94 Escort Station wagon...

[NottaCarGirl]

So here's the deal:

I had some random trouble three months ago with my battery. Took it to Advance Auto, they checked it- bad battery, nothin to it. Bought a new one, hooked it up, found out that the alternator wasn't working right either- same deal, bought a new one, hooked it up, got it goin fine. Well- two weeks ago, my battery light comes on, and it stays on. Last week, we took the new battery back to advance, they tell us its a dud and replace it... Well NOW, a week later, I have spent all morning trying to keep the battery charged long enough for me to get back to advance to have them check it... two different people were kind enough to jump my car off for me, because it died on me TWICE within ten minutes. (I got to the store I was goin to, shut it off, came out and it would not start- jumped it, got to a red light, and it died again) Now advance is telling me the brand new alternator is bad....

What could cause a brand new alternator to just go caput and tap out? It is barely two months old!!!!! Any help would be appreciated!!!!!

[AzTumbleweed]

I'd ask for a refund and go somewhere else.

[NottaCarGirl]

Originally Posted by AzTumbleweed

I'd ask for a refund and go somewhere else.

lol yeah that is what I am thinking about doing. O'reilly Auto Parts had much better service, even if they were smaller and busier.

[chrisanthony]

Originally Posted by NottaCarGirl

So here's the deal:

I had some random trouble three months ago with my battery. Took it to Advance Auto, they checked it- bad battery, nothin to it. Bought a new one, hooked it up, found out that the alternator wasn't working right either- same deal, bought a new one, hooked it up, got it goin fine. Well- two weeks ago, my battery light comes on, and it stays on. Last week, we took the new battery back to advance, they tell us its a dud and replace it... Well NOW, a week later, I have spent all morning trying to keep the battery charged long enough for me to get back to advance to have them check it... two different people were kind enough to jump my car off for me, because it died on me TWICE within ten minutes. (I got to the store I was goin to, shut it off, came out and it would not start- jumped it, got to a red light, and it died again) Now advance is telling me the brand new alternator is bad....

What could cause a brand new alternator to just go caput and tap out? It is barely two months old!!!!! Any help would be appreciated!!!!!

Yea get a refund. I purchased a energizer car battery from walmart and i had no problems with it also Canadian tire has good alternators(champion or Bosch) and easy return if something happens.

[zzyzzx2]

Go t NAPA and get an Alternator there. Places like Advance Auto/ Autozone, Pep Boys, sell mostly crap for auto parts (espically alternators).

[denisond3]

I would start looking for problems elsewhere that are interfering with normal operation of the alternator and battery. Such as the fuse box and relay box that is under the hood next to the battery, and possibly a bad connection at the battery terminals. Both positive and negative battery connections are important.
If you have or can get a voltmeter, you can check the battery voltages yourself. A fully charged battery should read about 12.6 volts, if the engine is not running and hasnt been running for about 30 minutes. You measure the voltage at the top of the battery posts, rather than the terminals on the battery cables. If the voltage is below 12.0 - then either the battery is discharged or it has an internal problem.
After starting the car, the voltage across those battery posts (positive to negatvie) should read at least 13.2, climbing to something like 14.4 to 14.8 in a few minutes of driving in the daytime. If the voltage doesnt rise to be above 14.0 in 20 minutes of driving, then either the alternator is not doing its job, or you have something in the wiring from alternator to battery that needs fixed. It could be a bad connection at one of the wires on the positive battery connection, or at the fuse and relay box that is close to the battery.
When the alternator was installed, it should have had 3 connections made to it. One is the large wire that takes the output voltage back to the battery. One is a connector with two wires that feeds the battery voltage to the alternator so it can work (charging the battery). The last one is an indicator connection, a single wire - that causes the red light on the dashboard to come on. I have seen this connector broken on several Escorts, broken or having a bad contact. It doesnt affect the charging, but will affect whether the 'alt' light on the dashboard works or not.
My viewpoint on Escort battery terminal connections is that the original connectors are not very durable. They have been a problem on my 2 Escorts, and have to be cleaned or replaced when they get old.
Good Luck.