car diagnosis?

helpimcrap · 25 Oct 2007 at 17:32

hey...

right... car is a:

2.0l 8v vauxhall calibra on an l plate 1993.

problem:
car stalls/stops after a run of maybe 10 miles. wont start that and battery reads 11.6v which is basically pretty damned flat.

charge it up to 12.3-12.4v and it starts fine, but then goes the same way...

also the battery light stays on.

im guessing alternator as i have swapped batteries for mine and it still has the light on. with the car running with either battery it only reads what the battery was before i started the car instead of the 13.5-14.5v it should read.

anything else it could be before i start stripping it out? i've checked the fan belt, it's not squealing, seems in ok nick and doesnt seem to be loose.

dalin80 · 25 Oct 2007 at 18:05

yeah looks like the alternator is kaput.

check the earth straps for a bad connection but it is the weather for fried alternators.

BigglesPiP · 25 Oct 2007 at 19:53

What voltage do you get across the battery terminals with the engine running?

helpimcrap · 31 Oct 2007 at 23:05

was getting 12.6ish with fully charged battery.

ive swapped the alternator now and its all good... 14.7 across the battery when car is running.

another problem...

ABS light comes on. i had to take the wheel off to get to alternator bolt (stupid vauxhall design) but ive checked the driveshaft sprocket and wheel sensor and both seem ok (1.5k ohms on the sensor).

i started the car up with the wheel off and apparently it can cause ABS setup problems if you do this.

anyway,.,, ran the car for a few miles to reset the ABS gently building the speed up until i was getting to 90-100mph and brakes were fine with no ABS cut in and ABS ligth gone out. nailed it off the lights to get some speed up and bang....

top hose connection on the rad had sheared off. cue water dumped and temp running at 100C on the way home. nursed it home without it going into the red and it starts ok now...

bloody thing. ive had to bodge the rad so we shall see how long it lasts.....