Bad Alternator?

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MoparDart68

MoparDart68

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Started hearing a new noise from my engine about a week ago (sound was intermittent, didn't always make the noise). Sounded kind of like a coffee grinder running in my engine bay. Noise was definitely coming from the right side of the engine (from in car perspective). I noticed the alternator belt was slightly loose, so I tightened it; the sound actually got worse and became more consistent . Today, I finally had some time to take a look at what is going on. I wanted to remove the alternator belt to see if the sound would go away, this way, I could narrow down the noise as something that is external and not inside the engine. Well, went to start the car, nothing--battery is completely dead. Tried to hook up my battery charger, but it would not charge. Battery is 6 years old btw.

I'm thinking I have a bad alternator, and possibly a bad battery now. I'm going to head down to autozone to have my battery checked, then have my alternator tested.

Do the symptoms I described above fit with having a bad alternator, if so, where do you recommend finding a replacement? I checked autozone, but all of the alternators listed are re-manufactured or premium reman, what's the difference between re-manufactured and premium reman? Thanks

1968 Dodge Dart 270
273, 2bbl engine
 
after going through about 5 auto zone alts i had an old one rebuilt at a local electrician for about same price, never had another problem with alts. i would say try napa or get it rebuilt
 
MoparDart68 said:
Started hearing a new noise from my engine about a week ago (sound was intermittent, didn't always make the noise). Sounded kind of like a coffee grinder running in my engine bay. Noise was definitely coming from the right side of the engine (from in car perspective). I noticed the alternator belt was slightly loose, so I tightened it; the sound actually got worse and became more consistent . Today, I finally had some time to take a look at what is going on. I wanted to remove the alternator belt to see if the sound would go away, this way, I could narrow down the noise as something that is external and not inside the engine. Well, went to start the car, nothing--battery is completely dead. Tried to hook up my battery charger, but it would not charge. Battery is 6 years old btw.

I'm thinking I have a bad alternator, and possibly a bad battery now. I'm going to head down to autozone to have my battery checked, then have my alternator tested.

Do the symptoms I described above fit with having a bad alternator, if so, where do you recommend finding a replacement? I checked autozone, but all of the alternators listed are re-manufactured or premium reman, what's the difference between re-manufactured and premium reman? Thanks

1968 Dodge Dart 270
273, 2bbl engine
Click to expand...
buy a 15 dollar tester and test every thing yourself, on the car with it running. it is WAY easier than taking everything off, and you can check other areas with the car off as well. plus you can check your grounds and your voltage regulator ETC ETC. trust me i just went through it myself.
 
if you DO have them check your stuff, make sure they SHOW you what its doing and dont let them sell you something you dont need AND have them SHOW you on their tester that your NEW part is good.
 
thos idiots don't know what they are looking at; they were told; this clip here, that clip there, and they have to look it up.

Local alt guy, that is all he does for a living.
 
I actually work in the auto parts retail business and I, too recommend going to a dedicated alternator guy. The alternator was probably seizing thereby draining the battery. After 6 years I would replace the battery just for being so old. 3-5 years average on a traditional battery.
 
Thanks for the advice all. I should mention that for the past several months, the cranking power seemed to be getting lower. I wish I had checked the volts on my battery before it died, oh well. I last drove the car on Friday night, seemed to drive fine. I had the heater, headlights, and wipers going. The alt guage seemed to be charging a bit more than normal, but I figured that's because I was running almost everything at once. Thanks again for the help, I'll update this thread once I figure out whats going on.

I'll look through the yellow pages and try and find a local auto electrical specialist.
 
If the battery is that old, replace it, end of story

If "something" is making noise "up there" you should be able to spin the water pump, alternator, etc by hand to see. Excessive play in the water pump is a clue, as is seepage from the weep hole on the bottom of the pump shaft.

The alternator, get your head in there where you can listen, turn by hand. Feel for roughess in the bearings and spin it, listen for noise

You used to be able to buy bearings and brushes and go through an alternator yourself, but you need access to the special pulley puller needed. Not worth the trouble.


"Rebuilt" parts are really really getting to be a crap shoot. WHATEVER you do, buy one for a 70/ later. If you keep your old style (69/ earlier) regulator, you can ground either of the brush holders with a short wire, and use your regulator, but if you do this, you'll be all set when/ if you decide to convert to a 70/ later regulator. One more wire is all that is needed.

PLEASE after you get done, make the checks I posted in this thread below, to make sure all is well:

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=174456
 
Update:

Bad battery. Tested the battery at home, was reading .6 volts. Then took the battery down to autozone, .55 volts. Replaced the battery, turns out it had a 7 year warranty, so they took 7 dollars off the new one (nice!). Hooked it up at home, started it up and no more noise. Drove down to autozone again and had them test my charging system, everything is normal. The guy at autozone said that a noisy alternator can be caused by a very low battery (basically the alternator is working overtime to maintain a charge). I didn't know that...

Thanks for the input all.
 
MoparDart68 said:
Update:

Bad battery. Tested the battery at home, was reading .6 volts. Then took the battery down to autozone, .55 volts. Replaced the battery, turns out it had a 7 year warranty, so they took 7 dollars off the new one (nice!). Hooked it up at home, started it up and no more noise. Drove down to autozone again and had them test my charging system, everything is normal. The guy at autozone said that a noisy alternator can be caused by a very low battery (basically the alternator is working overtime to maintain a charge). I didn't know that...

Thanks for the input all.
Click to expand...

Yup, and some of this "modern ****" you can RUIN an alternator trying to charge up a dead battery --example, you run down a good battery by accidently leaving something on all night. You jumper the car and run it, using the alternator to charge it back up. You can "kill" a good alternator that way.
 
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