[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by headers

John, 2K alternator + labour = 4.7K ?

Didn't you see the $ sign in front ? Thats in dollars.

Originally Posted by babe_on_wheels

yes labor can be quite the culprit with the spares along with the service tax + the VAT ! Mine turned out to be almost 7.2 grand for the alternator.
but maruti guys also charge so much? i didnt know!?

That was a typo b_o_w. I pressed the shift when i typed 4 & got a dollar sign instead. It should be 4.2K for the alternator & 500 for labour = 4.7 K total.

[babe_on_wheels]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

Didn't you see the $ sign in front ? Thats in dollars.



That was a typo b_o_w. I pressed the shift when i typed 4 & got a dollar sign instead. It should be 4.2K for the alternator & 500 for labour = 4.7 K total.

got that. $ Would have been crazy

[SamirME01]

Hi All,

I Have a Esteem, Of recently met with an accident and the car went for a body repair and painting,

While taking it back from the garage i the battrey was discharged so the had to push and the car started ....Since then i have charged my battrey 3 times in 15 days time ...but the moment i charge it the next day it gets discharged .....

Checked with a battrey technician ...he cleaned all the carbon deposits and it was fine again...but the very next day , i amnot able to start it again ,,,,

Battrey fellow claims all fine with the Alternator , Battrey

I fail to understand what is the culprit

Few things i would like to highlight , there are some loose wires , as i mentioned earlier my car met with an accident my fog lights were damaged , and i didnt replace them....

Can some body help ....

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks.

[VeeTee]

Originally Posted by SamirME01

Hi All,

I Have a Esteem, Of recently met with an accident and the car went for a body repair and painting,


Can some body help ....

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks.

Samir,
As Diesel has quoted in the thread check the voltage at the battery terminals when the engine is running. The voltage should be ~ 13.5 V and above. This would help you figure out if the alternator is the culprit.

Have you considered your battery being damaged and not holding the charge? You could try using a spare battery for a few days to see if the charge holds. If the spare battery holds charge, your old battery is the problem. If the spare battery doesn't hold the charge then it is either the alternator or the wiring.

Good luck
Satish

[SamirME01]

Thanks Satish,

It seems one of my battrey cell is weak, Got it checked at a Exide dealer

How to make it sure he is not taking me for a ride

Can some one recommend me a good battrey, I am currently using Bosch Silver

If i go for a exchange i can fetch a new one at Rs 2700 with 36 months warranty

The Battrey guy told me 18+18 months , can't figure out why he split 36 months like that

Can somebody educate me on that

[trrk]

Hi,

Originally Posted by SamirME01

It seems one of my battrey cell is weak, Got it checked at a Exide dealer
How to make it sure he is not taking me for a ride

The specific gravity in that cell would be less than 1.25. If individual cell voltage can be measured it would be around 10 or less.

[VeeTee]

Samir,
I have Amaron on my Palio 1.2 nv. It has had no problems (It has been about a year). Check Amaron.

[shuvc]

The Baleno alternator is acting up. The diagnosis is ... When cold it is charging properly, but as the car is run and the engine heats up, the charging voltage keeps on dropping. The battery therefore loses charge. Now if the car is switched off, then there isn't enough juice to crank. So there's probably some rectifier problem.

A new alternator will cost 5 to 6k.

Is there any way to repair it? Are repairs reliable?

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by shuvc

The Baleno alternator is acting up. The diagnosis is ... When cold it is charging properly, but as the car is run and the engine heats up, the charging voltage keeps on dropping. The battery therefore loses charge. Now if the car is switched off, then there isn't enough juice to crank. So there's probably some rectifier problem.

A new alternator will cost 5 to 6k.

Is there any way to repair it? Are repairs reliable?

When you say voltage drops, what does it drop down to? Voltage dropping from 14.4V to 12.5 or 12.8V is normal as that's what happens when the battery is fully charged. If it drops below 12V you have a regulator/rectifier issue. Get it checked. If the car has clocked several tens of thousands of KMS you may want to get the alternator checked.

Repairs are reliable provided you use genuine spares and technicians are knowledgeable. A regulator replacement doesn't take much time. I think other Kolkata based members can advise further on recommended repair garages/technicians.

