Alternator went south :(

[diels1]

Looks like my terminator is heading to the dealership on monday for an alt. replacement under warranty :nonono:

I noticed my gauges were getting dimmer and dimmer tonight along with my headlights. I started to fool around with the dimmer and the radio turned off all of the sudden. The ABS light turned on and the traction control turned off while I was trying to figure out what was going on.

I was able to limp it home under her own power as she was starting to misfire at upper RPM's (> 2500).

Oh well, it could be much worse but I'm not lookin' forward to having my car left in other's hands after reading some stories as of late :dw:

 

[NasteeNate]

This has been a growing problem lately, people are trying different pulley sizes because some are having new ones and them dieing like 3-6 months later. One theory that is out there is that the diodes in the alternator are frying up from extreme heat since its buried on the driver side of the motor. Terminator owners will chime in, see if they can give some insight on this.

 

[01cobravortech]

Wow your symptoms are identical to mine. Unfortunately I just ordered my alternator today and won't get it until next Thurs. I'm replacing the battery tomorrow and I'm hoping I can make it to next Friday when I plan on replacing the alternator. From now on I'm replacing my alternator every 35k. I got 42.5k out of my stocker. Pathetic.

 

[About2bite]

It's just an alternator, i'd be surprised if they could mess something up by just changing that. At least you're under warranty I had to change mine the other day, and it is a pain to get to.

How many miles does your Cobra have?

 

[01cobravortech]

This has been a growing problem lately, people are trying different pulley sizes because some are having new ones and them dieing like 3-6 months later. One theory that is out there is that the diodes in the alternator are frying up from extreme heat since its buried on the driver side of the motor. Terminator owners will chime in, see if they can give some insight on this.

There is a lot of speculation about this being the cause but there are some open track guys who have their car see extreme heat and yet their alternator has lasted a great many miles more. ShelbyGuy is a prime example. His went past 60k and he open tracks the crap out of his Cobra.

 

[01cobravortech]

I was able to limp it home under her own power as she was starting to misfire at upper RPM's (> 2500).

Thats definitely good news for me because my car started to die while idling at a light. My car runs well above 2000rpms. Glad you mentioned that bit of information.

 

[NasteeNate]

There is a lot of speculation about this being the cause but there are some open track guys who have their car see extreme heat and yet their alternator has lasted a great many miles more. ShelbyGuy is a prime example. His went past 60k and he open tracks the crap out of his Cobra.

Interesting, maybe the alternator is being over spun from the supercharger? who knows....

 

[About2bite]

Interesting, maybe the alternator is being over spun from the supercharger? who knows....

Supercharger? How would that happen, the blower is not driving anything. Maybe the alt pulley is too small for even the stock lower? I mean how many problems have these cars had from the factory, one more problem to add to the list wouldn't surprise me.

 

[99COBRA2881]

I dont even own a terminator and I know about this problem. I plan to use one of these on my N/A race car.

http://www.lightningforceperformanc...lley-ring-200304-mustang-svt-cobra-p-526.html

 

[About2bite]

^ The larger alt pulley is designed to work with a lager lower, running that off the stock lower may not allow your alt to put out the necessary amps to properly run your car, so I would check on it before you change the pulley and run into probs.

 

[diels1]

How many miles does your Cobra have?

67k on it. Bought it 4 years ago with 48k. I'm glad I got the extended ford warranty.

I've had to have the idler pulley's replaced (water/corrosion caused them to squeal...that's the downside of heat extractors :shrug, throw out bearing replaced, t-stat replaced, overflow bottle replaced (had a slight pin hole in it), ring and pinion replaced (thumping noise that's common on these IRS when you shift gears) and something else done inside the T56 (can't remember at the moment). The extended warranty has paid for itself and I can't say enough about how helpful the dealerships have been when I've had it in. They even ask when I'm going to throw a pulley on it once they see the CAI and hear the h-pipe/cat-back exhaust. :beer:

The list makes it seem like there is/was a lot wrong with the car, but honestly...its been a lot more reliable than my Honda I had in college.:rockon:

I'm glad I have my ford explorer as a driver, but I'm also thinking about picking up an SVO to play with as well. Don't worry, I'm keeping the terminator for those days I need this to happen ~~~>

 

[About2bite]

Looks like they're pretty familiar with your car then. Mine didn't even last 10K, when I changed it the other day.

