Battery/Alternator Issue?

C

CDNsurf

New member
Hey,

Battery light randomly came on the dash earlier today on my truck.

Both the battery and alternator are just under 2 years old with ~ 50km (31k miles).

When the light came on I took it over to part source for them to do an on the truck load test. Everything but the charging system checked out, the results:


  • Engine off: ~12.2 V

  • Full Load: ~11.86 V

I decided to get out the muti-meter to try different points and I returned with similar results. I checked all fuses, cleaned up the battery connections (probably could still do a bit more as they did have some corrosion built up), the alternator connections as well seem fine. Not sure if there is short or something telling the alternator not to charge or the alternator is just shot?

I know I should be getting around the 13-14V with the engine on.

All signs point to the Alternator but was looking for any insight before I make a decision.

Thanks in advanced for any help its much appreciated.
 
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Alternator is bad. I'm 99% sure you installed an aftermarket reman. Your better off with used OEM from junk yard or eBay. Best option is OEM.
 
So first question, I read your battery and alternator and less/2 years old. Did that alternator come with a lifetime warranty? If so swap that out and do some DMM reads during the system running. One thing I use my ScangaugeII for is reading my charging system voltage since we don't have but a light in our cluster.

If you don't have a lifetime and your reading an alternator that output during normal idle, try revving the system for 45 second to a minute and take another reading. It should be above 14 volts dc (14.1 to 14.3) even under a normal load. If not I would replace with a lifetime alternator and check connections for corrosion and loose.

If you want, you could take reading of resistance between connections/ground. I would do that personally but I'm an ex electrician so this method is second nature and quick checking for myself. I realized I've probably rambled on way to much now, sorry :(
 
It ain't always gonna be above 14v. That's for sure. 13.7-14+v will be average. And yes I have good optima battery and alternator.
 
I will take a look at it all again tomorrow, thanks for the advise so far.

*I can confirm the alternator is a remanufactured Champion (Most likely the problem)... and the battery is a Bosch, both of these were installed when I imported my Hilux/4runner from Japan*
 
When you checked volts at the battery did it drop or stay constant with the car running? Test it again and turn on lights, wipers, radio, dome lights, the whole nine. It should drop within a few minutes and it should keep dropping till it stalls. If it's not doing that your alt is probably fine. The issue will be with a broken field wire or blown fuse. I know this because I had it happen on my van. Alt put out 11.8. I could drive for days and the van kept running. Replaced the alt and same diagnoses. The small 15 amp charging fuse was the first thing I checked. After about a week of chasing continuity I finally took the fuse box out if it;s location. Directly behind the fuse box that little black lamp(or field) wire was cracked and frayed. It still showed continuity with a volt meter but it didn't have enough connection to excite the alt. Check your fuses.
 
When my alternator went out, is went out slowly. The light would come on and off here and there. Finally after 500-600 miles it shit the bed and the light stayed on. The battery light means the alternator is not charging, it has nothing to do with your battery being bad or low.

Any alternator should have an output higher than 13 volts.
Sounds like a bad regulator on the alternator.

Good luck.
 
Alright, I had a chance to double check everything over again.

All fuses were good, grounds were tight and clean, cleaned up the battery terminals and made sure they were tight, tested the voltage on the alternator plug (reading battery voltage) and couldn't find any evidence of wire shortage/ wire damage.

Had to boost the truck today to get it started, it barely idled, had low power and wanted to stall out when stepping on the gas.

I'm 99.9% sure I narrowed it down to the alternator.

Next step is finding a new one, I know the 'auto part' stores alternators aren't the best, what other options do I have? Ideally I wanna get it up and running in the next few days. *EDIT: I should mention that I am in Canada, we have limited 4runners in my local junkyards and amazon/ebay didn't bring up much results*

Thanks for all the help so far:thumb3:
 
Last edited:
CDNsurf said:
Alright, I had a chance to double check everything over again.

All fuses were good, grounds were tight and clean, cleaned up the battery terminals and made sure they were tight, tested the voltage on the alternator plug (reading battery voltage) and couldn't find any evidence of wire shortage/ wire damage.

Had to boost the truck today to get it started, it barely idled, had low power and wanted to stall out when stepping on the gas.

I'm 99.9% sure I narrowed it down to the alternator.

Next step is finding a new one, I know the 'auto part' stores alternators aren't the best, what other options do I have? Ideally I wanna get it up and running in the next few days. *EDIT: I should mention that I am in Canada, we have limited 4runners in my local junkyards and amazon/ebay didn't bring up much results*

Thanks for all the help so far:thumb3:
Click to expand...

Sounds like your most affordable option is to just buy one at an auto parts store that gives lifetime warranties. A new OEM one is going to be expensive, especially for you Up North folks.
 
