one for Nighthawk !!

[transitgeoff]

well i have been working on a 2001 mk6 90/350 that came in with the alternator not charging and the warning light on, well we fitted a brand new gen Ford alt and out it went, well not for long, next day light back on and another new gen Ford alt, out again,and next day BACK AGAIN well i told the fella after the first that he has probs and he said he took it to an auto leky who said duff alt, but surely not 3 duff alts, have you heard of this before?? i was seriously today thinking his van has fcuked 3 new alts HELP

[MrMPuk]

Are you getting these new genuine alternators from Fords themselves?

[transitgeoff]

of course, where else

[AndyG]

Could the battery be causing the trouble

Or, Is it the starter motor from cold causing the problem (As it is the next day )

OR, a faulty batch of alternators

Fit a second hand working one

[100ps_drw_hicube]

wouldnt suprise me if it were a dodgy batch i went thru 4 starters the other year 5th went on and no probs since

[davek]

Is the wirring ok to the 3 pin plug- other ford's have problems with water damage to plug/wires give each one a little pull they are normaly brake off a few cm's from the plug as you pull them-worth look dave

[transitgeoff]

also noticed that when its sitting in neutral ticking over the speedo is reading approx 10mph??

[Nighthawk]

If the speedo is reading at idle in neutral, you have a bad earth on the vehicle.

remove the Neg lead from the battery to the floor, clean the floor and the terminal, and make sure the fuse is OK

remove the lead from the chassis to the starter and clean the chassis and lead.

Those bits are free

Why are you condeming the alt?
The RWD uses a smart charge system, the engine control module acts as the regulator...if the 5A fuse fails the system goes down.

Some of the early ones had a nasty habit of chaffing the main lead between the Alt and the starter on the thermostat housing mounting bolt....could it be that it's grounded and your burning them out?

The damage to the 3 pin plug is also a possible.


I do hope you don't get the warranty claims thrown out for misdiagnosis Geoff.

[transitgeoff]

reviving this topic Brian i have a similar thing again, 51 plate 90t350 truck, came with rocker shaft snapped, rocker cover had been removed but then left since Nov 2006 so engine full of water well anyway that aside, in went the new lump connected up running fine but charging light on, well weve put 4 alternators on now and cant get the light to go out, even changed the engine loom as this looked smelly, took off the starter earth to the chassis leg and cleaned and refitted i notice you say the 5 amp fuse, where is this locatted not sure where to go next on this one

[ARTCARCOM]

hi dont know if this helps i was talking to a fitter from ford the other day and i was asking him about bumping hp up and was chating about faults and he said if your battery light comes on check a wire runs along the top of the engine just behind cover it usually wears and shorts out it was only talk but worth a look

[Nighthawk]

Hi Geoff

The fuse for the battery sensing is in the engine bay fuse box, i can't remember the number of it though and I don't have my work bits and bobs on this pc. check all the fuses and positions as you could have one missing etc.

A 5amp fuse should be in there,


The rocker shaft will have snapped due to a tensioner failure allowing valve / piston contact....wouldn't be surprised if the cam shaft upper bearing frame was cracked too.

Back to the topic.........


Have you checked the wiring to the starter?

it's easy to mis fit the wiring or leave a lead off.

[transitgeoff]

Cheers Brian, i will get back to it Monday, it melted our heads a bit Friday pretty sure the starter wiring is ok but will double check

[Nighthawk]

it's easy to get the wiring from the alternator on the wrong threaded terminal. and in a case like that when nothing is going right, it's often a simple mistake thats overlooked.

could well have been fitted to the solenoid terminal when the engine went in, then autopilot refitted it in the same place when you changed the loom.

I've seen it happen

[transitgeoff]

it's easy to get the wiring from the alternator on the wrong threaded terminal. and in a case like that when nothing is going right, it's often a simple mistake thats overlooked.

could well have been fitted to the solenoid terminal when the engine went in, then autopilot refitted it in the same place when you changed the loom.

I've seen it happen

well youve seen it again now spot on Brian, job done now, thanks

[Nighthawk]

I've said it once.....and i'll say it again


I could make money at this game

FMC technical charge a quid a minute for gems like this.

I have a couple of crappy tunes I could use as hold music to bump the bill up






Glad you sorted it Geoff