Alternator light / Power steering whine / Belt noise

[2004XLT]

I have a 2004 4.6 118,000 miles, battery light has been on for about 2,000 miles - P0620 generator conditions circuit. My headlights and interior dash lights flicker sometimes. I also have a noise coming from the front of the engine that sounds like a bad bearing in one of the pulleys. Most of the time when I turn the wheel I get a slight whining noise. I thought power steering pump, but I was watching a youtube video which explained that this noise could be caused by the idler pulley and tensioner going bad.

So the question is, could the alternator light and whining noise both be caused by the idler pulley and tensioner being shot?

 

[GAINMOB]

possible but i would rule out the alt by getting it tested and if its the original...its due to go out...its 10 yrs old

 

[2004XLT]

Alt has 'refurbished' stamped on it, gonna take to autozone for test, will they do it with installed or would I have to take it out?

Also is it possible the bearings for the fan are shot?

 

[stamp11127]

When you take it in to be tested look and see if their tester indicates the output amperage of the alternator and if it checks for AC ripple current.
Taking it in to them is called a bench test, used to test max output amperage and voltage waveform.
In vehicle test can do the same thing but also tests the harness and connections.
The in vehicle test is usually done first, if a failure is suspected the bench test is used to verify the alternators condition.

 

[1955moose]

I used to work for Kragen years back, we had a portable tester that could test alternator and starter as well as battery on car. If you suspect belt tens hoist or alternator bearing. Disconnect belt, spin both of them as well as power steering. If it sounds like a worn out dry roller skate replace it.

 

[2004XLT]

Sounds good, I'll get the alternator tested and pull the belt off to check the bearings. Has anyone heard of bearings being so far gone that they cause symptoms of a bad alternator?

 

[stamp11127]

If the bearings are that bad it will usually take out the rotor and/or stator windings. Once the serp belt is off you can spin the pulley. Anything other than a smooth spin is an issue.

 

[2004XLT]

Autozone tested my alt and battery and both checked out, the guy who tested had no idea what the issue could be.

My battery has 3 different wires coming off the positive terminal, connecter is definitely not stock. One of the three wires splits off and both go to the alt. Is this a stock configuration and is it something I should look into?

Not sure if this could be related, but when I shift between park and drive or reverse the car jumps slightly and rps jump as well. First thing that comes to mind would be a bad shift motor. Would this be a possible cause of the generator conditions circuit issue or vice versa?

Also I should note that the battery light does not come on until I shift out of park.

Thanks

 

[stamp11127]

Alternator 101
In simple terms the voltage regulator(VR) in the alternator monitors battery voltage. When the battery drops below a specific voltage point the VR will "turn on" the alternator by applying power to the rotor windings. When there is a problem here the battery light will come on and or flicker.

Let me know if you want a more technical razzle dazzle speech on what is really happening in there.

So in other words you have a connector and or harness issue.
Since you stated that the connector isn't original, are you able to post a pic of the splices that connect it to the wire harness for the alternator?

Factory wiring diagram shows 4 wires plus ground.

 

[2004XLT]

That'd be great stamp I'd like to learn all about it. I'll get a picture up tonight or tomorrow.

 

[stamp11127]

2004XLT check your email.

 

[2004XLT]

Attached some pictures of the wires coming off the battery. Don't look too good to me, possible cause of the issue?

 

[stamp11127]

That can be a source of the problem. I would straighten that mess out and do a voltage drop test on both the pos and neg sides of the charging circuit.

 

[2004XLT]

Should I replace all wiring to the positive terminal as well as the connector? Also would I need to look for wires specific to this car or could I just buy the correct gauge? Thanks for all the help

 

[stamp11127]

Check with the vendors on the site to see if they offer battery cables. The cable shouldnt have any exposed copper showing like your current cables do. Where they connect needs to be cleaned so that it is metal to metal contact. Basically all electrical connections need to be clean before finding the problem. That way if you need to take dmm readings they will be accurate.

 

[IMINYOURCHAIR]

what is that third wire on the posi terminal, also, that battery looks like the wrong group size

 

[2004XLT]

Will do stamp, maybe for the time being I'll just cut back the wires, strip and use new connectors. Can I clean the battery terminals with steel wool?

The wires off the positive lead go to the alt, thru the firewall to the fuse box (I think) and down near the belt tensioner.

If this battery is the wrong size, would that be a possible cause of the dash light?

 

[stamp11127]

Yes you can use steel wool to clean the parts. A battery post cleaning tool works the best though.
Wrong battery size isn't the cause of the battery light. The alternator doesn't know what size battery is connected to the system.

Have you read what I sent to you?

 

[2004XLT]

Thanks for sending that pdf stanp, it was very informative. I planned on cutting back the wires, re strip and add ring connectors however they are already as short as they could possibly be to reach the battery. Now I know why there is such a small battery, if I had the correct group 65 the wires wouldn't reach. I did clean the terminals with steel wool. I guess the next step is to replace the wiring.

 

[Doctor Dirt]

Stamp - hi there - just joined to figgure out charging problem with my 97 5.4 XLT. Batt light flickers and dash guage slowly drops from mid to 10 or so before it stumbles. VOM across battery shows not altentor output. Idler and belt look fine. I may have missed something, but i chased all wires and fuses that I could find before pulling alt and taking it to napa for bench test. . Passed all 3 tests. Then ran over to O'Reilly for grins. Ran test twice and passed again. What next? Keep searching all the clandestine wires and fuses for some sign of failure?