Austarion

Hi all,

So before ! dash off and spend pennies with an auto electrician, I'm going to follow the advice and post my question here first.

I went to my car this morning and turned the key and nothing... well, very little. there wasn't enough charge to turn the starter. Last time i drove the car was thursday evening, for a good hour and all was well, but i was running my headlights, AC and stereo. I plugged the car into the trickle charger that Darryl had installed and left it for a couple of hours and it started fine afterwards.

I have noticed something now though, when the engine is just running normally and everything is off its all fine, however if i turn the lights on, or lower a window or basically do anything that draws current from the battery, that alternator belt starts squeeking.

I'm thinking it could be:

Ground cables needing cleaning (as this seems the easiest im hopin its that)
Alternator on its way out
Belt needing tightened

Any other thoughts or suggestions out there....

when was the belt last changed? that would be the first place to start and while you're at it you might as well clean all the contacts to rule that out

First ,tighten the belt
Check the charge going into the battery when motor is running.
Test the battery with a hydrometer to see if it's healthy as there may be a cell on the way out.

Sounds like when there's an additional load on the alternator just enough that it squeals. Tightening the belt may be all that's required.

replace/tighten the belt it might be a bit sad (squeal under electrical load is more a coincedence i would think)

i would test volts at battery not running should be about mid to high 12's
then i would check while running should be mid to high 13's

I had a look last night, the belt looks in decent condition (no obvious signs of wear) and it seems tight enough (i am however going by simply judging it with my eye), you can press the belt down less than a cm. The Alternator is adjusted by a 'Brace Bolt' and it appears to be at the extent of the range.

I had a look at the earthing bolt and although a wee bit discoloured it doesn't look too rusty, although i will undo it and clean it off a bit tonight.

Not sure when the belt was last changed, I'll have to ask Darryl, but like i say it doesn't look old...[/img]

If the belt is at the end of it's adjustment then it needs replacing

To replace the alternator belt I looks like there are two other belts to be taken off first, that sound right? Is it an easy (and by easy I mean could I screw tr engine if I get I wrong) job?

Also.... Dead simple question...

I was Checking the various fluid levels this evening and I noticed that (what I believe to be) the transmission fluid (althoug it could be powersteering/brake fluid) is low. There's a small L shaped black tank on the front left side of the engine, just above the alternator. What quality of 'stuff' do I need to top it up?

(obviously I don't want to get too technical.....)
LOL

Hello Blair, and welcome to Austarion.

Yep, the Power Steering and Air Conditioning belts have to come off.

Without them the car will be heavy to steer and eventually difficult to start/drive but will cause no damage in the short-term.

Now that's dead simple, 12 and 14mm spanners should be all you need.

The 'stuff' you may need is power steering fluid. It's usually red and you can use Dexron II auto transmission fluid to top it up.

A word of caution though...it may not need topping up. If you open the lid there should be a strainer inside of it. The fluid level should only be part way up from the bottom of the strainer. Too much fluid and you'll have 'stuff' everywhere...you'll probably bugger your alternator if that happens because it's the place directly under the reservoir.

enthuzed wrote:...you'll probably bugger your alternator if that happens because it's the place directly under the reservoir.

for all those people that say the factory spends gazillions on research and wouldn't do something without a purpose, try and explain THIS smart choice made by mitsu engineering

I have some Power steering fluid from Castrol that says its Dexron, Dexron II and Dexron III compatable.... is it??

I know that might sound silly but sometimes its just not the same..

That'll be fine, DX II is the choice if you had to pick...

thrash wrote:
for all those people that say the factory spends gazillions on research and wouldn't do something without a purpose, try and explain THIS smart choice made by mitsu engineering

Sometimes they think there's nowhere else to put it...they must have spent a bit in the stupid power steering pump bracket, & it makes sense to jam the res on top.

enthuzed wrote:

thrash wrote:
for all those people that say the factory spends gazillions on research and wouldn't do something without a purpose, try and explain THIS smart choice made by mitsu engineering

Sometimes they think there's nowhere else to put it...they must have spent a bit in the stupid power steering pump bracket, & it makes sense to jam the res on top.

Let's not mention having the steeringpump on the RHside on a LHSteering car...
There must be 4 meters of lines extra?
Same with the brakesystem... mastercylinder on the left and antilock-shit on the right!
AND, did they forget the exhaust... and just smacked on a tiny pipe, made a few bumps in the floor, moved the tank a little left, afterwords?