2009 Elantra lost power while driving

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So my son called me Thursday night and he had the wife's Elantra out to visit a friend. Car has about 30K miles, sits alot. Original battery. While he was driving, after having started it twice that night, he lost all power. He's not sure which lights did what on the display, he was trying to get off of the road safely. Auto transmission. He got into a driveway and called. I bought a new battery and went to get him and we installed the battery. Started right up and we drive home about 30 miles. Now the battery reads 11.49 volts (11.78 yesterday before I started it.) At the battery when running read at 11.78 volts. With the car off 0 ohms between negative post and alternator body. With power on but not running 9.48 volts at power lead at alternator. Should this 9.48 volts be higher?

Do you think it's safe to assume the car needs an alternator?
 
The car is still under Hyunda powertrain warranty so I would bring it to the dealership and let them worry about it. Alternator is part of the powertrain.
 
Alternator time. If working properly, you should be seeing 14+ volts at the battery. Likely your old battery is still good?
 
Originally Posted by schuylkill
…. At the battery when running read at 11.78 volts....
That's too low. When running should read in the ~13.5-14.5 range. Sounds a like a bad alternator.
 
These vehicles have smart charging systems so it's not uncommon to see 12.3 volts up to 14.7 volts at various times. That said your voltage is too low and sounds like a defective alternator. I would fully charge the battery out of the vehicle (or with the positive lead disconnected from the vehicle). Test the voltage after allowing it to rest for 1/2 hour after charging with the charger disconnected. Then install or reattach the battery lead and take for a drive with all the accessories on for about 1/2 hour but stay close to home. If the voltage is low again when you return the alternator is toast.

If the vehicle is still under warranty then I would just fully charge the battery and take it to Hyundai. Explain that you charged the battery to get it there but that the voltage keeps going low and the vehicle is dying, so they don't think it's operating normally when you get there.
 
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Thanks guys I'll check on the warranty. Then I'll decide if it's worth the hassle and time and inconvenience dealing with the dealership. I think it's the alt too.
 
I'm not sure alternator is covered.. that is probably under the basic warranty but not powertrain.
 
Chrysler replaced my alternator that died in my Journey while I was in Florida. I had less than that mileage on mine.
 
I hope you can get it covered, but based upon their website, it doesn't look promising. The powertrain is:

Engine: (Cylinder block/head and all internal parts, manifolds, timing gears, timing chain, timing cover, gaskets and seals, oil pump, water pump, flywheel, oil
pan assembly, rocker cover and engine mounts, and turbocharger.)

Transmission / Transaxle and Drivetrain: (Case and all internal parts; axle shafts (front/rear); constant velocity joints; front/rear hub bearings; propeller shafts; seals and gaskets; torque
converter and converter housing; transfer case for AWD models; and rear differential for Santa Fe, Tucson, Veracruz AWD, Genesis and Equus models)
 
Originally Posted by wdn
The car is still under Hyunda powertrain warranty so I would bring it to the dealership and let them worry about it. Alternator is part of the powertrain.

Powertrain warranty covers things that oil touches.

Alternators are definitely not lubricated by engine oil.
 
Alternator is not under powertrain. Falls under bumper to bumper, which is 6years/60,000K for Hyundai. Alternators on these elantras are cheap and easy to do , much less hassle than taking to the dealership.
 
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