Some background: I took my 2k gle to my local independent mechanic on Thursday for an intake gasket, tie rods, stabilizer links, alignment, drive belts, and oil change. Picked it up yesterday and everything was great. However after about 10-15 miles of driving (non-continuous) my tcs, abs, brake, and battery light all lit solid and the airbag light was flashing. Then all my instruments went dead. I pulled over, shut off the car but it wouldn't turn over after that. Got a jump but the brake and battery light remained and the cluster died again. Tried jumping again and no luck. Picked up a new battery and I was able to get the car home but the brake+battery lights are still on, indicating a bad alternator. I took it back to the shop this morning and the mechanic denied making any mistakes and said the alternator just happened to go bad (checked voltage via meter, output was 12.2v).
I've NEVER had a problem with it before. It just seems way to convenient to be a coincidence. Was it shop error? Is there something that might have been knocked loose while he was installing the belts? Anything I can check? I'm just kinda in denial that the alt suddenly went bad.
Sorry for the long post. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

 

Other than putting the belt on the pulley, there is no other "touching" of the alternator that needs to be done. About all you can do is see if the belt is tight and see if the small, 2 wire plug is pushed in all the way on the alternator.

Unless you can see some kind of marks or damage on the alternator, it probably is just unfortunate timing.

 

I hate it when a car comes in the shop and something else goes wrong while we have the car. Happens all the time. Doing a fuel injection service and a coil goes bad.... Brake job and the a/c clutch goes.... I hate making those phone calls

 

Nothings perfect! Couldve gotten a bad replacement alternator..

 

I totally understand you, i work on my own car and sometimes this happens to me and i know i didnt touch the other component. Shyt happens, check that the belt is tight and the alternator plug connected good.

 

Keep in mind, 90% of mechanics are morons.
In your case it looks like alternator was OK, when you picked up your car, it died 15 miles later.
So if connectors are pushed in and belt tight, it is hard to blame repair shop. Check connector if they are broken.

 

Guys, thank you all for your input! I spent much of the day yesterday testing and cleaning the connectors and whatnot. Alas, nothing revived the darn thing. It seems that it's the original alternator so it was due to be replaced soon anyway. On the bright side while inspecting the alternator I discovered that the inner axle boot had torn open. I checked it like 2 weeks ago and it was good, so the tear is recent and I'll be fixing it. So I think the alt issue might've saved me from destroying the axle and having to replace that too (thinking positive!)

After many hours of reading through other threads and watching vids, I'm going to replace the alt myself. I have the option of buying a reman oem from advance or a new duralast from autozone. It seems to be hit or miss either way. Alternatively, I found an alternator rebuilder about 30min from me called Quality Rebuilders. Any suggestions which is the best route to take? I plan on keeping the car for probably at least another 2 years and I'd like this to be the only time I change the alt.

 

Whatever way gets you the longest warranty!

 

That's not the way to shop for auto parts!^^^

Who cares what the warranty is when it craps out making you late for work or does it out of town etc.

Duralast is plain junk. Does not matter whether it is new or reman. I'd personally take it to an alternator rebuild and have the entire thing rebuilt. It will be the same thing as buying a reman at a higher price but usually you get much better service from these fce to face rebuilders. At least around here you do. I have dealt with alternator rebuilders in Austin and San Antonio and they all seem to take pride in their work. It's more of a trade than a job.

Also a lot of the auto parts stores alternators get a quick test, replace a regulator or whatever a coat of paint and it goes in a box. They are sold with other worn out parts nearing the end of their life span.

 

Happened to me as well maybe it is due to the way Nissan designs their car but often sometime gets replaced -> something associated with it started to display symptoms.
Also the car is at least a decade old by now and when a new part is introduced, efficiency goes up creating more wear/term = death of the older parts?

 

Finally replaced the alternator. I ended up buying a new Prostart platinum 125 amp from pep boys for $140. Surprisingly, remanufactured was more expensive. The specs and reviews were generally better than alternatives at advance or autozone. They're all crapshoots either way. I was intending to get mine rebuilt, but the price difference was small and the warranty was only 6months vs lifetime on the prostart. The install took like 7hrs to complete by myself. I did as many others have done and removed the a/c compressor to take the alternator out from the bottom. It was such a PITA! I found it way too tight to squeeze the alternator through so I removed the fans to take it from above instead. It was much easier. So far the alt seems to be working great. I really hope it's the only time I have to change it.