OK, so these dang trucks are really starting to get on my nerves!!!! Our '04 is down because the u-joints in the front drive shaft need replaced. OK, no problem, I'll do that when I get back from vacation.

So, this morning, my wife brings me to work in our '99. 10 mile drive. I noticed that right before she dropped me off, the battery light was on and my UltraGauge was not on. I thought, "well, that's weird. I wonder what's up with that? Well, maybe she can get home and it'll be fine". Well, that didn't happen!! She gets halfway home and all the lights are on. The "M" & "S" lights are flashing, the 3 amigos are going off and dinging constantly, and at a stop sign, the truck is losing power on take-off. It gets worse as she goes on. Eventually the dash quits working all together, lights, gauges, speedo, RPM's, everything.

Please tell me I need a new battery?! The engine fired up fine when I started it and let it warm up this morning before she brought me. No other indications of anything being wrong. I tried searching for my issues on here, but it's just too time consuming to go through everything.

Now, both our D2's are down and they are our only transportation. We are leaving on vacation tonight (getting a rental to drive) and will be coming back on Wednesday. I didn't want to come home to crap like this!!

 

Most likely alternator is no longer supplying charge to the battery, so the battery light stays on, volts drop until you reach the perfomance low input limit for various electrical items, and they drop off line. That is the "reserve rating" you hear about on the battery. If you have a small battery charger you can charge it back up and drive for short distance. Not saying your battery may also be tired, and you might have loose battery, ground, fuse box, or alternator terminals. Or blown fuse link from alternator if you have been wenching under hood and made a spark (one reason they tell you to disconnect battery in the shop manual). Nominal volts from the alternator are 13.8 - 14.4 at idle. Ultra Gauge can be programmed to display volts.

 

So, how do I know if my alternator is bad? Or, if it's just a bad battery? I mean, I know I can get the battery tested, but I'm at work and wife is stuck at home with no transportation. Calling my parents in a few to see if they can help at least get the battery replaced. Then I'll need to check the alternator somehow.

 

If truck cranks up, but battery light stays on, alternator is suspect. That would apply even if truck jumped off. BTW, don't be locking the truck with a bad battery or one weak from no charge. When you try to jump truck off, if hood alarm switch is not depressed you could trigger engine immobilization (alarm thinks you are the sneaky thief it was designed to resist).

I have one of these little $20 gadgets from Walmart. You plug it in the cigar lighter and get a reading. If truck is running but volts are below 13.2 the alternator is suspect. I also have a $5/month charge from State Farm that provides roadside assistance.

You could put in a brand new battery and drive truck for 20 - 30 minutes if battery light stays on. Some guys have charged up battery every night, driven to work, charged it again, driven home; until weather, shop space, pay check, bonus (remember those?) allow replacement. Can't go as far with head lights, wipers, or heat running (more amps).

Alternators come in a variety of choices - new (dealer or on line) for big $$$, used (maybe a junkyard you pass on vacation, this will only take a few minutes honey...), rebuilt locally, pre-owned from dismantler, pre-owned from fleaBay, and the worst - remanufactured and sold by auto parts store. The mass rebuilders use very cheap electrical parts from our "banker" (AKA Bejing). If you get one of these be sure you carry the warranty paperwork with you, it is not uncommon to have several failures.

 

OK. So a reliable place to get a new alternator? Rovahfarm, British Pacific/Atlantic, Roverlandparts? Or a pre-owned version?

Rovahfarm and BA/BP is about $300 for an alternator.
Roverlandparts.com is $225.

 

Before you go buy something, get your battery charged up, but it back in the truck and go to your local parts store, they will do a free charging system test to verify if it is the battery or the alternator and go from there.
If it is the alternator, you can buy a good used one from Bill Grant or a new one from British Parts of Utah. Don't buy a rebuilt one, their failure rate is pretty high.

 

We'll definitely do that first Mike. My step-dad is going to meet my wife this afternoon to pull the battery and have it checked, possibly replaced. Then I'll have them take it to AutoZone to get the system checked out. I was just asking in advance on where to get an alternator. That way I can order it while on vacation, then have it arrive at home when I get home so I can get to work. Think I'll go ahead and replace the belt while I'm at it... it needs it.

 

Alright, had the battery and alternator tested at the local AutoZone parts store. Battery tested good, alternator failed. So, just was curious what they offered... Duralast remanufactured replacement for $251 with a $125 core charge. I told them no thanks... just ordered a new replacement from BPUtah. he is overnighting the shipment to me. I should have it by the end of the day tomorrow. Then I'll get it in with a new belt and should be good to go.

 

I just went through the exact same scenario. I also ordered my replacement from BPUtah. Took about hour to replace. Not a bad job at all. The RAVE says to remove the viscous fan, but if you're careful you can easily get the alternator in and out without removing it. Although the bottom bolt that secures the alternator to the bracket was a pain! 90% of my time was spent trying to get that one in. Best of luck and hope you don't have to spend as much time as I did on that bottom bolt!

 

mattmo78, you made a wise choice. The rebuilt ones by mass rebuilders have a bad habit of failing again. A rebuild by a local guy is usually good. A used one may be cheaper from a boneyard, but you don't know how much life is left in it. The brushes wear down in all of them, even if you are just idling with no lights on. So an alternator will run until failed, be it bearings, brushes, or electronics. Won't last forever.