Electrics Problem!

MagicManCan

Hey all,
Having a problem with my car the last to days A week ago there was a water leak so had to access the thermostat housing but i needed to remove the alternator to get at it. Anyway fixed the leak and put the alternator back on. However now when i'm driving all the electrics are affected. Eg the wipers work at normal speed then slow down and back to normal again every few seconds. Its like this with everything, then eventually they get worse and worse until the power goes completely in the car
So my question is do ye reckon i didn't put the alternator back right(Loose wire maybe?) or could it be something else?
Thanks for the help

dgt

So where is this issue, in your car? Tractor? House? Barn?

Ie, WHAT MAKE AND MODEL

MagicManCan

dgt wrote: »

So where is this issue, in your car? Tractor? House? Barn?

Ie, WHAT MAKE AND MODEL

Apologies, Its a Focus 1.4 1999 :rolleyes:

Gary ITR

MagicManCan wrote: »

Apologies, Its a Focus 1.4 1999 :rolleyes:

What are you rolling your eyes for?

Any squealing noise? Could be a slippy belt or a loose connection.

MagicManCan

Gary ITR wrote: »

What are you rolling your eyes for?

Any squealing noise? Could be a slippy belt or a loose connection.

Nope, dont think the belt is slipping anyway and checked the connections already.

ford jedi

is the main postive connection tight on the alternator it is the 10mm nut on the side. did u have it off when doin your thermostat you can check if the car is charging properly without the aid of a multimeter,

switch you ign off.. press and hold the trip button in while turning the ignition on .leave the button held in untill test appears on the screen , whist keepin button held in start the engine .
this will bring the car into test mode. there is 30 functions keep pressing the button untlll you see BAT 13v, dont mind the numbers after bat, this is the charging voltage, so drive your car around and see what the voltage reads with your lights etc on it should not drop below 12 ish volts .t
this is the voltage the ecu is seeing from the alt if its below 12 check your main feed on the alt..;)

MagicManCan

ford jedi wrote: »

is the main postive connection tight on the alternator it is the 10mm nut on the side. did u have it off when doin your thermostat you can check if the car is charging properly without the aid of a multimeter,

switch you ign off.. press and hold the trip button in while turning the ignition on .leave the button held in untill test appears on the screen , whist keepin button held in start the engine .
this will bring the car into test mode. there is 30 functions keep pressing the button untlll you see BAT 13v, dont mind the numbers after bat, this is the charging voltage, so drive your car around and see what the voltage reads with your lights etc on it should not drop below 12 ish volts .t
this is the voltage the ecu is seeing from the alt if its below 12 check your main feed on the alt..;)

Thanks for that, i tried that but a couldn't find Bat 13v, the closest was B 18--, the number went down a small bit (16ish) when the electronics were on??

Hal1

This is what you're looking for in the test mode.



Source: http://www.panuworld.net/misc/focus/

MagicManCan

Hal1 wrote: »

This is what you're looking for in the test mode.



Source: http://www.panuworld.net/misc/focus/

Thanks, but im getting b18 instead of b13??

Hal1

That would indicate 18volts? doesn't sound right. There's a few earth points in the engine bay that can get fouled up with rust etc. Might be worth cleaning them up with a bit of sandpaper.

MagicManCan

Hal1 wrote: »

That would indicate 18volts? doesn't sound right. There's a few earth points in the engine bay that can get fouled up with rust etc. Might be worth cleaning them up with a bit of sandpaper.

Yeah thats for sure! Will give it a good go tomorrow, thanks for the help lads. I'll let ya know how i get on!
Ps. lights and that start going when it drops to 15?

ford jedi

there is a plug with 3 wires these regulate the voltage , open the plastic conduit and follow the wires back , the wires usually break or rot , if these are ok possible alternator fault , your alternator is overcharging...

grainnewhale

these altenators are unusual as they don't have normal regulators. I would say that even though it may be charging alright. the altenator could be fooked

NuckingFacker

Most alternator issues with the focus relate to the connector - have someone wiggle the connector with the engine running and the car in test mode - see if there are any changes to the dash readout - usually the connector has arced and degraded internally. Taking the connector off and cleaning with contact cleaner and re-connecting can help. If that doesn't work, you can buy a pigtail connector and splice it into the loom.

Many of these are smart alternators and will only meet current demand, not re-charge a discharged battery and feed back via the ECU - so if the battery is weak or discharged, the ecu will not allow the alternator to output sufficent current to avoid damaging the alterntor - if the connector is fried, the ecu and dash will start behaving oddly and the registered output from the alternator will start to misread - check the connection before you bin the alternator.