't recall how this was resolved 8 years ago), I checked my notes, and it appears that I purchased a new Duralast Gold alternator on 11/27/10 and installed it, so that must have fixed the issue.

As for Siccplatinum, I concur with the battery issue -- I would fix that first (i.e., two new and identical batteries). Otherwise, you're going to be chasing your tail for a while. Good luck.

 

WOW... moved to korea for 2 yr and Italy for 3,, dam dude that is cool..

I remember seeing someone talk about worldpac and bosch alternator.. Well the in past 8 years a lot has happened in the auto parts world. Now it appears worldpac is owned by the advance auto group so you might be able to secure the bosch alternator that way. Couple of my friends worked at the advance auto HQ in raleigh and were a part of that change or ownership or accusation of world pac.

Bulletpruf... Welcome back to the states mon.. hope you are well after all the travels. that sounds like another post for sure..

 

Aloha,
My E 350 4X4 Club Wagon just ate a 130Amp alternator can't charge
my double batteries fast enough...plus my panel is kinda whacked out.
Thinking about adding "Old School" Voltmeters & Ammeter & Oil Pressure
gauges without messing with the "Panel." Thunking about the "Lifetime
Warranty." Maybe use that money back towards a 220Amp to keep both of
my batteries charged,
Aloha Chief