Alternator repair - worth it?

s_b

hello hugheskevi ,your first port of call should be the garage that supplied and fitted the alternator and battery,these items are still under warranty and im sure they would want to sort the situation out for you
the price for the alternator would suggest a reconditioned unit probably supplied from their local factor
things break dont worry

hugheskevi

Ok so you have not yet had the alternator diagnosed yet. What are the symptoms? Are they the same as before?

Syptoms are flat battery, which is same as before. Enough power to show dash lights, not enough power to operate locks. I assume the problem to be the alternator as it failed previously and the battery is less than a year old.

Previous problem occurred rapidly - car was fine, left parked for 10 minutes after a 30 minute drive, then didn't have any power to turn starter motor at all. Replaced battery, all was fine for a week then car had no power at all when I tried to use it. This time car was last used on a Monday with no problem, then had no power when I tried to use it on Friday.

How often and how far do you drive the car each day/week?

The car does a small number of very short trips for most of the year (ie typical London use), and then a once or twice a year does a lot of mileage in a short period (around 2,000 miles over a couple of weeks).

The car had just done a trip of about 400 miles the previous weekend, then had MoT and oil change (part of the routine servicing schedule) on Monday, which was the last time it was driven before battery was flat on Friday.

It could be that your battery now needs replacing

The battery was new in January, and charged (and held charge) when I charged it using a battery charger.

AdrianC

hugheskevi wrote: »

Syptoms are flat battery, which is same as before. Enough power to show dash lights, not enough power to operate locks. I assume the problem to be the alternator as it failed previously and the battery is less than a year old.

So you don't actually know the alternator is faulty...?

When you (jump-?)start the car, does the charge warning light function as normal? Does it come on with the key, then go off with the engine started? If so, then the battery is probably being charged, and either failing to hold that charge or something is draining charge.

Do you have or can you borrow a multimeter, or even a simple voltmeter?

konark

Voltage across the battery with leads disconnected ashould be about 12.8V, with engine running and leads attached voltage should be around 14V if alternator is good. Also if alternator is bad the battery light on dashboard will stay on when engine is running.

A NEW Micra alternator is £85 on ebay!

[Deleted User]

There was a time when Joe Lucas would test them for free if you take it off the car, or charge 15mins labour if left on the car. I bought a new rectifier for about a fiver and fitted it myself.

fred246

On my last car the alternator wasn't working well in 2006. I removed it one evening. I put it in a carrier bag and got a list of auto electrical places from the yellow pages. I gave them to my wife (a lady of leisure) and told her to get a repair or replacement. She found a little workshop where a man put a new set of carbon brushes in and then tested it on his rig while she waited. She was charged £10. I refitted it the next evening and it worked without any further problems till I sold the car in March 2015.

droopsnoot

Because of the time it's been standing, this could indicate a current drain of some sort - a faulty alarm or leaving the radio on could take enough out of the battery in four days that would make it hard to start. I would say (though I have no legal knowledge) that if the invoice doesn't say it's a reconditioned part with a limited warranty, then it should imply that the alternator and battery you had fitted are new parts and still in warranty. To my mind, if the garage supplied and fitted, then any labour involved in dealing with those parts (if they are faulty) would be their responsibility too. But there are some tests to be done before you can assume it's the same issue, and I would be surprised if a new alternator has failed again after such a short time.

AdrianC

VERY few "new" alternators are totally new-new. Most are recon. Both the Bosch-branded ones I bought last year was a recon, a Bosch recon. No exchange needed, either. That doesn't mean they're "worse" than new-new, though. Just that the actual castings rarely give problems, so why NOT reuse and rebuild them?

Even one from a Nissan main dealer will likely have been reconditioned.

droopsnoot

Yes - the only real difference is the warranty period (and not always that) and the price.

Mistral001

This might be a too obvious a question, but have you checked whether the belt driving the alternator is tight enough? If it is not it will slip and the alternator will not it any power even if there is nothing wrong with said alternator. If the belt needs tightening, it can be done in about 5 minutes. I do not know what a garage would charge to check the tension on the belt and tighten it, but I would have thought less than £25.


PS I often think some garages will say that you need a reconditioned alternator even though it is the fan belt or a lose connection or some other problem that can be fixed in five minutes. Or is that just too cynical.