So, this never used to be a thing. My wife's current and previous car both had alternator pulley failures in less than 4 years 45K. Both of these were Bosch alternators with the sprag clutch in the pulley failing.
Her current BMW just had the replacement alternator replaced because a bearing went out in the alternator and it screeched and seized - taking out the belt. It's not a big deal as the original alternator was replaced under the new car warranty and her dealership warrants any replaced parts for life. Last time the pulley went out they replaced the alternator, the belt and the idler pulley. Now at 85K all those items are covered due to the lifetime warranty from the original alternator replacement. But two mechanical alternator failures in one '08 car with less than 90K on it? Evenly spaced at around 40K per alternator? She still has the OE brake pads with a good bit of meat left!
If you include her audi which also went 40K on an alternator, she has had 3 new alternators each live ~40K miles on cars that were new in the last 10 years.
I like the idea of the clutched pulley, but it would appear a failure point has been added. Her previous car was an '04 Audi, her current car is an '08 BMW (which has really been low maintenance compared to the horror stories and the Audi).
Previously my wife has had alternators fail in other new vehicles. The ones that come to mind were her Oldsmobile and 2 Nissans ago.
I have never had an alternator fail in one of my vehicles. I live in Florida, so the A/C is always on. My road is dangerous, so I always have the headlights on and I typically have an oversize stereo in whatever vehicle I drive. As my daughter says, she knows the radio is up too loud when it makes the car wiggle.
I typically put 200K on a car without any alternator issues, my wife has rarely made it to 80K without an alternator failure. She drives very sedately. Her commute to work is a perfect 70-80MPH, 20 miles each way with a few miles of 45mph at the end. I drive in a lower gear usually, zing to redline whenever possible and my ride to work is 25 miles of highway with multiple stop lights and 2 actual stops (where I have to turn off and restart the car) each way.
Is it just luck? Is it because she spends all her time at low RPM and I am always 3K+ (more airflow?) Is it car design? Is it Bosch? To my logic, I should be wearing out alternators and she should never have any issue. In both of my cars the alternators are low and behind the radiator. In her current and previous cars the alternators are up pretty high and behind the radiator. Maybe mine get cooler air?
To be fair, I have spent more money on brakes in the last 10 years of my car than what it would cost me to replace her alternator with OE parts twice, but I just don't understand why, in this day and age, alternators fail. I can understand when highly stressed, complex engines and transmissions, abused suspension components and even power window mechanisms fail. But alternators should last hundreds of K miles - as should water pumps.
I'm just amazed that this is a thing. Anyway, I just wanted to rant and don't know where else to do it.
Her current BMW just had the replacement alternator replaced because a bearing went out in the alternator and it screeched and seized - taking out the belt. It's not a big deal as the original alternator was replaced under the new car warranty and her dealership warrants any replaced parts for life. Last time the pulley went out they replaced the alternator, the belt and the idler pulley. Now at 85K all those items are covered due to the lifetime warranty from the original alternator replacement. But two mechanical alternator failures in one '08 car with less than 90K on it? Evenly spaced at around 40K per alternator? She still has the OE brake pads with a good bit of meat left!
If you include her audi which also went 40K on an alternator, she has had 3 new alternators each live ~40K miles on cars that were new in the last 10 years.
I like the idea of the clutched pulley, but it would appear a failure point has been added. Her previous car was an '04 Audi, her current car is an '08 BMW (which has really been low maintenance compared to the horror stories and the Audi).
Previously my wife has had alternators fail in other new vehicles. The ones that come to mind were her Oldsmobile and 2 Nissans ago.
I have never had an alternator fail in one of my vehicles. I live in Florida, so the A/C is always on. My road is dangerous, so I always have the headlights on and I typically have an oversize stereo in whatever vehicle I drive. As my daughter says, she knows the radio is up too loud when it makes the car wiggle.
I typically put 200K on a car without any alternator issues, my wife has rarely made it to 80K without an alternator failure. She drives very sedately. Her commute to work is a perfect 70-80MPH, 20 miles each way with a few miles of 45mph at the end. I drive in a lower gear usually, zing to redline whenever possible and my ride to work is 25 miles of highway with multiple stop lights and 2 actual stops (where I have to turn off and restart the car) each way.
Is it just luck? Is it because she spends all her time at low RPM and I am always 3K+ (more airflow?) Is it car design? Is it Bosch? To my logic, I should be wearing out alternators and she should never have any issue. In both of my cars the alternators are low and behind the radiator. In her current and previous cars the alternators are up pretty high and behind the radiator. Maybe mine get cooler air?
To be fair, I have spent more money on brakes in the last 10 years of my car than what it would cost me to replace her alternator with OE parts twice, but I just don't understand why, in this day and age, alternators fail. I can understand when highly stressed, complex engines and transmissions, abused suspension components and even power window mechanisms fail. But alternators should last hundreds of K miles - as should water pumps.
I'm just amazed that this is a thing. Anyway, I just wanted to rant and don't know where else to do it.