before christmas my alternator crapped right out at the mall but i dorve her home safely on my new battery i bought the same week. the problem is i just got a new deck panasonic 200 watt and a viper 5000 alarm put in. i also have a underdrive crank pulley. the stock alternator was original i believe and every winter had some noises from it. so it went the light came on so so replaced it. the problem is when returning to idle the lights dim alot? with the heat on and radio on. but the car runs rock steady doesnt dip under 900 rpms nothing. so what gives with this crappy alternaot its a hitachi brand new. never a problem from the stock one.
another thing when i pop the power trunk open with the remote of the alarm and have the radio on loud the fuse blows? twice i blew the fuse. and the light dim alot when i hit the brakes? need help please i dont want to take the alternator out cause i need the car and its minus 20 here in Canada and canadian tire said it might take two days to check, i cant wait that long for it. please dont trust poeple touching my car and have no money for it to sit in the shop to here its fine.
man i hate the dimming it pisses me off so much.
thanks
Is the underdrive Crank pulley smaller than stock size?
SunfireN2o(Eats Newbs) wrote:Is the underdrive Crank pulley smaller than stock size?
LOL you just kind of answered your own question...
Underdrive Pulleys are pulleys that are smaller in diameter than the stock pulley.
Back to the original post, your lights dimming slightly is a normal occurance with an underdrive pulley. You might also notice that your stereo system might not sound as loud at idle than at 40 MPH...when you are in motion and keeping the crank spinning, you'll have enough power so it's not an issue while driving.
Remember what an underdrive pulley does...it takes power away from other accessories, so those accessories like A/C, Heat, Lighting, will lose some power and effect, not work 100% like they did before. Like said, this is only noticeable at idle when the crank isn't really spinning.
Now when you brake and your lights dim, that's more than likely because of your alternator more so than your pulley. Remember, when you press the brake your rear brake lights come on and your 3rd brake light comes on, so that takes power away from the battery...if you're alternator isn't charging enough to replace the power taken from the battery, than your battery will be lower than normal and things will show up with noticeable power losses (hence: when you brake).
Anymore questions, just ask...that's why I'm the newbie king
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
Also to note, J-bodies do have a history of having failing alternators, even going back as far as 2nd gens. I've experienced that first hand...they always go to crap on you when you are far away from home (for me, 1 hr and 45 min away from home). It's no fun when your car breaks down on you and you have to drive home at night, while it's raining, with no headlights on to save power on just a battery and no charging from the alternator.
So with that said, take your car to a shop and see how your alternator is charging...if it's charging less than normal, have it maintained ASAP!
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
Sorry to post again but you had me thinking...
Let me correct myself, with an underdrive pulley, the only time you should notice lights dimming from braking is when you're at a complete stock or very damn near it. While driving say on the highway and you tap the brakes, you SHOULDN'T notice any loss of power. I know this first hand because I have an underdrive pulley and have had it for a long time.
Good luck.
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
your the best newbie king,
anyways what about this it charges at 14.77 which is good. but one day my friend at work had a hand held load tester, after work, car off battery kinda weak. after it was running loaded it not to bad dropped a bit but the alternaotor was working fine but a bit intermitted on the load tester? put all the accessories on and it was fine? under the load tester still charging. my friend has the same car but stock everything but has an amp too. put the load tester on his car the guage didnt even move at all. i have a sister who drives a malibu 3.1 litre and her car does it exactly the same as mine, dims up and down but hers a bit more.
all in all the stock alternaotor was rock solid. i was thinking the battery might have a weak cell? cause it was weak at the end of the day. all that runs off it is the alarm and time for the clock. i drive 17km to work ever day.
i was going to get another one from juckyard and swap it in in the spring and get the new one tested.
or it has like a weak spring in thier and the brushes bounce a bit? just when it comes down to idle it dims then goes back up, it anoyes the @#$% out me
nick renaud wrote:your the best newbie king,
anyways what about this it charges at 14.77 which is good. but one day my friend at work had a hand held load tester, after work, car off battery kinda weak. after it was running loaded it not to bad dropped a bit but the alternaotor was working fine but a bit intermitted on the load tester? put all the accessories on and it was fine? under the load tester still charging. my friend has the same car but stock everything but has an amp too. put the load tester on his car the guage didnt even move at all. i have a sister who drives a malibu 3.1 litre and her car does it exactly the same as mine, dims up and down but hers a bit more.
all in all the stock alternaotor was rock solid. i was thinking the battery might have a weak cell? cause it was weak at the end of the day. all that runs off it is the alarm and time for the clock. i drive 17km to work ever day.
i was going to get another one from juckyard and swap it in in the spring and get the new one tested.
or it has like a weak spring in thier and the brushes bounce a bit? just when it comes down to idle it dims then goes back up, it anoyes the @#$% out me
I just remembered you said you have an sound system. I bet you that it's acting weird sometimes because you don't have a capacitor. What a capacitor will do is hold power so that your battery isn't the only feed. You hook that up with a quality capacitor (not a cheap brand...aim for one more known) and you should be good to go.
