Hey all,

I have an '04 xfire with 60k miles that keeps blowing the alternator, or at least, something is making the battery charge indicator turn on. The dealer (Kirby Jeep) has replaced the alternator 4 times now, I have to assume they either don't know what they're doing or something else is wrong that they can't find.

Does anyone have input on this? It's fast becoming a nightmare to deal with this as I drive 60 miles to work and rental cars ain't cheap. Also, I could do with pointers to a new mechanic as I no longer want to deal with Kirby.

Hope someone knows this problem and/or has good pointers before I go insane and broke

Thx
J

 

I think you should supply more details, time frame, time between problems, days, weeks? Battery problems? new battery?
Is the regulator going or is it the alternator itself? I guess they did not have time to tell you that as they were too busy counting your money.

 

As 100/80 has said, some more detail would help.

On the surface of it, I'd say that it's not the alternator at all. Sounds to me like some "technician" see the "charge" light on and reasons: "The alternator is the device that charges - so it must be bad."

What, other than the light coming on, is happening with the car?

 

I was just about to type in the aforementioned request

About 1.5 years ago (https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...ce-needed.html) my alternator bearings went, or rather, got diagnosed as the sound had been going on for a few months. At the same time the battery was replaced. Sound issue went away but after a few weeks the battery charge light came on. Returned car to dealer and apparently the alternator was out again so they replaced under warranty. Move forward a few months and the same thing happens again. Had argument with dealer, told them to fix it or hear from my attorney and surprisingly they did. Move forward a few more months and the same thing happens again. More arguing but they apparently replaced the alternator and again, the problem went away.

Present day, after a month of driving to LA from Ojai (60 miles) the battery light came on again. I have no desire to go and jump through hoops anymore with the local dealer. Obviously the analogy of doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results doesn't apply to them.

I have a fair amount of tools here, my dad was a mechanic but I'm not although I have no problem delving in with appropriate instructions.

 

almost forgot, I did notice the ESP light come on a day prior to alternator going bad, I've also seen it on at other times over the last year or so too. It almost always goes off when a stop/start is done. The dealer told me to come and get it checked if it stayed on, as it's intermittent I've not been able to sync it with being close (or having time) to get to the dealer.

 

Replace both the battery and the alternator at the same time this next time, and have all the wiring checked for loose, damaged bits.

BC.

 

This is just a SWAG from an old mechanic, but I've seen this when there is excessive amperage draw from either an electrical short (bare wire to ground) or a faulty accessory that is shorted to ground. Has anyone done an amperage test on the car while the vehicle is running? A sun electrical tester can tell if this is happening. Most independent technicians can do this quickly which avoids the high dealer costs. Sometimes the technician starts off by looking for something more complicated and forgets to do the basics first.

Let us know the ultimate answer and good luck.

Xfirepop

 

Bingo. Load test and knowing the "running" voltage and current would tell a lot.