BigPman

I was wondering if anyone has experienced their alternator and brake warning lights coming on at the same time.

First it started out with the brake light coming on when I accelerated hard. The light would go out immediately when I let go of the gas pedal.

Then a few days ago the same thing started happening with the alternator light...Now not only was the brake light coming on but the alternator light as well.

Just now I went to run to the store and when I got in the car both of the lights came on and stayed on when I started the car. Then I left the parking spot and started driving and they both went off again.

I'm thinking the belt is worn out...Any ideas?

Thanks for any help guys

paullyb

i am now having the same problem. Did u ever find out what the problem was and how to fix it?

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

Low brake fluid warning light:
The light warns of a low brake fluid level. If the
light comes on while the engine is running with
the parking brake not applied, stop the vehicle
and perform the following:
1. Check the brake fluid level. Add brake fluid
as necessary. See “Brake and clutch fluid”
in the “Do-it-yourself” section.
2. If the brake fluid level is correct, have the
warning system checked by a NISSAN
dealer.

BigPman

I have not found out what the problem is yet, but I now suspect the alternator to be bad.

I drove the car Friday night and while on the highway bth of the lights stayed on constantly. I started to drive home and all of a sudden the lights dimmed out and I lost all power to the car. i had to have the car towed home.

unfortunately I have to wait until Wednesday to see my mechanic as he is on vacation, so until then, no Maxima for me

BewstAdd1ct

its the alternator failed or the related circuits, check the ckts and if theyre okay, replace the alternator.

sorry this image is so large guys, but its all ive got. you can see the diode between the alt and brake circuits, and the alternator causing the charge light to go on will also cause the brake light to go on.

save this image because it will dissappear in a few days


(image removed, if you need it, send me a PM)

young1976

I had the same problem last week when it rained all week. It started Monday morning, lights would come on, and then off. And it got worse progressively. Then all of a sudden The lights stopped coming on and everything is charging fine again. When the battery light was on, I checked the charge, it wasn't charging. Voltage was lower with engine running than without. Then when it was good, it was charging at 14V. So I thought it was my alternator, but then it's fine now. So I don't know, moisture? It's probably on it's way out but then, if fine now, so I'll keep driving. My car is got 102,000


http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=479268

BlackBIRDVQ

iTrader: (15)

When the brake light and battery lights come on it means its alternator time. You belts would have to be SUPER loose in order for the alternator not to work.
I experienced similar things in winter of 2004/2005, lights would be on for a few seconds after start up but would go away after like 4-5 seconds. I bought a spare alternator, and haven't installed it yet... knock on wood going good for 150+K miles so far.

skillton

blackbird your maxima looks good. soo evil. any more pics?

BlackBIRDVQ

iTrader: (15)

here is some pics...
http://www.chicagomaximaclub.net/showthread.php?t=1178

Only to be enjoyed on non-56K modem connections please !

Nismo98

iTrader: (7)

This happen about a week ago when I was driving my AE home from out of state. After the last stop before I got to Chicago I noticed that the battery light came on after I started the car. So I turned off the car and waited a minute. After a little while I started the car back up, and the light was still lit up on the cluster. I had no way or the equipment on me to check the battery, all I could do was keep driving back home. About 50 miles later I decided to make one more stop to fill up the car. At that time after I cranked the key and set off the hand brake, both of the battery & brake lights stayed on. I was able to get home that night, but after all of the interior light started going dim when I was few blocks away I know that it had to be my alternator. Today I picked one up from a dealership, and hoping to install it tomorrow. From looking at the diagram, the best way would be to get it from the bottom. Since too many things would have to come off in order to install it from under the hood. Whoever changed their alternator them selfs before, any tips on what I should be looking out for during the install? Thank you very much in advance.

Andrei

BlackBIRDVQ

iTrader: (15)

Nismo98, hold on to your recepit from Nissan..... their reman alternators are about as good as those you buy from Napa, AutoZone etc. I've seen it happen on numerous occassions where the "Nissan Reman" alternator does not live up to its name.

