Yaris alternator light .

josealdo

Hi ,

my girlfriend has a 2007 yaris with only 40k kms . great little car but the battery light comes on when i start the car from cold and then goes off after 5 minutes . she had it with the local toyota garage and they said thats normal ??? doesn't sound normal to me .

any idea's guys ?

Thanks

Brian

Avns1s

Doesn't sound normal to me either. Battery light comes on when the alternator is not charging and should go off immediately after starting or at least once the car is revved a little after starting.

Just check that the auxiliary belt is tight enough. I'd expect the garage to have done this but just in case. You could also check across the terminals of the battery with a multimeter. Should go from just over 12V when the car is off to over 14V when the engine is running with a rev on.

I'd certainly be looking at the alternator for this one.

josealdo

Apparently it's been happening since new , and it's been in the Toyota main dealers garage twice with it . The mechanic said it's normal ???

It comes on as normal , then when you start the engine the light dims slightly and as you drive the car t goes off after a minute or so . it only happens in the cold weather .

It's not causing any problems but it just doesn't seem normal .

Cheers lads

Brian

colm_mcm

Silly question, but its definitely not the engine temp light?

Waterson

check the battery connections are tight and that the alternator wiring is secure. The alternator and battery can be tested/load tested to determine whether they are functioning correctly, but it certainly is not normal. Have Toyota checked the fuse for the alternator is correctly fitted?

PADRAIC.M

No this is a common fault with the Yaris, you need to get your alternator overhauled, I have literally diagnosed 50 of these, what dealer/area was it?

dieselbug

Just wondering, is this a smart charge (intelligent) system.

josealdo

PADRAIC.M wrote: »

No this is a common fault with the Yaris, you need to get your alternator overhauled, I have literally diagnosed 50 of these, what dealer/area was it?

Waterford Main Toyota Dealer , McConnell Brothers .

josealdo

dieselbug wrote: »

Just wondering, is this a smart charge (intelligent) system.

Not sure Dieselbug . How could i tell if it was ? It's a 2007 model if thats any good to you .

josealdo

colm_mcm wrote: »

Silly question, but its definitely not the engine temp light?

It's the red light that is the symbol of a battery with positive and negative symbols over each terminal . It's the same light that went on my van when the alternator went on it .

jimmyw

figs666 wrote: »

Waterford Main Toyota Dealer , McConnell Brothers .

There is a guy over in Waterside that I assume is still there that does repairs to starters/alternators, MacNamara I think.Could give him a try when he opens.

I would take a guess at sticky brushes in the Alternator.

josealdo

jimmyw wrote: »

There is a guy over in Waterside that I assume is still there that does repairs to starters/alternators, MacNamara I think.Could give him a try when he opens.

I would take a guess at sticky brushes in the Alternator.

I have got altenators rewound before from mcnamara , but the weird thing is the light only comes on from when cold and only stays on for a minute ??? it's an unusual fault .

My van also has a flickering charging light that only comes on on long distances ?I rewound the altenator about 2 years ago .