unrealtrip said:
You should be at least at 13.5volts, most likely your alternator. If you can pull it you can have the unit bench tested for free at most Kragen shops, Pep Boys/whatever.
Search up my posts on
that subject. Consider them authoritative - I wasted three and a half years behind the counter at various Kragens...
While that bench will give you voltage generated, it does not tell you the
current generated - which means you could be getting 14VDC @ .1A. Oops - that's not enough to run a cellphone.
If you're going to get the thing tested, look up a rebuilder in your area, and take it there. You may end up paying a couple bucks for the test, but their benches damn sure
do test current output (and voltage, and ripple check, and...) and you're going to get a much better idea of what you're looking at.
And, don't buy from a "chain" store, either. They pay about 15-20 cents on the dollar, and buy them by the Conex box from overseas. They offer the "Lifetime Warranty" as a gamble - they're betting you won't need it, you're betting you will. You will, eventually (and I'm not talking years here - I'm talking 4-6 months, on average.)
Short form - take your alternator to a rebuilder to test. If it's bad, buy from that rebuilder - you're dealing with the man who does the work, and you probably won't need his warranty. You may end up paying more, but it's worth it (I've been dealing with my rebuilder - and sending him business - for so long that I pay him less than I would at Kragen's - and I get to watch him test the unit before I take it. Solid!)
One of these days, I want to find out who was in charge of purchasing the rewinds I used to have to take back, whack him over the head with a case of frozen tractor parts, and leave him in the meat freezer...
5-90