Also, when you shop for them, you might wonder "what the hell is farad? how do I know what to buy?". The rule of thumb when it comes to shopping for them is .5 Farad = 500 watts of amp power....so if you have a 1000 watt amp, you can get a 1.0 Farad capacitor. That's how it works in perspective but of course, brand names play into effect yada yada yada.
Hope this has helped you out.
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
actually i dont have a system, it just a 200 watt deck no speakers or amp? one speaker is blown. the light in the trunk blew out too. and the fuse blows when i release the trunk and the stereo is cranked up. when car is running. if this info changes anything?i really think its low quality alternator. i put the deck in and alarm and had no problem for three months. i had it perfessionally installed too at future shop.
you full of ideas man your the best thanks for the help but till it gets warm i have to settle
till i can take it out
nick renaud wrote:actually i dont have a system, it just a 200 watt deck no speakers or amp? one speaker is blown. the light in the trunk blew out too. and the fuse blows when i release the trunk and the stereo is cranked up. when car is running. if this info changes anything?i really think its low quality alternator. i put the deck in and alarm and had no problem for three months. i had it perfessionally installed too at future shop.
you full of ideas man your the best thanks for the help but till it gets warm i have to settle
till i can take it out
A 200 watt deck won't do anything power wise...lets just go back to the original theory of your pulley. If when he tested your battery and it was low, more than likely at that time, your pulley was preventing it from charging it's 100%...but of course it still has enough power to function properly.
If that's the only case, maybe carry an extra battery on long trips and/or have a spare one in your house just in case but I doubt that your battery is bad.
Also, you can check out Optima Dry Cell Batteries...those things are top notch. Here is what Optima says about their batteries:
Optima wrote:The OPTIMA YellowTop
Demand more from your vehicle? Then get more from your battery. OPTIMA YellowTop batteries are made for the extremes. If you have an extreme vehicle, you expect high performance. Whether your vehicle is made to take the abuse of off-road driving or cranking out decibels, you need more from your battery. OPTIMA batteries with patented SPIRALCELL® Technology deliver that performance. The deep cycle characteristic of this technology coupled with its extreme resistance to vibration provides performance vehicles with the repetitive power they need in a spill-proof package.
If your vehicle has a lot of accessories like running lights, high-performance stereo/AV system, winches, or hydraulics, your vehicle demands more from its battery. OPTIMA YellowTOP batteries provide the extra performance and deep cycling capability that your vehicle demands.
If you want more info, go to their website
www.optimabatteries.com. If you want to purchase one, contact Aaron at Turbo Tech Racing (Aaron@turbotechracing.com) and he'll hook you up with one.
By the way, it's no problem...I don't mind helping people who actually want the help.
....the Newbie King has just graced you with his knowledge! Pip Pip Hurray!
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
Damn you NJHK..........My reputation on the org has just gone from very little......to none.
SunfireN2o(Eats Newbs) wrote:Damn you NJHK..........My reputation on the org has just gone from very little......to none.
LOL Sorry
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
i just put out 120 bucks at canadian tire for 700 cold cranking amps. the same week as the alternator but anyways both are covered under warranties for 3 years so if anything happens i'll be getting new stuff lol
thanks for your time. its just bugging me alot
nick renaud wrote:i just put out 120 bucks at canadian tire for 700 cold cranking amps. the same week as the alternator but anyways both are covered under warranties for 3 years so if anything happens i'll be getting new stuff lol
thanks for your time. its just bugging me alot
It's no problem. Good luck with your situation. If you need more help, just ask.
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
yo i was talking to my friend and he said mayby the alternator doenst have the amps required for the car? whats the stock one rated at does anyone know?
nick renaud wrote:yo i was talking to my friend and he said mayby the alternator doenst have the amps required for the car? whats the stock one rated at does anyone know?
Let me guess, your friend doesn't own a J-body? lol
The stock alternator works perfectly fine on a stock car or even a car with some electronics but of course, if you're using some high powered accessories, it will start to drain your battery too much that your alternator can't keep up.
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
