i have an 89 civic si. with stock d16a6. anyways. i was leaving the shop today and the battery light came on so i was like ok this is weird. i went to advance to get one of those free battery checks.he said battery was putting out 13.xx volts and he said that he would check my alternator when he checked it was only putting out 8.xx amps when it is supposed to be closer to 50. The alternator he said was good but the machine said to check wire (output or input) cant remember. what is the easiest way to go about fixing this.

thanks for any answers.

 

IF the battery light came on, the odds are you have a weak connection somewhere on the alternator which would be either the pigtail or the other wire that is held on by a nut on the alternator or you have a bad alternator. Check all your connections and if they seem straight, take the alternator off and let advance or autozone bench test it.

 

thanks will do! would it be safe if i still drive the car to work until the weekend?
just keep the battery charged when i come per say?
thanks!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by b-clubspecII &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks will do! would it be safe if i still drive the car to work until the weekend?
just keep the battery charged when i come per say?
thanks!</TD></TR></TABLE>

i had to drive my car for 2 weeks without an alternator even in the car. just carried a spare battery and battery charger everywhere i went, but man that sucked.

 

damn. that sucks! man. ill have to drive it i have no choice! ill just charge it every chance i get.

bump for more good posts

 

Chances are it's your alternator about to go out. Bring it to a shop that knows what they are doing and have them test the output of it. Most alternator rebuild places around here will test it for free if you bring it to them out of the car.

 

i talked to my neighbor and he said it could possibly be the regulator that is failing.. not the alternator... but we'll see

 

the regulator is inside the alternator. yes, the voltage regulator could very well be the problem. in order to replace the regulator, you must replace the alternator.

its a "charge warning light", NOT a "battery light". you should be getting 14.5V at the battery while the engine is running. if the "technician" only measured 13V, then he needed to check the VOLTAGE at the alternator as well, NOT the amperage.

it should be 14.5V at the alternator AND battery. if one is 14.5V and the other is lower, then you got resistance (wiring) issues. if both are below 14.5V, then you need a new alternator

 

thanks tyson.


but this morning i redlined my car and now the light is no longer on.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by b-clubspecII &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks tyson.


but this morning i redlined my car and now the light is no longer on.</TD></TR></TABLE>

It'll be back.

 

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

It'll be back.</TD></TR></TABLE>

right you are! haha it came back and this time it was at night so as soon as i left my friends driveway my car DIED! It'll be getting replaced tomorrow.
It is kinda crowded in there! Anyone have any helpful tips that I should know about before I change it?

 

didnt i tell you the trick is to bang on the alternator to get it to charge again...

tehres tons of posts on how to change an alternator. the right way is whatever way works for you. youre supposed to unbolt the alt, and botom bracket and slide it over the axle. point the pulley downward and pull with the buttom out. slides out like a puzzle, but thats how its supposed to be. for those who cant figure it out (i couldnt the first time) unbolt the master cylinder and push the hoses out of the way and pull it form up top.

ive done it enough times, i can swap alternators from the bottom in less than 30 minutes total, from the first pump of the jack to the dropping the car back down. i see no reason to mess with the brakes when youre working on electrical stuff.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tyson &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> i see no reason to mess with the brakes when youre working on electrical stuff.</TD></TR></TABLE>

The only reason I have to pull it out from the top is if its a swapped engine, but thats why though.

A quick way to see if the alternator is doing its job is, put a voltmeter to the battery, the voltage should jump up to 14. If it stays at 12, its not charging.

There are a few other test I posted before, but its late and I don't feel like searching

 

Thanks everyone! But i didnt take the axle out or remove any of the brake stuff. did it all in about an hour (including going to advanced for the new one and stopping at mc donalds for 2 breakfast burritos!