Lil story here... years ago my alternator crapped out on my 93 Sentra SE-R, I bought a reman one from Nissan. I only drove the car maybe 2K miles that year, I sold the car to a friend of mine and the alternator crapped out 2 weeks after he bought the car off me. The 12mo/12K mile warranty ended 4 weeks before..... lesson ? Never buy REMAN parts.

Nismo98

iTrader: (7)

Please check your e-mail.

Andrei

Andrew

iTrader: (5)

its your alternator. Even says it in your owners manual.

This just happened to me last week. Got a new alternator and everything is fine. $99 for the alternator..what a steal! LOL. Anyway, check your voltage when the car is running. Let us know your findings.

Andrew

Nismo98

iTrader: (7)

What kind of alternator did you get for $99?

Andrei

BewstAdd1ct

you can usually do pretty good with local alternator shops, they reman and test everything they do, and theres generally a 'personal' attitude, so theyll generally get it right the first time and for a good price.

same goes for batteries. you should be able to get a reman battery for $15-25

BewstAdd1ct

and ive remove the schematic, if anyone needs it, shoot me a PM

Andrew

iTrader: (5)

Got it from a place that rebuilds alternators/starters/brake calipers, etc..
Anything that can be rebuilt, they do it. 6 month guarantee. Thats all. I mean, its better paying for a remanufactured Bosch for $150 with the same to a bit more warranty.

btw, this place is by me on Long Island.

Andrew

maxpwr2k1

yep i had the same thing both lights on, and i ended up replacing the alternator 65k on the clock

kgibson

my 01 max just started doing this today... what should expect to pay for a new alternator, and install? I have a quote from a local place for 393.....

Memphis2k1

All of the above apply to me as well. I bought this guy... 140 AMP Alternator for my Max.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...RK%3AMEWA%3AIT

So I'll give it a try. Anyone install there own Alternators at all? The service manual makes it look **** easy.. I'm by no means a mechanic and I think I may try myself.

okay

I did the install a few months ago, its a pain trying to get to it but definitely do-able. I installed the alternator from the top, you need to remove the radiator fans and AC compressor to get to the alternator. Took me about 3 hours to do myself while looking up stuff online.

these are the directions that i used http://www.motorvate.ca/mvp.php/500

Memphis2k1

This guide looks like its for an older Maxima...Any idea?

Generally, is it the same..locations etc?

What year is yours Maxima?

Rydicule

How to Know When Your Alternator is Dead:

1.) The needles jump. (The tachometer and the Spedometer needles "die", or drop to zero and then back to actual while driving)
2.) Headlights Dim
3.) Loss of power
4.) Stereo cuts out/comes back
5.) Car runs perfectly after a jump-start. For a mile.
6.) Typically happens at night/during rain. The car can run completely fine and normal during a sunny day, but turning on defroster, headlights, foglights, stereo, etc. triggers the abnormalities.

This has happened to me in 3 cars. Signs were all the same, on a Subaru Legacy, a Toyota Camry, and an 01 AE Nissan Maxima. If you have these symptoms, time for a new alternator.

asianstyle

iTrader: (1)

same thing happend to me on my 2001. it's your alternator, luckily I purchased the extended warranty or it would have cost me $500 at the dealership.

KyMan

iTrader: (2)

I just had mine rebuilt at a local place. They also offered a lifetime warranty, so I'm not too worried about it. I also had them do the labor on it. It was around $250 with labor (to remove and replace) and the rebuild.

Once it gets cold here in a few weeks, my originaly 6 year old battery is going to need to be replaced as well.

ArMiXiA

Hey can you PM me the address of the place in Long Island please?

minbel1

iTrader: (3)

I have a complete power loss and all my lights dim constantly; however I have had this problem for good 5-6 months. I think if it was an alternator it would've been dead by now...

Mints33

iTrader: (5)

Definitely time to get a new battery, especially w/ the cold getting near. My battery died on me earlier this week. The new battery runs like a champ!

alextothestars

ill bet you drove through a LOT of water and did something to your breaks and fried your alternator?.......

i did that once; no splash guards

ps: get something good that has high cold-cranking amps...im talking NOT from walmart..been there...done that. warranty doesnt mean **** when they keep telling you its still good even though the battery wont retain its amperage after so much polarity is dissipated.