CDNsurf said:
Alright, I had a chance to double check everything over again.

All fuses were good, grounds were tight and clean, cleaned up the battery terminals and made sure they were tight, tested the voltage on the alternator plug (reading battery voltage) and couldn't find any evidence of wire shortage/ wire damage.

Had to boost the truck today to get it started, it barely idled, had low power and wanted to stall out when stepping on the gas.

I'm 99.9% sure I narrowed it down to the alternator.

Next step is finding a new one, I know the 'auto part' stores alternators aren't the best, what other options do I have? Ideally I wanna get it up and running in the next few days. *EDIT: I should mention that I am in Canada, we have limited 4runners in my local junkyards and amazon/ebay didn't bring up much results*

Thanks for all the help so far:thumb3:
Click to expand...

Your best option would be to find a local company that rebuilds them. You don't want a Mexico reman. You will go through this issue 1-2 years. Not worth the headache or pain.
 
mtbtim said:
Sounds like your most affordable option is to just buy one at an auto parts store that gives lifetime warranties. A new OEM one is going to be expensive, especially for you Up North folks.
Click to expand...

That is the route I will most likely be taking, this time I'll be giving Napa's reman version a try, I believe its the best economical choice. $250 Lifetime warranty, toyota wanted north of $400 for theirs and the others had poor reviews and were in the same price range as Napa's.

If I wasn't in need of the truck, I think I would have tracked down a reman Denso from the states. Of course I didn't have this issue with the truck when I was in Texas the other week :redbrick: haha

I'll update the situation once I get everything back together tomorrow.

Thanks for the help so far.

Note: I found this wiring diagram very helpful for troubleshooting the charging circuit if anyone else is having similar problems ---> http://tacoma.site40.net/4Runner_96...pdf/ewdsourc/2002/024runne/systemci/014cs.pdf
 
JayRolla said:
Your best option would be to find a local company that rebuilds them. You don't want a Mexico reman. You will go through this issue 1-2 years. Not worth the headache or pain.
Click to expand...

Listen to this man. Read his post again and take it to heart. Get yours rebuilt at least if you go the lifetime junk route. Do not give them the core from yours. You will regret it.

Glad you got it figured out too.
 
theesotericone said:
Listen to this man. Read his post again and take it to heart. Get yours rebuilt at least if you go the lifetime junk route. Do not give them the core from yours. You will regret it.

Glad you got it figured out too.
Click to expand...

I think you missed the post where the OP stated the one he has currently is a Champion and not the OEM one.
 
mtbtim said:
I think you missed the post where the OP stated the one he has currently is a Champion and not the OEM one.
Click to expand...

I read it yesterday and completely forgot about it today. 60+ hour weeks will do that to you. lol Thanks for the correction man. If that's the case pony up for a Denso or go to your local alt repair shop and see if they have one sitting on the shelf. Contrary to popular belief not all remans are the same. I've had a lot of really bad experiences with Oreilly's alts and starters. Ever put a brand new remanned alt in that's bad out of the box? Ever put a brand new remanned starter in that's bad out of the box? I have done both. Both where "lifetime" replacements from Oreilly's. Now I just save myself the headache and go with Denso or Bosch.
 
theesotericone said:
I read it yesterday and completely forgot about it today. 60+ hour weeks will do that to you. lol Thanks for the correction man. If that's the case pony up for a Denso or go to your local alt repair shop and see if they have one sitting on the shelf. Contrary to popular belief not all remans are the same. I've had a lot of really bad experiences with Oreilly's alts and starters. Ever put a brand new remanned alt in that's bad out of the box? Ever put a brand new remanned starter in that's bad out of the box? I have done both. Both where "lifetime" replacements from Oreilly's. Now I just save myself the headache and go with Denso or Bosch.
Click to expand...

I agree with you. I have experienced and heard the problems with auto part stores remanufactured parts. If it were my rig, I'd personally pony up the funds for a quality replacement. But, not everyone would want to drop that kind of coin and our brothers up North get hammered on prices. I wonder what it costs to ship to Canada? OP, maybe a friend in the states could buy one for you from a seller like Camelback and ship it to you for a savings.
 
I went through 4 lifetime remans in one year on my talon. Pulled s junkyard alt with 200k miles. It lasted 3 years. Parted car out. Alt say for a year and then have it to my brother who had a reman that failed. It's been in his car for about 2 years now. Has near 300k miles on that OEM alt. Still kicking.
 
JayRolla said:
Your best option would be to find a local company that rebuilds them. You don't want a Mexico reman. You will go through this issue 1-2 years. Not worth the headache or pain.
Click to expand...

That's been my experience as well. These remanned parts they're selling these days are just junk. They clean them up, and only replace the things that are broke, and then put them back out on the market.

Local shops have always been good for me.
 
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