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Poohbear · Post by **Poohbear** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 4:18 pm

Eeyore is out in the Bongo at the moment and has come to start it and it won't go. She was just getting a clicking noise so I thought maybe it was the starter motor. Anyway she called Britannia and they got her started with a power pack and a few miles down the road she started getting dash lights coming on - hold light flashing, ABS light, etc and no speedo and then a bit further down the road she lost the use of the wipers, the gearbox isn't changing gear so she's stopped again. Am I right in thinking it's the alternator gone kaput? Help!

jaylee · Post by **jaylee** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 4:49 pm

There you go...! http://www.igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum/ ... t+flashing

Check the terminals on the starter battery are tightened too... My wife had ongoing trouble with a dead battery on a Micra at the beginning of the year, every two days after laid up.. No recollection of a new battery in the 7 years of ownership from new.. (I had to start it from the Bongo.)
Checking nothing was left on, a new battery & taking it back for checks at a Nissan garage for a diagnosis & the place where i got the battery didn't solve it.. Till i thought about checking & tightening the terminals on the battery. No problems since....

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 5:10 pm

Check to see what output you're getting from the alternator too, but battery/connections seems likely. checked one recently that had nice tight bolts on the terminals, but the clamp ring jobby itself was snapped so it was intermittent contact.

Poohbear · Post by **Poohbear** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:10 pm

Well the poorly Bongo is home now and I've whipped the battery off and put it on charge. The voltage across the terminals was 11.98V. The rescue guy used a power pack to start it so that we could get it onto the drive and it took a fair bit of starting. Even with the power pack connected it only turned over very slowly but luckily after a couple of turns it fired up. When it was running on the drive there were no warning lights at all but the rev counter, temp gauge and fuel gauge weren't working. I've taken the details of the alternator in case it needs a new one and I did notice that the belts were a little on the slack side. They were replaced by Alan at the service in June so maybe it's just the initial stretching that has caused it. I don't think they were loose enough to cause a problem and they weren't whining so i guess that's a red herring.

So what do I do next? When the battery's charged I'll refit it and see if she starts. Then I guess I need to check the voltage across the terminals with the engine running? Are there any other checks I can do to see whether the alternator has failed?

francophile1947 · Post by **francophile1947** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:35 pm

Checking the voltage with the engine running will give you a good idea - it should be around 14v.

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:40 pm

The alternator should chuck out between @13.8v -14.6 v, depending on the state of charge of the battery/s, engine revs & load.
Be worth checking all the earth straps & make sure there's nothing shorting out the glow plug rail or anything daft like that. Was anything left on that could have drained the battery?
Could just be the battery has bitten the dust, they don't last forever.

jaylee · Post by **jaylee** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:47 pm

Poohbear wrote:I did notice that the belts were a little on the slack side. They were replaced by Alan at the service in June so maybe it's just the initial stretching that has caused it. I don't think they were loose enough to cause a problem and they weren't whining so i guess that's a red herring.

If someone could pull me up on the belt tension? You should get a quarter/90 degree turn on the belt..?!!

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:48 pm

jaylee wrote:
Poohbear wrote:I did notice that the belts were a little on the slack side. They were replaced by Alan at the service in June so maybe it's just the initial stretching that has caused it. I don't think they were loose enough to cause a problem and they weren't whining so i guess that's a red herring.

If someone could pull me up on this? You should get a quarter/90 degree turn on the belt..?!!

Yup, on the longest run of the belt, or @10-15mm deflection of the same.

Poohbear · Post by **Poohbear** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 7:29 pm

The battery charged OK, after 24 hours it was up to 12.78V and after resting for several hours it was down to 12.66 and it seems to hold charge so not too bad. New battery on the way now so I'll keep the old one as a spare. Fitted it into Vanda and she started easily. The voltage across the battery while cranking (that's cranking!) was 9.7V and after starting it was 12.3, everything worked OK, no warning lights on dash (even the battery warning light was out strangely). When I revved the engine the voltage went up to about 12.6 - 12.7 so looks like the alternator's knackered. Put the meter between the main connection on the alternator and earth and got similar results. I still don't understand why the battery warning light isn't on?

jaylee · Post by **jaylee** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 7:56 pm

[quote="Poohbear" I still don't understand why the battery warning light isn't on?