 

[Sonic03inSC]

I just put my 4th alternator on 2 days ago. I have a stock lower and run a larger pulley on the alternator. I'm on my 3rd PA performance alt. the first one I used the stock alt. pulley and it lasted 6 months So PA said use a bigger pulley 3.5" I think. That one lasted 1.5 years and was a total meltdown so PA replaced it under warranty. Not sure how long this one will last but if they keep replacing them on their coin I'll be fine until someone comes up with a better fix.

 

[90lxfox5.0]

Also guys the faster killer to your new alternator is a low charged battery.Just because it starts the car doesnt mean its charged.The car is itself demands 70 to 80 amps from a 130 amp unit that is very small and in a confined space,then throw on another 30 to 40 amps to charge a dead battery and it kills the stator and rectifers.Anyone who owns a car with a alternator should always grab a dvom and check voltage drops from grounds and from alt pos stud to battery and from stud to distribution block.You should not see more then about 2 to 3 tenth of a volt drop between any of the said points.Also charge your battery and check it with a cheapy specific gravity checker to make sure its fully charged.This my friends will insure better performance from your charging system.Any other charging starting questions feel free to pm.FYI i work at and build starters and alternators for a living.And the 6g that is on the termi and anyother ford is a pile of shit riddled with regulator failors.The 3g was a far better unit.

 

[90lxfox5.0]

I just put my 4th alternator on 2 days ago. I have a stock lower and run a larger pulley on the alternator. I'm on my 3rd PA performance alt. the first one I used the stock alt. pulley and it lasted 6 months So PA said use a bigger pulley 3.5" I think. That one lasted 1.5 years and was a total meltdown so PA replaced it under warranty. Not sure how long this one will last but if they keep replacing them on their coin I'll be fine until someone comes up with a better fix.

Again were you charging battery up after the replacement.And i dont mean for 30 minutes,i mean a full charge,can take upto 6 to 8 hours depending on the charge state of the battery.Also make sure to look for voltage drops,that is a big killer as your sensing voltage will be false and cause more demand on the unit and will cause it to burn up.Feel free to pm me for tips and pointers on what to look for and trouble points.

 

[SicStang03]

Thats definitely good news for me because my car started to die while idling at a light. My car runs well above 2000rpms. Glad you mentioned that bit of information.

My car died once. Exactly how the OP said. I just cruised around with everything off for a while and lasted a month or so before I got the new one. I wasn't hot doggin though

 

[01cobravortech]

I just put my 4th alternator on 2 days ago. I have a stock lower and run a larger pulley on the alternator. I'm on my 3rd PA performance alt. the first one I used the stock alt. pulley and it lasted 6 months So PA said use a bigger pulley 3.5" I think. That one lasted 1.5 years and was a total meltdown so PA replaced it under warranty. Not sure how long this one will last but if they keep replacing them on their coin I'll be fine until someone comes up with a better fix.

You should give up on the PA alternators. Many people have given up already. They have without question established themselves as being an inferior product.

 

[vipergts281]

I got about 94,000 miles out of my stock alternator and battery.

Changing the alternator was a bitch!!

 

[01cobravortech]

I got about 94,000 miles out of my stock alternator and battery.

Changing the alternator was a bitch!!

I'm glad you chimed in my friend because if memory serves me correctly...you ran the stock upper pulley for all those 94k. Am I mistaken?

Its pretty evident that just running a smaller upper alone is whats causing these alternators to have a premature life. I definitely don't buy the heat argument. A smaller than stock upper alone seems to be enough to overspin the alternator. I'm simply going to get in the habit of changing the alternator every 35k - 40k or when the accessory lights start flickering in stop and go traffic. I don't like the idea of going lean up top when these bad boys can't get the voltage in the + 14.0 range.

 

[NasteeNate]

I'm glad you chimed in my friend because if memory serves me correctly...you ran the stock upper pulley for all those 94k. Am I mistaken?

Its pretty evident that just running a smaller upper alone is whats causing these alternators to have a premature life. I definitely don't buy the heat argument. A smaller than stock upper alone seems to be enough to overspin the alternator. I'm simply going to get in the habit of changing the alternator every 35k - 40k or when the accessory lights start flickering in stop and go traffic. I don't like the idea of going lean up top when these bad boys can't get the voltage in the + 14.0 range.

Hmmm, sounds like a good argument. So if the pulley size is not stock, it will burnout out? Is there anyway you can bypass this problem when your pullied or twin screwed?

What if you run the 2.93/4lb lower combo with a stock Alternator pulley..Would that hurt your performance....

Sorry im asking all these questions, im in the market for a terminator....