mikeycivic

Ok I have a 2000 civic si. I have been having issues with the alternator. Meaning that I have been through 3 alternators, including the original OEM one and none of them will put out enough volts to keep my battery charged. The test done on the first alternator said it was bad so it was replaced with a autozone special. Well that was put on and the problem persists, meaning battery dies after about 10-15 minutes of driving and car dies. So i got the battery charged and took it back to the shop and the volts coming out of the alt. were only around 12.1. I took the alt. back and autozone tested it and said it was good. A new different alt. had been put in my car at this point. Guess what, same thing. The alt isnt putting enough volts out. A ground was added and I believe it went up to 12.5 volts,but still not enough to sustain a constant charge. Does ANYONE with some know how and knowledge have ANY idea as what it might be or what to check? My mechanic is stumped, I am stumped, friends are stumped so I'm hoping someone in the lovely HT world of brains has a clue so I can get my car to the Va. meet this weekend

gsxr1k05

anything added to the car like sterio equipment or something that would draw from the alternator more than normal? is the return wire from the altenator to the batter good? i.e not corroded or broken? that would cause the battery to not charge.

Former User

Is the battery possibly the problem? Might the battery cables be damaged/corroded? Is the battery ground wire tightly connected and making good contact with the chassis?

mikeycivic

stereo was installed, turbo installed, ecu, and conversion harness. The car has been started and + terminal removed from battery and alt is still only pushing out 12.5 ish volts so the draw is not from the the battery.

grandtheftlunchbox

when testing your alternator you're not supposed to remove the + terminal from the battery. leave it on there, otherwise it won't be a complete circuit. my suggestion: take it to a shop, or somewhere that has a VAT-40 tester, and see how many amps are being drawn from the battery under normal driving conditions. if they are normal, i would go through and make sure all your grounds are correct, and double check that the battery is in good shape. you'd be surprised... faulty batteries can do some WEIRD things. don't go to autozone, the majority of them don't know what they're talking about.

mikeycivic

you can in fact disconnect the battery. If the alt is still only putting out 12.5 volts with the battery disconnected then the draw IS NOT from the battery. I dont think the issue is a draw. Its within the the connections of the alt and starter. The grounds are fine and the car is at a shop. Please read the OP before posting.

JSPECSIR

have you tried the stock ecu ? maybe there is a problem with your ecu or conversion harness not telling the alternator to put out 14v. the output of the alt. is dependent on the ecu and the eld.
and your not supposed to pull the terminal on a computer controlled car while its running. it can cause a voltage spike when the load of the battery is removed from the circuit causing damage to the electronics in the car.

mikeycivic

no but that is a good idea

grandtheftlunchbox

damn... i guess thats what i get for reading a little too fast. my bad buddy.

mikeycivic

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by grandtheftlunchbox &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">damn... i guess thats what i get for reading a little too fast. my bad buddy.</TD></TR></TABLE>

mikeycivic

ender214

do you have under drive pullys on it.

mikeycivic

no

Luserkid

Sounds like a grounding issue, especially if the alt tested good. Take off the alt brackets and sand them down good. Some people paint them so if you did that strip them. The brackets are the grounding source to the alt.

mikeycivic

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Luserkid &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Sounds like a grounding issue, especially if the alt tested good. Take off the alt brackets and sand them down good. Some people paint them so if you did that strip them. The brackets are the grounding source to the alt. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Yes I have heard this and this will be the next step

boostedblkef

iTrader: (1)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mikeycivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> My mechanic is stumped, I am stumped, friends are stumped so I'm hoping someone in the lovely HT world of brains has a clue so I can get my car to the Va. meet this weekend </TD></TR></TABLE>

i doubt he's stumped just thinking carefully so he doesent just bill out for un needed things

mikeycivic

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by boostedblkef &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

i doubt he's stumped just thinking carefully so he doesn't just bill out for un needed things </TD></TR></TABLE>

Now thats a smart [freak]ing mechanic right thur ^^^^, we wouldnt want that now would we

boostedblkef

iTrader: (1)

lol

CBR

Check the wiring loom that runs underneath the intake.

With the car on the hoist, tell you mechanic to look at the wiring loom that runs near the intake support brace. I'll bet that the wiring has rubbed into the intake brace, shorting your alternator field wire to ground. Usually, it's not just the alt. wires that rub, check and fix the wires.

Also, I'm assuming your mechanic has access to vehicle wiring diagrams? If the problem is not at the harness that runs underneath the intake, then your mechanic will have to backprobe the alternator connector and wiggle the wiring loom, chances are, there's a short somewhere. The tricky part is finding it!

If I helped, you owe me $10.

mikeycivic

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CBR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Check the wiring loom that runs underneath the intake.

With the car on the hoist, tell you mechanic to look at the wiring loom that runs near the intake support brace. I'll bet that the wiring has rubbed into the intake brace, shorting your alternator field wire to ground. Usually, it's not just the alt. wires that rub, check and fix the wires.

Also, I'm assuming your mechanic has access to vehicle wiring diagrams? If the problem is not at the harness that runs underneath the intake, then your mechanic will have to backprobe the alternator connector and wiggle the wiring loom, chances are, there's a short somewhere. The tricky part is finding it!

If I helped, you owe me $10. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Ill let him know and if you are right Ill send him the bill

boostedblkef

iTrader: (1)

this just cost you 2 dollars for me reading this lol

boostedblkef

iTrader: (1)

this just cost you 2 dollars for me reading this lol

HondamanXxX

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CBR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
Also, I'm assuming your mechanic has access to vehicle wiring diagrams? If the problem is not at the harness that runs underneath the intake, then your mechanic will have to backprobe the alternator connector and wiggle the wiring loom, chances are, there's a short somewhere. The tricky part is finding it!

If I helped, you owe me $10. </TD></TR></TABLE>

I'd send him money right now if I were you. Also, check the voltage on the battery. Yes, I read that it was charged but that ALWAYS doesn't cure it. It could still go bad. It needs to be tested. It's worth a shot but like everyone posted, there must be a short somewhere or ground issue. If there alternator is getting power then check the ground and that will complete the circuit. Your mechanic needs a new job, IMO.

GL, keep us updated.

mikeycivic

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by HondamanXxX &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I'd send him money right now if I were you. Also, check the voltage on the battery. Yes, I read that it was charged but that ALWAYS doesn't cure it. It could still go bad. It needs to be tested. It's worth a shot but like everyone posted, there must be a short somewhere or ground issue. If there alternator is getting power then check the ground and that will complete the circuit. Your mechanic needs a new job, IMO.

GL, keep us updated. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Great here we go, I def. dont need a new mechanic. He hasnt done EVERYTHING yet to find out what the issue is. I am sort of an impatient person and if I can pick a bunch of brains at once and ween out the idiotic ones, I seem to think that will help resolve the problem quicker. T... if you want to, go right ahead.

slowB20ej8

not to thread jack but the altenator bracket is also used as a ground for the altenator...i am having a similar problem in my 96 ex but i also kepp blown mt alt fuse could my brakcet have somthing to do with that....