[shuvc]

Originally Posted by R2D2

When you say voltage drops, what does it drop down to? Voltage dropping from 14.4V to 12.5 or 12.8V is normal as that's what happens when the battery is fully charged. If it drops below 12V you have a regulator/rectifier issue. Get it checked. If the car has clocked several tens of thousands of KMS you may want to get the alternator checked.

It's like this.
- When the engine is cold and with some load (AC etc) it's charging at 14+
- As it heats up the voltage starts dropping to sub 12
- The battery gets drained and at crank it shows around 7-8 !! So surely, voltage is not dropping due to a battery getting charged.

This was simulated for sometime at the workshop. Initially they checked and said it's charging fine. I told them the symptom. They then started the engine, connected the multimeter and ran it for some time and confirmed that the voltage was dropping. Then the engine was switched off. They let it cool for a while. Repeated the whole procedure and result was the same.

It's probably the rectifier, since on the higher side the voltage seems to be regulated within 14-14.4.

I have asked them to get a new alternator. Since the car runs a lot of late and needs to be reliable. The odo reads 87K kms now in 6.5 years.

My worry is - could this be due to any other problem? Like wiring, belt etc.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by shuvc

It's like this.
- When the engine is cold and with some load (AC etc) it's charging at 14+
- As it heats up the voltage starts dropping to sub 12
- The battery gets drained and at crank it shows around 7-8 !! So surely, voltage is not dropping due to a battery getting charged.

This was simulated for sometime at the workshop. Initially they checked and said it's charging fine. I told them the symptom. They then started the engine, connected the multimeter and ran it for some time and confirmed that the voltage was dropping. Then the engine was switched off. They let it cool for a while. Repeated the whole procedure and result was the same.

It's probably the rectifier, since on the higher side the voltage seems to be regulated within 14-14.4.

I have asked them to get a new alternator. Since the car runs a lot of late and needs to be reliable. The odo reads 87K kms now in 6.5 years.

My worry is - could this be due to any other problem? Like wiring, belt etc.

If it drops to less than 12V then it merits a serious look-over.

I think you need to check the battery as well. How old is it? Has it been tested? A battery with an internal short will put a huge drain on the alt/rectifier.

Also check all the cables - +ve battery clamp --> +ve cable to alternator rectifier output post, -ve battery clamp, -ve cable and earthing on the chassis. There could be gunk or rust preventing good connection.

Yes, the belt could be another issue. But I assume it has been checked during regular service.

[shuvc]

Originally Posted by R2D2

If it drops to less than 12V then it merits a serious look-over.

I think you need to check the battery as well. How old is it? Has it been tested? A battery with an internal short will put a huge drain on the alt/rectifier.

Also check all the cables - +ve battery clamp --> +ve cable to alternator rectifier output post, -ve battery clamp, -ve cable and earthing on the chassis. There could be gunk or rust preventing good connection.

Yes, the belt could be another issue. But I assume it has been checked during regular service.

I suspected the battery first. Though it's just 2.5 years old. Amaron 38BL20. But that option was eliminated at MASS. They checked with another good battery. The result was the same.

Terminals are fine they said. Belt I presume should have been checked during routine service last month. But I will ask them to recheck when they fit the new alternator.

It'll take 3 days to arrive.

[Sutripta]

Originally Posted by shuvc

... When cold it is charging properly, but as the car is run and the engine heats up, the charging voltage keeps on dropping.

Can you walk us through the diagnosis procedure.
V measured at both alternator and battery terminals?
Variation with varying load?
Series ammeter connected? Readings taken?
Distinguishing between temperature and time.

Originally Posted by R2D2

Voltage dropping from 14.4V to 12.5 or 12.8V is normal as that's what happens when the battery is fully charged.

??

Regards
Sutripta

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

??

Rather cryptic response.

It's the battery float charge voltage.

[shuvc]

Sutripta, unfortunately I was not present when the diagnosis was bring done :-(

I mentioned what they told me. After round 1 they called me and said charging is ok, hence it's a battery problem. This was probably since the engine was cool. I insisted that the problem was when the car had run for some time. Then they rechecked with a different good battery.

They did say readings were taken both at the battery and alternator terminals. No specific temperatures were recorded but the car was idled, revved, with and without AC and headlights during the test.

With time the charging voltage dropped to below 12. This happened with both batteries.

After this they stitched off the engine and let it cool. Car was started after 30 of mins and once again initial charge under load was fine.

The other observation mentioned was .. Under no load condition, there was almost no charging, whereas under load it was low.