Okay,

I was on my way to Best Buy the other night, when i noticed that the amp running my sub was going in and out. Then I noticed the lights in the car getting dimmer and dimmer. So I parked at Best Buy, went in to get my bluray, and came back out to a dead car. My wife had to come and give me a jump.

So as I was driving I notice the problem getting worse. The car got to a point where it just cut off on me, power died. Brakes died off and the steering, imagine the nightmare. The seatbelt light and the air bag light were flashing. She was able to give me another jump and I was able to make it home safely.

As I was backing into the garage the car died again, electrical and all. Any ideas what this could be? This is the first time this has ever happened. Thanks a lot in advance.

K

 

Could it be the altenator?

 

sure sounds like it, unless you have a weak battery and you're not letting it charge with ur high-tech gadgets

 

Ok, definitely alternator issues... your stock alternator is a wye-stator winding alternator. Meaning it is designed for higher (about 150A tops) amperage outputs at low speeds, not high speeds. An alternator generates AC current inside itself through electromagnetic induction which is then "rectified" or converted, into DC current through diodes to power your car and recharge your battery. Over time the strain will take its toll on these diodes and internal wire windings (heat speeds up this deterioration) causing them to short, effectively reducing the alternator's output ability by 33% per failure (3 stator windings). Having modified your current necessity by installing that amp or whatever other electrical stuff you got, you need to update your charging system. This can be done in a variety of ways, the most cost-effective of which is to replace your existing alternator with a delta-stator winding alternator rated at around 215 Amps. Don't try to work around this, the alternator WILL have to be replaced, but if you replace it with a re-manned replica of your stock one, it will burn again, very quickly. Don't go above 215 output amps because you could fry sensitive circuitry. Good luck!

 

can we say "Show Off"?

 

I've received many helpful (and some not-so-helpful) write-ups from this community, I just try my best to give back in an informative manner...

 

dont take it personal. i am just kidding with you.

 

L0R1DA: What if your car is stock and you wanted to upgrade your electronics, should I get that alternator first before or wait to see what happens?

 

DARTHSWAN: You might want to look into replacing your battery also. Sometimes the excessive strain can really kill or have it charged up. Hope the battery is under warranty.

 

You could also get a second battery just for your system, connected to your alternator.

 

He is correct by saying that you SHOULD upgrade your alternator since your subs are taking quite a bit of current from the car. BUT, get a capacitor, and lower how hard it hits will be just fine. Unless you're running like 4 12's with 1500 watt amp to each. but a normal system such as 2 12's with 800 watts - 1200 watt amp is fine and shouldn't cause you a problem. The reason i suggest a capacitor if you don't already have one is that the capacitor helps lessen the dimming of lights and a more constant output from the power source draw instead of fluctuating power.

LORIDA: i'm not trying to be offense, bu not knowing what he has in is car, you can't just simply tell him that his alternator is going to die again very quickly. A simple system is not going to fry his alternator. Don't get the one's from pepboys or autozone. I got mine from napa because all the pep boy's ones were like 130A or something of that issue.