Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by sparksie »

Hi
There's no reason not to change the brushes, apart from restricted access for the soldering iron.
Clean the old solder away properly and use flux when applying the new solder.
Often the soldering is poorly executed and the joint overheats, leading to failure.
If it's done properly (remember access is difficult!), there's no reason it won't last.
If you want to do a proper test, with guaranteed no output from the alternator, go for a run with the reg out.
I have to say, I can't imagine doing it your way is easier than taking out the alt and working on a bench, though I don't think I've ever played with a 1.8, so I'm open to correction.
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by LFY »

The reason I didn't change brushes and bought a second hand voltage regulator instead is that one alternator repairman in my area advised me not to change the brushes of my original voltage regulator.
He told me if you change its brushes, it will work 2 or 3 days and will stop working again.
He said I will regret changing brushes and it is better to replace the whole voltage regulator.
That's why I'm confused! Someone encourages me to change the brushes while the other one warns me against doing it!
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by LFY »

I removed the faulty voltage regulator and found someone who changed the brushes of my original voltage regulator.


This is my original voltage regulator:

Image



The new brushes installed on it:

Image


I fitted my voltage regulator with new brushes on the car and put everything back into place (Intake manifold, throttle body, fuel rail, etc)

I was ready to start the car with new brushes!

I started the engine but the battery seemed to be weak and didn't have enough juice to turn the starter motor but the engine started up. The battery warning light was still on and I checked the battery voltage with the engine running and it was 9.1 Volts! So, the alternator wouldn't charge the battery!

I turned off the engine and decided to jump start it. I used my father's car for this purpose.
I jump started my car and let it idle for 2 minutes (With my father's car engine off). The voltage was increased from 9.1V to about 12V but reduced gradually to about 11.89V. Then I revved the engine a bit and let off the throttle. About 1 minute later, voltage increased to 14.3V! The alternator started working and was charging the battery! The battery warning light disappeared!

I took the car for a spin to see what will happen. Everything was fine and the engine behavior was perfectly normal. After about 30 minutes of driving, I pulled over to check the voltage and it was still 14.3V! I revved the engine to make sure the voltage regulator is working properly and the voltage didn't go higher than 14.3V regardless of RPM! It prevented over-charging! It seemed the voltage regulator was doing its job!

I came back home and hooked up my PSA ACTIA code reader to check if there were any faults and there were no faults found:


Image


What do you think now?
Why the alternator didn't work during the first two or three minutes?
Do you think the problem was solved?

I turned off and on the engine several times to make sure the alternator is working and the voltage was 14.3V, no problem.
Last edited by LFY on 04 Dec 2018, 10:32, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by Paul-R »

Images are not showing for me.

Can I suggest you upload the images here rather than linking somewhere.
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by LFY »

Can I suggest you upload the images here rather than linking somewhere.
You can see the images now!
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by GiveMeABreak »

Please upload images directly as links to other sites that use a log in may not display here properly all the time.
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by LFY »

Please upload images directly as links to other sites that use a log in may not display here properly all the time.
I uploaded them again.
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by white exec »

Images now showing ok.

Re: the charging issue, I wonder whether the new brushes needed to bed in just a little for the alternator to output properly. 14.3v is fine; 14.4 is textbook.

Another thought - if the battery was down on charge when you tried to first start it, it's just possible that the low battery voltage was dragging down the alternator output voltage, and took a few minutes to rise. Maybe.

Would be worth checking (cleaning) the small connections to the alternator, as if it isn't reading the battery voltage correctly, it's output could either rise or dip.

As said much earlier, also check that the main battery connections (including the main cables from alternator and starter motor) are good. If the alternator is sensing the battery voltage via its main output cable, and that connection isn't good, again it can mis-read the state of the battery (a poor connection will cause the alternator to think battery voltage is higher than it really is, and cut back its output). If in doubt, just renew both battery connectors with some decent brass ones to be on the safe side. (You may have covered this already, so apologies if so.)

Looking better, though!
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by GiveMeABreak »

LFY wrote: 04 Dec 2018, 10:33
Please upload images directly as links to other sites that use a log in may not display here properly all the time.
I uploaded them again.
You haven't uploaded them - they are still linked. Go to the full editor, then attachments and then browse phone / pc for image and then place in your post wherever you want. It just saves dead links in the future if the external source goes down or offline.
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by LFY »

Re: the charging issue, I wonder whether the new brushes needed to bed in just a little for the alternator to output properly. 14.3v is fine; 14.4 is textbook.
At first it was charging with the voltage of about 14.42V but after 30 minutes of driving it reduced to 14.3V and stayed there.
Would be worth checking (cleaning) the small connections to the alternator, as if it isn't reading the battery voltage correctly, it's output could either rise or dip.
The connections are neat and clean. The battery poles are clean too.

I attached the images:
Attachments
2.jpg
1.jpg
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by GiveMeABreak »

14.3V is normal for charging, that’s what mine shows shortly after starting engine. I have one of these, that is very useful for monitoring the charge:
8E0B26A3-F771-4DDD-A347-1EDC1A81CE2A.jpeg
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by myglaren »

^ I just bought another one, first one was a bit long and I smashed it to smithereens reaching over to the rear footwell.
New one won't work in the front socket but fine in the centre one. About three quid on eBay
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by GiveMeABreak »

It’s probably knackered the underlying socket Steve. They do new one for £45 inclusive from Citroen that includes both socket and lighter: Irem 3 Steve.
576DBFD1-5AF0-4D85-A315-944CAF5994AC.jpeg
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Re: Weird electrical problem ruined my car!

Post by myglaren »

The satnav works in that socket so will keep it as it is.

It is really only a check - last time I was out in the car I'd bunged it in the front socket and it was stuck there until yesterday but did notice that analogue gauge seemed to be reading a bit higher than usual.
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