I'm pretty sure I know what the problem is here, but I wanted to see if it could be anything else, since my parts budget is rather low.

The other night my car started showing all the signs of a dying alternator. Radio kept shutting off, lights dimmed, etc. Hook up up to a multimeter today and it's showing a charge of 10.8 volts at the alternator leads and at the battery. This is definitely an issue with the alternator, right? Could it be something with the battery or the voltage regulator? and if so, how do I test for this? The battery is showing a charge of 11.4 V when the car is shut off. I'm pretty sure I know what the problem is, I just don't want to buy a new alternator if the issue would be somewhere else

What are your thoughts

Nvrmind, tightened the tension on the belt a little and that seemed to solve it. That or my alternator is on the fritz and will leave me stranded randomly. It's showing a charge of 13.7 V now so I also hope that it isn't the regulator

Posted by insanebuslady Nvrmind, tightened the tension on the belt a little and that seemed to solve it. That or my alternator is on the fritz and will leave me stranded randomly. It's showing a charge of 13.7 V now so I also hope that it isn't the regulator

13.7 is normal charging voltage. Belt seems like your only issue, but if it slipped for a while I'd change it, could be glazed.

Posted by jeepdave 13.7 is normal charging voltage. Belt seems like your only issue, but if it slipped for a while I'd change it, could be glazed.

yeah in my ford it sits at 14.1v and the grand prix at 13.7v another thing ive experienced is the battery posts you get wonky up n down voltage readings then battery posts could be at fault too

Posted by jeepdave 13.7 is normal charging voltage. Belt seems like your only issue, but if it slipped for a while I'd change it, could be glazed.

True the belt is kinda shit, and itd cost me nothing. It started doing a couple other weird electric things so maybe I ought to change the alternator anyway?

Posted by insanebuslady True the belt is kinda shit, and itd cost me nothing. It started doing a couple other weird electric things so maybe I ought to change the alternator anyway?

define 'weird electric things'?

Posted by Samurai define 'weird electric things'?

Well I've always had to rev it to ~3,000 rpm right after starting up to get the alternator to begin charging and the idle to settle. I know some alternators are just quirky like that

But since I tightened the belt its done this thing where when it gets real warm in traffic, the gas needle goes higher than normal as well as the coolant temp. I discovered that if I flash my brights (which has been a good indicator of if the alternator was failing before) the coolant gauge warning light blinks instead of the brights indicator. Pretty weird. After that the gauges settled back down to their previous positions. That's only happened a few times, and only in traffic where the engine is getting hot

It's also an '89 Fox so weird electrics kind of run in the family

Posted by insanebuslady It's also an '89 Fox so weird electrics kind of run in the family

The VW Fox is the only car I've ever admitted defeat with, and I've owned over 100 cars. Leaving me stranded 3 times in one week with 3 totally unrelated problems was the kicker, especially when the final problem involved catching on fire (electrical).

But yeah, when the charging voltage is low on those things, the warning lights and gauges go insane. I think the grounds behind the dash get corroded, causing resistance issues, and then the lower voltages cause further quirks.

Posted by bandi The VW Fox is the only car I've ever admitted defeat with, and I've owned over 100 cars. Leaving me stranded 3 times in one week with 3 totally unrelated problems was the kicker, especially when the final problem involved catching on fire (electrical). But yeah, when the charging voltage is low on those things, the warning lights and gauges go insane. I think the grounds behind the dash get corroded, causing resistance issues, and then the lower voltages cause further quirks.

Other than this and regular old-car stuff, it's been a pretty reliable and fun car. Finding parts is a bitch

I am thinking the same thing. It did have a shitty windshield seal and leaked behind the dash. It seems to be charging fine right now, right around 14v. But Im also not measuring it while it's quirking

Mine was a blast to drive and in excellent condition, but just HORRIBLE. I'm assuming it spent some time in a lake or something because I can deal with the usual 1980s VW quirks, but having my fuel pump relay, starter and then a fire leave me stranded all in the same week was getting frustrating.

The week before that the clutch cable broke, then on the way home from fixing that in a parking lot, the master cylinder failed.

Oh and the ignition lock cylinder just decided to never accept a key in it again when I went on a 10 minute drive to get milk or something like that.

Would I own another? Definitely.

Holy shit man. You got a bad apple. I've heard plenty of horror stories though, which is why I'm keeping my other car instead of selling it like I initially planned

Posted by insanebuslady Other than this and regular old-car stuff, it's been a pretty reliable and fun car. Finding parts is a bitch I am thinking the same thing. It did have a shitty windshield seal and leaked behind the dash. It seems to be charging fine right now, right around 14v. But Im also not measuring it while it's quirking

i feel your pain... my knockaround car is a 96 Chevy Beretta and anyone who has ever had a Beretta knows about the 'water issue'. These things leak like a holed battleship. Luckily, the dashboard and electrics are pretty safe from it, but it's just disheartening to get in the car and see an inch of water on the floorboard.


What was the Audi that sat on the same chassis as the Fox (even looked like it)?

My uncles fox caught fire, something about the fuel lines running infront of the oil filter?

Posted by Samurai i feel your pain... my knockaround car is a 96 Chevy Beretta and anyone who has ever had a Beretta knows about the 'water issue'. These things leak like a holed battleship. Luckily, the dashboard and electrics are pretty safe from it, but it's just disheartening to get in the car and see an inch of water on the floorboard. What was the Audi that sat on the same chassis as the Fox (even looked like it)?

Do what every redneck from here to Maine has been doing since the 50's............

I remember at the Oregon Trail Rally a few years back, there was a Fox that had an engine fire while driving and to make matters worse the fuel pump was somehow running still even when they stopped to bail out, dumping gasoline into the fire.

Posted by Agent Skelly I remember at the Oregon Trail Rally a few years back, there was a Fox that had an engine fire while driving and to make matters worse the fuel pump was somehow running still even when they stopped to bail out, dumping gasoline into the fire.

...we don't need no water, let the motherfucker burn!"

Posted by Samurai What was the Audi that sat on the same chassis as the Fox (even looked like it)?

The BX platform was based heavily on the B1 platform from the Audi Fox/4000. It also shares a lot of similarities with Dashers. Despite this a lot of the parts are completely proprietary to that model