My Alternator issue and info

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Lorry
High Range 4WD
High Range 4WD
Posts: 64
Joined: Tue Jun 23, 2015 10:06 am
Town: durban
Vehicle: D4D hilux DC $X$
Real Name: Lorenzo

My Alternator issue and info

Post by Lorry »

Hi all
Like to share an issue that I had with my alternator on my hilux d4d 2006 model.
It packed up last week without any warning what so ever, well so I thought which I only realised after the current alternator was fixed and refitted did I only realised that the warning signs that my regulator was packing up where been giving to me.
For a few months now when I came to start my van in the mornings the starter motor would lag and sometimes I would have to use my dual battery system to link the batteries to get my van started. So I thought my main battery was the issue, after having it tested since I recently replaced it, it was fine. The guy told me that the alternator was charging, just over 13 volts and that there is nothing wrong and he mentioned that it may be my starter motor.
The day my alternator failed, it happened to be at 0500 in the morning while travelling to work. The battery and airbag warning light came on. And from the battery monitor I saw that obviously the batteries weren’t charging. The dual battery link solenoid kicked itself off as it registered that the main battery wasn’t getting a charge. Due to the time and where I was I wasn’t going to stop and made the choice to drive to the office which was still another 20 km. Shortly after this my main lights started to dim and then my right head light went off which I found out later that the element had blown. So I turned the main lights off and drove the rest of the way with my fog lights. Using the battery control module I linked the dual battery too the main battery to help with some extra volts to keep me going , which had to be done every 5 min as the battery control has this 5 min link built into its system. I also noticed that the battery and airbag warning light started to fade away and then went off, after I arrived at the office and switched off, I turned the ignition on and the battery warning light wouldn’t come on. I spoke to my mech later on and he confirmed that if it doesn’t come on with the ignition is on the alternator has gone.
The Hilux’s came out with two types of alternators my model, a bosch type which mine has and some other one. The bosch one does have spares which can be changed so you don’t have to buy a whole new alternator, so my regulator was replaced and everything is now up and running, when I started the van the battery indicator lights which normally only showed two green lights when charging was now running the full four lights and after some driving to charge the battery it still shows full charge rate. I tested the voltage supply and instead of just over 13 volts it now shows 14, 6 volts of charge. When I start my van in the mornings or during the day the engine swings quickly and everything works 100 % now. I don’t have anything running off my dual and mainly only use it as a link when running the winch and search lights.
Just thought I would share this with you guys so if you have any symptoms like this, just check your alternator?
Cheers
Mars
LR4WD, Lockers, Crawler Gears
LR4WD, Lockers, Crawler Gears
Posts: 1484
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Vehicle: Toyota Hilux Dakar 2.8 GD-6 DC 4X4
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Re: My Alternator issue and info

Post by Mars »

Good info thanks.
On my brother's D4D he also had an issue with the alternator. He phoned me last week and said that all the electrical equipment on his bakkie (including the speedo and rev counter as well as wipers and fan) suddenly died. The only lights that remained on was the alternator light and the brake indicator light. I told him to check the main fuse box in the engine bay behind the battery and it turned out that the fusible link was indeed blown. It is a 100A link. It turns out that the rectifier on the alternator had failed.
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