I went to the dealer yesterday because I had a coupon for some routine maintenance and was satisfied with the price and service. However,they did the routine safety check and said the battery light on the dash came on. I said no way because I'm really anal about watching the lights and gauges. They said it did came on and for an additional $90 they would check it out and said it's probably the alternator. They checked the battery and that was good. So I picked it up went to Autozone and on the way there turned every thing on and there was no light which came on. Autozone checked the alternator for free and they could not find a problem. Called the dealer and they said it was under hard acceleration when it came on. Took it for a spin and with very hard acceleration the light came on and when I backed off the light went off. Autozone said to bring it back before winter and have it rechecked. Good idea because it can be a little nippy in MN. So if I have to replace the alternator some time in the near future. Where would you go for a rebuilt alternator. I have not had good luck with NAPA alternators or starters so I would probably rule them out. I have O'Reilly's, Autozone and Advance auto near me. They all seem to be about the same price with the same warranty. If I have to replace the alternator I would like to replace it once and have it last a reasonable amount of time without having to change it out in a years time. The explorer has the 4.0 with 4 wheel drive. Thanks in advance for any input.
Alternator 2004 Ford Explorer?
- Thread starter kwijibo
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O'Reilly's, Autozone and Advance are all hit and miss for me. If the alternator is easy to access and you don't mind possibly changing it out 3 or 4 times until you get a decent one, then parts store alternators may be the way to go; otherwise, I would check for a Ford reman from a dealer or bring your alternator to and local independent rebuilder for a quote.
What about going to a scrap/salvage yard?
Why would they be test driving your car for routine maintenance, under hard acceleration no less? Something here doesn't pass the sniff test. Are you sure that isn't some normal indicator of poor fuel economy or something like that? Check the owners manual.
Same price and same warrantee I would get whatever is most convenient. But check Rockauto online also.
Same price and same warrantee I would get whatever is most convenient. But check Rockauto online also.
how did they know it came on in the first place they must have been beating it
If you only want to do it once I would just get a motorcraft and be done with it
I had a problem with a similar alternator the brushes were worn out. would randomly stop and start working.
ford wanted 500$ to replace with reman motorcraft
it takes about 15min to change it on a 2005 ranger so I just went with lifetime warranty generic.
If you can get it rebuilt locally thats the best option.
ford wanted 500$ to replace with reman motorcraft
it takes about 15min to change it on a 2005 ranger so I just went with lifetime warranty generic.
If you can get it rebuilt locally thats the best option.
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Thanks for the quick responses. A couple of you asked why they were doing a hard acceleration with it and I'm not sure. Was wondering that myself so I'll give them a call tomorrow if I get the chance. I just checked rock auto and all of the motorcraft rebuild alternators have only a one year warranty. But they have a new delco for slightly more with a life time warranty. May have to check that one out.
First of all what were they doing hot rodding your car!!!??? I would NEVER take my car back there again. Sounds like they were trying to break stuff so they can fix it.
This is kind of common with Ford trucks and panthers from what I've read, I've never had it happen. Another common problem is a slipping belt...coincidence?
If your belt is original I'd replace it with a Goodyear Gatorback, which is very popular with the 4.6 crowd. I had a belt on my 4.6 that would slip at startup when damp out, and also at high RPMs. The Gatorback fixed it for 4 or 5 years so far.
This is kind of common with Ford trucks and panthers from what I've read, I've never had it happen. Another common problem is a slipping belt...coincidence?
If your belt is original I'd replace it with a Goodyear Gatorback, which is very popular with the 4.6 crowd. I had a belt on my 4.6 that would slip at startup when damp out, and also at high RPMs. The Gatorback fixed it for 4 or 5 years so far.
If that has a dedicated belt (probably not), check belt tension and for glazing just to be sure no slippage when tromping on the accelerator/high rpm.
Drive it like THAT dealer does (like ya stole it) lol and see.
Or do they just do a few NASCAR laps now for routine maintenance/service?
I once saw a car behind a Safeway burning tires then skidding to a stop, back and forth a few times. It then pulled into a bay over at a service station in the same lot. As I walked by, it was one of the station workers. I wondered if it was a customer or his car.
Seen another (2 cars) burning rubber behind a tire place (I'll hold out on the name) and that one turned out to be 2 workers. I caught em as I went around to the back to have a smoke & coffee. I was there getting tires. Got the manager involved in that one. Turned out it wasn't the first time. Sure was a lot of rubber back there.
Drive it like THAT dealer does (like ya stole it) lol and see.
Or do they just do a few NASCAR laps now for routine maintenance/service?
I once saw a car behind a Safeway burning tires then skidding to a stop, back and forth a few times. It then pulled into a bay over at a service station in the same lot. As I walked by, it was one of the station workers. I wondered if it was a customer or his car.
