Riktar

I have considered that since I have had it happen before with a reman in a different scenario. As much 'fun' as this has been I can't wait to do the replacement again... And since I am now getting the batt light on, yeah, maybe I did get a lemon reman.

Let's say I do return the reman and go with new. And then let's also say the same thing occurs. Any thoughts on that.

Thanks again to everybody who has responded in this thread. I really appreciate it!

Oldblue

It’s not been mentioned, so I have to ask, have you checked the under hood fuse box are those 4 bolts tight? What about the ground wires, up front at the transmission housing and the rad cradle, clean good and tight?
back by the battery, clean and tight, have you inspected the battery terminals, clean tight, no cracks ?
if all those check out ok, replace the alternator, any parts palace should be able to load test the charging system.

Riktar

Battery terminals look like new. I suppose that is one of the benefits of having the battery in the car.

The under hood fuse block is seated and tight. I am going to have to some looking for the ground straps since I am not familiar with their location.

I will take a gander under near the trans. The lower radiator mount area looks clean and is tight.

I have determined that as the symptoms progress that shutting the car off and turning it back on restores my charge ability. That being said the amount of time that the charge holds is diminishing each time.

Talked to the shop and will be heading their shortly for an exchange.

I have never run into this kind of problem with ANY rebuilt unit I have purchased. And I have purchased quite a few over the years. Then again, maybe standards have fallen. The more I read about this stuff online, the more I wish I would have just bitten the bullet and went with new. The fact that nobody had a new one in stock in my area was also a factor. Next time I'll wait...

Thanks again for the suggestions!!

donbrew

The point about the terminals is that they are not the same as last century's. If someone was unaware it is very easy to break them and they will "look" like new, but not be tight.
Other places to look for loose connections are on the starter and the larges red wire on the fuse box. Some have a fusible link between the starter and the alternatot

Riktar

The battery post terminals are definitely different than what I was used to from the past. They are tight and clean and yes, I can appreciate how easily they might break. That's why I only snug those itty bitty 10mm nuts on the stud until the terminal can't be moved or rotated by hand. I am chuckling right now remembering someone explaining to me how they made sure they tightened the battery terminals because they kept cranking on the bolt and nut assembly until the ends met on the lead battery clamp terminal post...

I have looked over the main points you mentioned and everything is tight and clean. I also went through some other items/accessories I installed to make sure my wiring was good and proper.

Biggest reason I am leaning towards just a bad part is because this whole thing started with a mechanical issue (noisy/whining bearing noise) on the alternator. The charging part I didn't ponder until my car wouldn't start and later when the whole system went dead due to an internal short in the alternator. Which isn't surprising considering the bearing dust that must have been all over the internals and probably caused the short. That's why I was able to get the system back to accepting a charge as soon as I disconnected the main lead off the alternator.

And I never had the battery light illuminate until I installed the replacement part. Similar issue from a global sense but a specific symptom that differed from the earlier condition.

Thanks for all the advice and reminders about this issue! And thanks again to everyone who replied to this thread. This is a great resource/community! I hope I can return the favor in the future!

And just to note: Day 2 coming up without any issue so far. Drove the car quite a few miles last night and will be doing at least another 100 before the weekend is over. If it goes through the weekend without issue I will consider this resolved.

And in the future I am buying new when it comes to electrical components!!!

Oldblue

As a side note, I’ve installed reman and used and new, most times the issue was resolved, however I have had to replace a new alternator, it was defective, it does happen.

donbrew

Good luck finding "new" alternators.

Riktar

Finding new (according to their listings) alternators requires no luck. I was able to find several listings. Problem was their were none that were local or it was an online source and I did not want to wait. The fact that the price was almost twice as much as reman and I had to wait is what made the decision to purchase the rebuilt item. I am taking away 2 things from this:

1. Patience (If practical)
2. Buy quality and you (potentially) only cry once.

Oldblue

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...generator,2412

That was easy, 4 new alternators from different brands. Who knew?
My starter / alternator rebuild guy just retired, so I am gonna have the_shmoo’s guy rebuild for me, he was quick and reasonable priced for he’s wife’s 2007 2.2 alternator.

donbrew

Somebody a few years ago bought a "new" ACDelco alternator from a dealer ; the box had "REMANUFACTURED" on it. Some companies define "new" as everything inside the housing has been replaced with unused parts. It does not mean some guy rewound the coils by hand for your alternator, they bought a stator, diode pack and bearings from China. Then they throw the old copper on a pile until the recycling price gets high enough to be profitable.
20 years ago I needed an alternator for a Nissan pickup; the Nissan dealer could only get remans.