[/quote]

Is the bulb blown??

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 8:29 pm

Wayne had similar issues - http://www.igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum/ ... or#p516050 it's to do with that circuit earthing through the alternator (diode pack?) I guess it depends what part has gone?

Poohbear · Post by **Poohbear** » Thu Sep 01, 2011 1:01 pm

I have now fitted the replacement alternator and I am getting 14.3V across the battery when the engine is at tick-over. I've also fitted the new battery so we're ready for the winter now.

Just to add to the replacement alternator debate I got my alternator from

HERE

(based upon a link and a recommendation on this forum)

It is one of the ones with the black painted ring around it rather than the original green.

After fitting it I noticed that it says 80A on the label on the alternator (rather than 90A) so I looked at the box and the paperwork that came with it and that says 80A too despite the fact that the website (and Ebay) clearly say 90A. So I emailed them and they replied saying please ring and speak to our technical guy Gary. When I rang him all he said was it does say 80A but they will "do much more than that". Look at the test report in the box. The test report in the box states 80A at the top but it also gives a table of tested output at various rpm which goes up to 123A (I can't remember the rpm and I don't have the test report with me at work). I can post the various test figures later if anyone's interested.

The thing is that as I see it I haven't got what I paid for. Has anyone else noticed this or have they just blindly fitted it and not noticed? What would you do in the circumstances? Comments please!

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Thu Sep 01, 2011 1:19 pm

These same guys said exactly that to Freewheeler, who went to their premises to buy one (£120), they also insisted that they needed his old genuine Hitachi unit in exchange (they didn't get it), despite the fact that on their ebay ads it states that no exchange is necessary for a bongo alternator. Did you have to exchange yours Pooh?
They also said that they could refurb a bongo alternator for @£80, so on that basis, they were effectively making their money on the "new" alternator they sold, then trying to insist that they had the old one, which I can only assume that they would then sell on making another tidy profit

Initially the guy there, reluctantly said he could supply the parts to refurb a bongo alternator, but wasn't happy doing it as he couldn't guarantee the parts. Then he changed his mind & said he couldn't supply the bits but that he could do the refurb there for @£80. By my reckoning, that means the parts to refurb are available for at least half that if they are still making their money (see this thread for discussion on trying to ascertain whether we can obtain the parts & how feasible it'll be to replace them - http://www.igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum/ ... alternator ) .
Personally I wouldn't be happy being fobbed off like that, as you say, you paid for a 90A alternator, that's what you expect to get. it may well "do more than that" but the rating is the rating.
I'm not sure what sort of current is drawn from it on a regular basis, not got a clamp meter, but they were saying it rarely gets near the 90A mark - I have a clamp meter on order

Poohbear · Post by **Poohbear** » Thu Sep 01, 2011 1:34 pm

No I didn't have to exchange my original Hitachi alternator so I still have that in the garage. In terms of price £135.00 isn't bad for a replacement alternator delivered next day but it is the principal of the thing. If it is only 80A then say so on the advert, don't say it is 90A and then when i ring up say "oh all the Bongo ones say 80A but they'll do much more than that".
I'm not sure what to do now, maybe I'll write them another email or perhaps I'll wait for some more comments on here first. I didn't buy it through Ebay otherwise I'd be threatening them with negative feedback

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Thu Sep 01, 2011 1:44 pm

IMO they should at least ammend their listing to give correct rating & maybe a copy of the test report data. If it does what it says & lasts for 5 years plus, doing what it's supposed to, I guess it's ok for the money, but if it fails within a year or 2 of the guarantee period, then it ain't fit for purpose.
Much better to try & get the old one refurbed properly (or refurb yourself if we can get a supply of parts sorted) IMO, then at least you've got a spare ready

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