AltiMax2000

Bump.....hopefully I'm not braking any rules by doing so...

Drove the Maxima to work this morning when I noticed the lights dim, a few moments later, both the brake and Battery lights lit up. They remained lit until I got to work. Seems like the Alternator is going to die, so hopefully it can at least get me home later on today.

I'm in Peru, and had my 2000 Maxima shipped here. When it arrived from Canada, it wouldn't start properly, and the Battery eventually died. Bought a new one 10 days ago.

Another concern that might be related, is that two days ago, I heard a "Whining" sound....sounding like it was coming from the belt. But it went away yesterday and I never heard it again. Although this light problem seems more severe.

If someone can help, I would definitely appreciate it.

Thanks

young1976

dash brake warning light and battery light coming on at the same time means you need to replace your alternator. You can check the voltage at the battery with a volt meter before starting the car and after it's running. The voltage should go up to around 14 or so, if less than what you started with, it's your alternator that needs to be replaced. Check your brake mater cylinder to make sure you have enough brake fluid just in case you're low. But coincidences like that are rare.. But you never know.

You need to change the alternator. The brake warning light and alternator are "like" on the same circuit... the alternator voltage is lower than it should be, it triggers the brake warning light too. If you read through the whole thread, it's been discussed.

Good luck.

AltiMax2000

Thanks for your quick reply Young...
I've been reading quite a few threads about this, and I'm defeinitely leaning towards the Alternator.

The only "off" factor was that whining sound. Not sure if the belt is related. Would be good if anyone experienced something similar and how it was resolved.

If the car makes it home this afternoon, will definitely test the voltage before and after starting it.

As far as the belt is concerned....what should I be looking for? Just that it's secure in place and tight? Look for ware?

trooplewis

iTrader: (1)

Those 2 lights coming on simultaneously is Nissan's code for "your alternator just died".
Your battery will follow shortly if you don't replace the alternator...

You can replace it on your own but it is a PITA job, be sure to have a 6-pt 14mm wrench; a socket will not fit and a 12-pt will strip the nut for the alternator belt adjustment.

AltiMax2000

Thanks for the tip.
It's going to be tough finding Maxima parts here in Peru, as Maximas aren't available.

And the whining sound doesn't sound familiar to anyone?

Nelsito65

The whinning sound does sound familiar to me; It is usually a noise made by a dying alternator. When I replaced mine, after going bad, the whining was completely gone.
(I'm amazed that Maximas are not available there).

AltiMax2000

Yeah Nelsito65...
Appreciate the comment. When I heard that whining sound, I knew something was up. But as long as it's "Also" Alternator related....then hopefully it'll get resolved with the Alternator repair as was the case with you.

Did the voltage test before and after starting it, and it remained at 12.4 VDC. Meaning it was running completely on the Battery.

I was amazed that they don't have Maximas here either, but then again, they have other Nissan models that we don't have in North America "Almera" for example, which looks like a cross between an Altima and a Sentra.

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

Since Nissan sells the Almera, the altenators stand a good chance of being the same. Check into the amperage output of the Almera model and if its the same, you should be good to go.

if you're interested, here is some info on the Almera. The Almera name was essentially the European export-market name for the Nissan Pulsar / Nissan Sentra / Nissan Bluebird Sylphy.

http://www.cars-directory.net/history/nissan/almera/

vball_max

iTrader: (5)

on my '99, the alternator was making that whining sound you were taking about. I think the bearing in the alternator goes bad and when it spins, it makes that sound.

If the belts havent been replaced in a while, just replace it.

AltiMax2000

Unfortunately, I don't have any space to work on my car where I moved to.

A peruvian mechanic came over to look at it, and said he will either rebuild the alternator or try to source one.

We'll see what happens....

Hate this new helpless feeling.

AltiMax2000

Just saw your post DennisMik...

Cool link.
The Almera it talks about was discontinued in 2006. The ones that look like a cross between an Altima and a Sentra are 2010 and look like this:

http://www.nissan.com.pe/sp/web/mode...ry/gallery.htm