Seen another (2 cars) burning rubber behind a tire place (I'll hold out on the name) and that one turned out to be 2 workers. I caught em as I went around to the back to have a smoke & coffee. I was there getting tires. Got the manager involved in that one. Turned out it wasn't the first time. Sure was a lot of rubber back there.
How many miles on this alternator?
I also suspect that you really only need alternator brushes.
I also suspect that you really only need alternator brushes.
1st suspect high RPM no charge- belt and tensioner.
Originally Posted By: kwijibo
I went to the dealer yesterday because I had a coupon for some routine maintenance and was satisfied with the price and service. However,they did the routine safety check and said the battery light on the dash came on. I said no way because I'm really anal about watching the lights and gauges. They said it did came on and for an additional $90 they would check it out and said it's probably the alternator. They checked the battery and that was good. So I picked it up went to Autozone and on the way there turned every thing on and there was no light which came on. Autozone checked the alternator for free and they could not find a problem. Called the dealer and they said it was under hard acceleration when it came on. Took it for a spin and with very hard acceleration the light came on and when I backed off the light went off. Autozone said to bring it back before winter and have it rechecked. Good idea because it can be a little nippy in MN. So if I have to replace the alternator some time in the near future. Where would you go for a rebuilt alternator. I have not had good luck with NAPA alternators or starters so I would probably rule them out. I have O'Reilly's, Autozone and Advance auto near me. They all seem to be about the same price with the same warranty. If I have to replace the alternator I would like to replace it once and have it last a reasonable amount of time without having to change it out in a years time. The explorer has the 4.0 with 4 wheel drive. Thanks in advance for any input.
Get a local rebuilder to check it out. Could be brushes or diode bridge. Have you checked belt?
The alternator pulley on my Mecruiser was a little rusty and pitted. I was sure the belt would take care of the rust. Instead the pulley sanded down the belt so it was narrower and dropped lower into the pulley grove making it even looser. I would sometimes get no charge when it was loose.
I went to the dealer yesterday because I had a coupon for some routine maintenance and was satisfied with the price and service. However,they did the routine safety check and said the battery light on the dash came on. I said no way because I'm really anal about watching the lights and gauges. They said it did came on and for an additional $90 they would check it out and said it's probably the alternator. They checked the battery and that was good. So I picked it up went to Autozone and on the way there turned every thing on and there was no light which came on. Autozone checked the alternator for free and they could not find a problem. Called the dealer and they said it was under hard acceleration when it came on. Took it for a spin and with very hard acceleration the light came on and when I backed off the light went off. Autozone said to bring it back before winter and have it rechecked. Good idea because it can be a little nippy in MN. So if I have to replace the alternator some time in the near future. Where would you go for a rebuilt alternator. I have not had good luck with NAPA alternators or starters so I would probably rule them out. I have O'Reilly's, Autozone and Advance auto near me. They all seem to be about the same price with the same warranty. If I have to replace the alternator I would like to replace it once and have it last a reasonable amount of time without having to change it out in a years time. The explorer has the 4.0 with 4 wheel drive. Thanks in advance for any input.
Get a local rebuilder to check it out. Could be brushes or diode bridge. Have you checked belt?
The alternator pulley on my Mecruiser was a little rusty and pitted. I was sure the belt would take care of the rust. Instead the pulley sanded down the belt so it was narrower and dropped lower into the pulley grove making it even looser. I would sometimes get no charge when it was loose.
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Ok, here is the deal, the dealer has read in a repair journal that over revving that model engine will cause the alternator light to go on. The cause is, hi rpm will cause the (well worn) brushes to float. Used to see the same condition back in the day with my 283/327 chevys, the ones that used the old large case alternators. Used it as a shift light (kind of), just about then it would through the belt.
I wonder how many othersuckers er customers the stealership has caught with that scam.
Wayne
I wonder how many other
Wayne
I called the dealer back and he said they were road testing the car after all the work was done to make sure everyone was OK with what they did and also as part of their safety check. After all the work was done is the key here. I dropped it off at 7:00 and by 9:00 I had a call about the light coming on. When I left the quick lane was filled three lanes and there were 3 other cars waiting. Mine was parked off to the side because I was just going to leave it for the day. So they had enough time by 9:00 to help these other customers and also to rotate tires, change oil,fuel and air filter and road test my truck. I originally set it up for the car to be picked up by 3:00 but decided to call at 11:30 to pick it up early over my lunch hour if it was ready and was told it was not. SO I picked it up at 3:00. With that said I normally receive a quality survey by email with in a week for any comments. Let's just say there will be a few comments made. The alternator is original and has over 98,500 miles on it. The belt was replaced with a Ford OEM belt at about 78,000. So sometime in the near future the alternator may have to be looked at but not by them. I found a local shop that will rebuild them, a couple of coworkers have gone there and were satisfied so that may be the route to go. Again, thanks for your help and comments.
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