My gf's car is showing some interesting behavior. its a '99 Accord V6 w/ 97k miles.

it had intermittent starting problem around a year ago and it was fixed w/ a new battery. its been fine until a couple weeks ago.

recently she said its hard to start or doesnt start. it turns over hard, but just doesnt catch. she said she waits liek 30 sec, and then it starts right up. hrmm

so tonight we're out in her car and i notice a whining from the front of the car. like powersteering whine, but steering has no effect on it. most pronounced at idle and pretty much goes away when we go. then a couple minutes into the drive her Battery, E-brake, and all door/trunk open indicator lights light up. wtf. so we get to where we're going and thats that.

so then we get back in the car and it doesnt start. it turns seemingly powerfully, but doesnt catch. the whine from the front is fairly loud. we give it a break for a few minutes, try again and it fires up no prob. we drive home, same whine, same lights. her headlights and interior lights seem bright. when we got home we popped the hood and listened and im pretty darn sure the whine is coming right from the alternator. that or possibly some belt tensioners if there any under it. it was dark. but definately from that spot. turned the car off, tried to start again, no go. waited.. nothing. so hopefully itll start in the morning...

so its looking like an alternator but why the strange starts? the battery seems plenty strong and is apparently recharging.. its just not firing. also why the weird dash random lights? i can see the battery light coming on while driving if the alt was shot.. but e-brake and door open lights?

weird yo!

go honda go.

5/19/2006 12:29:36 AM

Sounds like a rectifier breakdown in said alternator.

just for the fuck of it, I'd measure voltage at the battery while the car's running. Should remain stable between 13.8 and 14.5 volts with the engine at a fast idle and on up through 2500+ RPMs.

If it continues to climb past 15, then you've definitely got voltage regulator/rectifier issues. Rectifier issues can cause all the lights on the dash to come on because of backfeed issues.

5/19/2006 12:36:08 AM

rectifier is the thingie that turns the AC into DC right? does that mean the car is occasionally getting AC current which is messing it up?

5/19/2006 1:03:47 AM

i have had similar probs with over charge of said battery by alternator. if it were me i would do what dan said and check the voltage when running. i have yet to see a honda over 14.4. does the battery sweat after driving? that would also be a clear indication.

5/19/2006 2:02:42 AM

that makes sense. i'll test the voltage after work today.

is there anything i should know about honda accord alternators? any gotchas or preferences in brand, etc? are there any different output ratings stock?

5/19/2006 8:48:43 AM

black forest is some lazy bums. opening at noon and shit

5/19/2006 10:32:25 AM

will she give me this pose if i fix it?

5/19/2006 4:14:58 PM

^only IF you actually fix shit yourself...

5/19/2006 5:33:23 PM

^ & ^^ jesus u two are the biggest fags

5/19/2006 11:49:11 PM

both my bikez werk

5/19/2006 11:49:53 PM

good for you, now go fuck your self

5/19/2006 11:50:17 PM

jbaz when is the f2 ready? throw a light on and lets ride that shit

5/19/2006 11:59:19 PM

new alternator FTW

5/20/2006 10:44:04 AM

or maybe not.

well the alternator fixed the whine, the low running voltage (only 11.5V when the car was on), and the weird dash lights. so that was def a problem.

but the car still randomly doesnt start. my gf said today, first it wouldnt start at all. she tried again a few min later and it started, ran a sec, then quit. then like 20min later it fired up w/o a hiccup.

hrmm

5/21/2006 8:06:30 PM

MAIN RELAY. TEN DOLLA ON IT.

5/22/2006 12:00:51 AM

^ok ill look into that. thanks

5/22/2006 8:22:03 AM