Anyone know anything about cars?

[zaneyard]

1999 Mercury Mystique 2.5L V6

As of now brand new:
Engine
Starter
Flywheel
Battery


Problem:
Headlights dim
Music cuts out
Dash lights dim
My RMP indicator goes down to zero, but the engine still runs
Gas indicator was going down as well

Other info:
Measured voltage level on the battery, it's fine, as it should be.
The dumbfucks at mercury decided to shove a V6 into a car that should fit a V4, so they decided the best place to put the alternator is near the passenger side wheel. And because of that I don't wanna deal with taking shit apart unless I figure out I need to.


All this stuff was happening with the battery charged.
No indicator lights turn on in the dash to tell me that there is a problem with the alternator.
I don't know what else there is.

If anyone could please help me troubleshoot this I would be very grateful. The car still starts, so it's not immediate, but I don't have the cash to take this thing to a mechanic again, so I wish to do this myself.

[HeK]

It really sounds like your alternator, or possibly corroded battery/alternator leads.

Start the car, with your lights, radio and fan off, connect a multimeter to your battery.

The voltage should be around 13-14. Turn on accessories like your lights, fan, and radio. The voltage should NOT drop.
Have someone press on the accelerator and get the engine speed up to 3500-4000, see if the measured voltage goes up.

If the voltage fluctuates with engine speed, you likely had a bad regulator in your alternator, and the alternator needs to be rebuilt or replaced.
If the voltage fluctuates with load (lights, fan, etc) you likely have worn bushings in your alternator, and the alternator needs to be rebuilt or replaced.

Ten years is about then age when a 'decent' (ala, not GM) alternator dies. Despite the work required, your best option is to remove the alternator and bring it to AutoZone or a similar shop that performs free alternator tests.

[zaneyard]

thanks hek, i'll try that tomorrow sometime.

[HeK]

If you do attempt to attack the replacement on your own, I do suggest a factory service manual over a Haynes manual if possible.
You should be able to find a PDF of one online if you dig around related forums.

Good luck.

[zaneyard]

couldn't find anything free really
I'll talk to my dad tomorrow to see if he would want to help me do this
thanks for the help

[zaneyard]

there should be a voltage read when the car is off right?
cause I had to take off the battery connector things to get a read. After I placed my multimeter leads directly on the battery ... things... I got a read of around 15 volts. don't remember exact, but it seemed right.
but this was only after i disconnected the battery from the (fuck it's late and I can't remember words) connector things.
dunno if i was just touching the wrong places on the terminal  ???

[HeK]

The battery itself should provide a voltage of around 12.8-13.4ish. Your battery will vary, but it should be greater then 11 and not more then 16 volts (unless you have some weird 24 volt car and are European).

Once the engine is running, the alternator provides operational current for the vehicle.  The battery acts as a very low-speed capacitor and even-out the spikes and drops caused by RPM changes and turn on/off accessories. However, do NOT disconnect your battery once the car is started. The spikes from the alternator have the potential to damage the ECU and other sensitive electronics like your radio.

[zaneyard]

The battery itself should provide a voltage of around 12.8-13.4ish. Your battery will vary, but it should be greater then 11 and not more then 16 volts (unless you have some weird 24 volt car and are European).

Once the engine is running, the alternator provides operational current for the vehicle.  The battery acts as a very low-speed capacitor and even-out the spikes and drops caused by RPM changes and turn on/off accessories. However, do NOT disconnect your battery once the car is started. The spikes from the alternator have the potential to damage the ECU and other sensitive electronics like your radio.

this was all when the engine was off
pretty sure it was 13 or 14 volts

i must have been pressing my leads against the wrong thing, i couldn't get it to read anything until i put them directly on the battery terminals.

again, thanks man, i'll take a look at this stuff tomorrow after work
fuck, i work in the morning and i can't get to sleep for another 3 hours.

[zaneyard]

so it pretty much died on my way to work today, and on the way home it stalled out and it won't start now
it's parked on the corner somewhere
i'm going to call up the local auto place and see if i can get a rebuilt alternator
gonna pull out the battery and charge it at home to get the damn car home
hopefully it will all be done tomorrow before work
good thing I'm still 150 dollars in the hole because of the fucking insurance for this thing.


all i need to do is replace the fucking transmission and I'll have a completely rebuilt car. too bad I didn't do any of it myself and saved myself some money.

[HeK]

gonna pull out the battery and charge it at home to get the damn car home

I have done similar, but I used three batteries: One under the hood, and two in the passenger compartment. I had jumper cables that led to the primary battery, connecting one of the secondaries in parallel. When my lights started to dim (as I was forced to do this at night), I'd lean over and swap to the second battery.


Unrelated, but AAA/CAA is totally worth it.