1993 Accord 4 ccl. Bat light came on, checked voltage, low. Had alternator tested, showed OK. Put back in (PITA) ran for 20 min, light on. Checked for voltage at connector per shop manual, OK. Tested alternator again OK, they replaced it anyway assuming an internal temp repated fault. Same thing again, runs about 20 min & light comes on.

I'll check the wiring harness for breaks, but any ideas ? I'll run it with a volt meter hooked up the the connector to see if the 12 V signal to the alternator drops out.

Any other areas to look at ? I love this old car, 210,000 miles, original engine, auto trans, but several alternators.

Thanks in advance.

 

Hi CJH...
Sorry about your alternator problem, seems we all get them at some stage of the car game.

Did they check your alternator on the car or off the car?

Welcome to the Forums ...

WheelbrokerAng [sm=americanasmiley.gif]

 

Pulled alternator a couple days ago, got an exchange Bosch rebuilt, same problem. Pulled that one, tested bad. Got yet another, running fine. Went through the electrical system with a fine tooth comb, cleaned all connectors, all fuses, modules. Well put together car for sure. Carefully engineered.

Hope this one lasts, shooting for 300,000 miles.

 

did you ever load test your battery?

 

I have tried many non factory alternators and have had nothing but problems going bad after a frew months and have had to replace them free of charge .. I will not install a non-Honda alternator on my customers car any longer ....Using the Honda part i have not had a problem yet

 

Thanks for the replies. I did load test battery, OK. I agree with the rebuild quality, I have an older Range Rover that goes through alternators like **** through a goose. Finally converted it to a Bosch (originally Lucas). Actually have a spare on the shelf just in case.

 

I used a Duralast in my '96 EX... working fine so far... (knock on wood)... but the reason I got it was because Auto Zone has a lifetime warranty on their Duralast alternators... if it ever dies I can yank it out and go get a new one... I know it's more trouble, but it's also a HECK of a lot less expensive than buying a new Honda brand alternator. Just my 2 cents though...

 

Mostly I'm with Desert about OEM stuff. But I've had a bunch of European cars & Bosch has always been good to me. But on a Honda??? Hope it keeps going for you.

You know why they drink warm beer in England???

They have Lucas refrigerators!

 

My wording was poor, the rebuilt Denso alternator was branded "Bosch", not actually a Bosch part, only rebuilt by them (probably some sweatshop in a third world country). Lifetime warranty (thankfully) offered through Pep Boys (Manny Moe & Jack).

I was glad to get rid of that cursed Lucas alternator. Original did well, 120,000 miles before it crapped out. I rebuilt it once with all new diodes, rectifiers, regulator & bearings. Failed two years later then a series of rebuilds before tossing it.

The quality of rebuilds suck. They may look like new (bead blaster to thank for that), buth te components used suck. I can gaurantee that they test it, do the absolute minimum to get it to work on the test stand & box it.

Great board! I've read through many posts for some time now. Helped me repair a few irritating problems on the old girl, and take care of some maintenance issues. Hope to keep it running until it turns to dust! I work with a fellow with 350,000 miles on an Accord coupe. Looks rough, but it is long ago paid for & nearly free to run (gasoline excluded even though we work for an oil company).