lol Car Audio forum just not needed???
- Thread starter xraidedloc831
- Start date
car forum is a better idea. i posted in here once about building a system and my question went unanswered for like 3 weeks then the thread got deleted... lol
i hope theres some kind of mechanics im having issues with mounting my alternator and it might mean either a very very large shop repair bill more than what the cars worth or junking the car... i need help anywhere i can get it
i hope theres some kind of mechanics im having issues with mounting my alternator and it might mean either a very very large shop repair bill more than what the cars worth or junking the car... i need help anywhere i can get it
A car forum in general seems like it might draw a lot more people. I am always down to answer questions about cars and car audio even though I am still learning a lot myself I always try and make sure I know what I am talking about when I offer help. You cold always post up automotive articles and pictures of peoples cars or systems on top of just looking for help.
so its a 1985 cadillac deville 4.1l v8 gas
this is what happened - both lowbeams went out, and then suddenly my check light battery went bright red about an hour later, signaling the death of my alternator.
the alternator was verified to have a bad voltage regulator. I rebuilt the alternator with a new voltage regulator, however they gave me a 14v replacement voltage regulator and the original one was 12v.
i have a brand new battery and the positive-alternator to positive-battery connection has been upgraded to 4awg wiring with some nice ring terminal connections that you could hook to the ceiling and swing from. the old wire was 8awg and was frayed, and possibly shorted out the alternator voltage regulator and my headlight switch and or shorted out the lamps themselves. ok thats the original problem, the nightmare scenario is this
theres supposed to be 3 alternator mounts right, primary for the long 6 inch bolt secondary for like a 3 inch bolt. these are solid and essentially part of the block. and a tertiary for a small bolt, which was not original to the car and had broken off, eliminating the third point of support altogether. the secondary connection is off by about 3/8ths of an inch, so you were only able to have the primary mount bolted in and the tertiary fabricated mount bolted in, which broke, leaving the primary mount only = very bad vibration which probably destroyed the alternator. i thought my only option was to fabricate a new tertiary mount and have it welded to the block, which would have been a super pain in the ass or take it to the shop which would have cost me more than the car was worth. finally though i discovered the secondary mount had a spacer tube or some shit glued in there, i chiseled it out and hammered it out of there, and the extra 1/8ths inch i gained allowed the clearance needed to simultaneously mount the primary and secondary bolts, which seemed to pull the alternator up and to the right, giving me the 3/8ths clearance i needed and fitting it snugly and secure with no vibration. nightmare scenario ended, but noowww
i still have the issue of the dead alternator. is it possible its working only not correctly because the 12v voltage regulator got replaced wtih a 14v? or maybe i did it wrong and need it properly rebuilt at a wrecking yard. once i get the alternator up and running im back to the issue of the dead headlights.
my lowbeams dont work, only the parking lights will come on, but when i turn on my high beams the low beams light up. is this because the lamps have different filaments for when you have them switched between low and high? if thats the case its the headlight switch, if not it might just be the bulbs. the lamps are less than a week old, with my vehicle you replace the lamp and not just the bulbs so i didnt get oil or dirt on them and they didnt burn out prematurely cause of that. the headlamp wiring harness is fine i checked it all out
this is what happened - both lowbeams went out, and then suddenly my check light battery went bright red about an hour later, signaling the death of my alternator.
the alternator was verified to have a bad voltage regulator. I rebuilt the alternator with a new voltage regulator, however they gave me a 14v replacement voltage regulator and the original one was 12v.
i have a brand new battery and the positive-alternator to positive-battery connection has been upgraded to 4awg wiring with some nice ring terminal connections that you could hook to the ceiling and swing from. the old wire was 8awg and was frayed, and possibly shorted out the alternator voltage regulator and my headlight switch and or shorted out the lamps themselves. ok thats the original problem, the nightmare scenario is this
theres supposed to be 3 alternator mounts right, primary for the long 6 inch bolt secondary for like a 3 inch bolt. these are solid and essentially part of the block. and a tertiary for a small bolt, which was not original to the car and had broken off, eliminating the third point of support altogether. the secondary connection is off by about 3/8ths of an inch, so you were only able to have the primary mount bolted in and the tertiary fabricated mount bolted in, which broke, leaving the primary mount only = very bad vibration which probably destroyed the alternator. i thought my only option was to fabricate a new tertiary mount and have it welded to the block, which would have been a super pain in the ass or take it to the shop which would have cost me more than the car was worth. finally though i discovered the secondary mount had a spacer tube or some shit glued in there, i chiseled it out and hammered it out of there, and the extra 1/8ths inch i gained allowed the clearance needed to simultaneously mount the primary and secondary bolts, which seemed to pull the alternator up and to the right, giving me the 3/8ths clearance i needed and fitting it snugly and secure with no vibration. nightmare scenario ended, but noowww
i still have the issue of the dead alternator. is it possible its working only not correctly because the 12v voltage regulator got replaced wtih a 14v? or maybe i did it wrong and need it properly rebuilt at a wrecking yard. once i get the alternator up and running im back to the issue of the dead headlights.
my lowbeams dont work, only the parking lights will come on, but when i turn on my high beams the low beams light up. is this because the lamps have different filaments for when you have them switched between low and high? if thats the case its the headlight switch, if not it might just be the bulbs. the lamps are less than a week old, with my vehicle you replace the lamp and not just the bulbs so i didnt get oil or dirt on them and they didnt burn out prematurely cause of that. the headlamp wiring harness is fine i checked it all out
thanks for the help! i got a new alternator in there, and my charging leads have been upgraded. the bad alt. was on warranty so i got it replaced no extra charges. now i just have to test if my headlights are bad if so replace the bulbs if not replace the headlight switch
i think im about to buy a high performance alternator and upgrade all of my charging leads and grounds with 1/0 wiring... lol i think i developed a new hobby... too bad car audio is so fuckin expensive
i think im about to buy a high performance alternator and upgrade all of my charging leads and grounds with 1/0 wiring... lol i think i developed a new hobby... too bad car audio is so fuckin expensive
so my cars weird i dont have fuses for headlights, and the bulbs checked out ok, so i guess its the headlight switch if that means its a different circuit or fuse included in it, only i couldnt find it
so i wired up my headlights to a toggle switch and hooked them to my battery, now i just flip the on switch like im turning on the lights on in a room and my headlights come on... lol fuckin ghetto as fuck but itll work for now
so i wired up my headlights to a toggle switch and hooked them to my battery, now i just flip the on switch like im turning on the lights on in a room and my headlights come on... lol fuckin ghetto as fuck but itll work for now