battery light and brake light popped on in the cluster gauges last night on the way home. from what I read online its the alternator. Now i know its cheaper to replace the brushes then to buy a whole new alternator, but i swung the truck by autozone just to be sure it was the alternator and he told me the voltage regulator is bad. So from what I gather replacing the brushes wont fix this problem? They quoted the regulator at around $130 which is almost the same price as a whole new alternator. If the regulator is the only thing thats wrong with it could i just grab a regulator from a junk yard for a few bucks to get me buy for now? or would cleaning the old regulator help? input or help with others problems please?

 

well being in a desperate need for my vehicle I decieded to try to spray out my alternator with the hose (not sure if that was the best idea but with where i drive it whats the diff?) and after wards the batt and brake light went off and my charge seems to have returned to normal. Are these known to act up when dirty? I had no oil or mud caked on it, but i do live on a dirt road and my engine bay is rather dusty. Should i still consider replacing this or would an occasional spray do the trick. vehicle was putting out 12.3 v before, and now is showing 13.6 on my voltmeter.

 

That fix will last somewhere between 1 year and 5 minutes. Spraying water onto electronics will fix them about 1 time out of 1,000. Consider yourself lucky; I doubt you'll be able to repeat that trick.

RockAuto has reman alternators for as little as $90. (and yes, the regulator alone is more expensive. Go figure.) Unless you keep your eye glued to the voltmeter, you may get little notice the next time it goes.

 

yea knew it wasnt the best plan but if it was already out i wasnt too concerned. well i'll pick up a can of dielectric cleaner for now in case it craps out on me again on the road. Im working nights this week and the last thing i need is for my truck to go belly up at 3-4am on my way home. I have noticed as well if i would rev my truck up to 3-4k rpms the light would go off.

 

It might be a good idea to get some new brushes and spend 30 minutes pulling out the alternator and putting them in. Worked for me when I had that problem

 

When I took the truck to autozone he told me the voltage regulator was bad after hooking it up to my truck. Replacing the bristles wont help that problem will it.

 

Think about it...excessive resistance at the stator due to worn brushes could certainly cause a low voltage situation. Brushes are about $3-5 give or take, why not try it?

IMO, going to Autozone for advice/testing is like going to a pre-school for help with calculus.

 

Who knows if it is the regulator, the brushes, or something wrong with the alternator. The autozone guy may be jus trying to sell you something. Ive had my share of those guys

 

Thanks for all the help guys. Turned out to be the upper brush. They were both wore down to about 3/8 where the new ones were around an inch. And it makes more sense what you said bmcel now that I took it apart and seen how it all went together.