Help Needed - R33 Alternator

[paulr33]

where are you located and can i come n get it tonight ?

[paulr33]

alternator located, should have within the hour

[paulr33]

got the new alternator and dropped off at the mechanics.

its the same unit basically from a series 2 33 although it has a different part # no and its rated at 90a instead of 80a so thats a bonus also.

[paulr33]

thanks to all those who helped in assisting me with the hunt, always good to have a helpful group of people to assit, specially matt who organised one for me and basically delievered it to me

thanks heaps guys

love you all

[Mavric]

no worries dude any time...

[Ruffels]

thats shocking paul... i would have expected a 2 hour fix not several days

getting slower in your old age

[paulr33]

ok good news is car works and runs. bad news is battery warning light is on and still running on 14.9 15.0 15.1 volts (the old was about 15.5volts).

the battery light was never on until now, so im thinking new battery

altho car starts and runs fine with alternator plugged in and it started first sho too after 4 days of not running so not sure what the deal is. hmmm

i fitted a stock series 2 one but it was rated at 90a instead of 80a

[paulr33]

ok after some more driving here's some of the wierd stuff ive noticed

boost control is slightly less accurate, it seems to spike lots more

active lsd seems to work a stack better, but still failed once

voltage hovers around 14.9 with lights on, lights off 15.1 (never higher)

voltage reports from hand controller, rsm and turbo timer all seem about the same

battery light stays permentantly on

manifold pressure seems to vary everytime you tap the throttle at idle.

usually it used to always be around -450 or -480mmhg now it seems to go between -300ish and -420ish each time u tap the throttle, like it bounces between those values each time, boost guage and boost controller show the same thing, -380mmhg in digital and the marker on the guage varies each time

car runs fine

idles fine

stereo fine etc

when u start the car with altneratore unplugged battery light is off and runs fine, around 12.8 volts. havent measured output from alternator with mulimeter yet.

will book into an auto elec on monday as we are out of ideas

thanks for everyone's help much appreciated

[mr_r33gtst]

Mine stuffed up as well a few months ago.

GOt it reconditioned at COmet for $190.

Telephone is 93645877. It is a Battery shop called COmet specialising in batteries, and alternators

[Mavric]

Paul wouldn’t you expect the voltage reading to be around the 15's while it was charging the battery??.. I mean i think there is always a certain amount of power drawn from the batt to keep the alt working as far as im lead to believe (could be wrong) so maybe it's just the current charging the batt. at least it's allot more consistent now than what your old one was as it was deff reading too high you would imagine..

[ylwgtr2]

cant be too hard....just back probe the wires and make sure there all going where they should go .....

[paulr33]

ive had an auto elec look at the alternator that came off my car.

it runs on the bench fine and outputs 14 volts correctly so something else must be wrong with my car. getting it looked at in the morning

[blind_elk]

Paul wouldn’t you expect the voltage reading to be around the 15's while it was charging the battery??..

No, it should be regulated to around 13.8V, regardless of how full or empty the battery was. It might produce more current, but will always produce the same (regulated) voltage.

I mean i think there is always a certain amount of power drawn from the batt to keep the alt working as far as im lead to believe (could be wrong) so maybe it's just the current charging the batt. at least it's allot more consistent now than what your old one was as it was deff reading too high you would imagine..

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Only time the alternator will draw current from the battery is prior to startup. Once the engine is running, then the alternator supplies all the necessary current to run the car and re-charge the battery.

[paulr33]

problem solved. there was a missing fuse in the boot (go figure) which forms part of the alternator and regulator circuit. so the alternator was running at full capacity, hence the high voltage. only $88 to diagnose and test my old alternator and diag the missing fuse and replace it

happy happy joy joy

so i now have a spare alternator

thanks to all those who offered help and support. you have all been an awesome resource

[Mavric]

Glad to hear it's all fixed paul...

Shame you didnt know about the fuse in the first place.... guess we all learn the hard way...

[paulr33]

remembering that its been like that for over a year too

how odd and i havent been playing in the boot either

[Mavric]

yea guess it was just one of those things... could have been dust related or anything you will prob never know thats the worst thing....

[paulr33]

nah the fuse was physically missing so it was removed by someone or left out when was someone was fixing something or vice versa. very odd i must say. and the fuse is in the boot too which is really awkward to get to

[Mavric]

ohhh ok i thought you meant it had fried out or something... very strange... and problem is as nothing is written in english it's not as thought you know whats what to check if something is missing anyway...

[paulr33]

picked up car today. running at 13.8 volts and steady. idle seems spot on (used to fluctuate every now and then by itself sometimes). boost control is perfect now and doesn't vary at all. somtimes the evc would have troubles maintaining the right pressure and sometimes do its override cut out, once every few weeks it would do that. a-lsd seems to be much much better but has still failed once. everything else seems hunky dory. glad its all fixed. have a spare (tested) alternator to suit r33 if anyone needs one