[sumeethaldankar]

Over 17 years I had my 800 I had the original alternator rebuilt. It lasted for only 4 years till I got a new one which remained till I sold the car. The alternator which came with the car lasted around 7 to 8 years. If the car is to be held for long you can go for a new but if it's for max 2-3 years better get it rebuilt. It will last as much at-least till you sell the car off.

[jaideepshinh]

I would suggest repair.

My Mercedes alternator failed in 2014 (W203, C class). The common causes of failure are:

1. Bearings getting busted
2. rectifier unit failing.
3. Winding related issues (never seen this but it is possible considering the nature of construction. I would assume it to be super rare)

For me, the bearings blew, causing the alternator failure. I removed the alternator, changed the bearings but then i was getting RPM based voltage fluctuations (which indicated the rectifier unit had failed as well). I bought an original rectifier unit from mercedes and changed that, and its been working well since.

Cost of repair for me-
1. Bearings (Rs. 190 approx- dont remember exact amount)
2. Rectifier unit Rs. 1700 from Mercedes service center

Job carried out in my factory. Time taken- 1 hour approx (it doesnt take this much time usually but it was a first for us)

Cost of new alternator from mercedes- approx 65k if i remember correctly (I had checked before carrying out the repair)

[Real_man]

In my 2009 Scorpio the alternator was repaired twice in the past. Once the regulator was replace while the other time the rectifier.

But this year with a very heavy heart I had to replace it. In one of my road trip my alternator conked off there was no output voltage which resulted in draining my battery completely. I was completely oblivious about this issue only until the engine just went off will I was still on road (doing around 80 km/hr).

It was early evening, i was stranded somewhere between Chenai and Bangalore. After spending sometime troubleshooting I called Mahindra Road side assistance, nearest Mahindra service centre from Vellore came for my rescue.

Long story short.. I had to be back on the road to continue my journey and the fastest option was to replace the alternator. If i opted to repair then I had to spend another day or two which would delaying my journey, furthermore even if I decided to delay my journey i had to manage my overnight my stay there. I simply replaced it, 30 mins job and was back on the road.

I have reapaired the old and kept it as a backup.. .

Therefore to repair or replace will depend on what situation one is. But I would always go for repair.

[smarth.katyal]

Originally Posted by Locomotive

I am in a bit of a dilemma. My car has run about 83,000 km. My key concern is reliability. But on the other hand the replacement cost is quite a bit. If alternators can be repaired reliably then i would tend towards handing the car over to SK Karzone.

Sorry if I'm bumping an old thread. However, I would like to know the final outcome. Did you get it replaced or replaced? What was the associated cost and where did you get it done? Apologies if I missed your response somewhere.
I think it would be valuable information for someone who might come across this thread later and help someone who is in the same dilemma.

To the original question, from what I know, alternators are very mechanical parts which rely on very little(if any) electronics. I believe most mechanical things, some as complex as the engine itself, can be very reliably repaired given the fact that the job is done by someone who knows what she/he is doing and the parts used are of good quality. This will definitely be much cheaper than a new alternator.

[Locomotive]

Many thanks to all who have responded to my query. At the time i had to decide I did not have enough information so I went for a replacement. The cost of a lack of knowledge I guess. Added to this I am a bit paranoid about the cars electricals. We have had bad experience years ago with my dads maruti 800 which had a short circuit and more recently a Fiat Linea which gave me persistent electical trouble. Of course both were due to tinkering with the audio system, which I have now sworn that I will never touch.

The Service center took about 10 days to procure the alternator from their Chennai factory. They also admitted that they dont see alternator problems often. They were nice enough to give me a loaner car during the period.

Now with the mileage piling on with my car, I will have to find an alternative service center as the authorised centers are unreasonably expensive. I have some pending suspension work which I shall be addressing shortly.

One quick word on Hyundai's Road side assistance program. When I bought this cover I was not sure whether it was worth it but they were simply brilliant. The process was seamless and It took just 45mins for the flat bed tow truck to arrive.

[saurabh2711]

Originally Posted by Locomotive

went for a replacement. .

Can I please ask you an question. --NOM--
When alternator is dead, battery never charges & all the current required is drawn from the battery. In such cases, the instrument cluster does indicates that battery is not charging or Alternator is not working. How did you missed that. The battery sign glows when key is in Acc position & disappears when engine is running. this indicates proper functioning. If the battery sign still glows with engine running, means trouble & running the vehicle should be avoided.

This light must be glowing when your alternator failed. Please ensure to keep an eye on this, from here on.

Just a suggestion & apologies if something sounded harsh.

Replacement will give you a peace of mind in long run. However, repairing would not have impacted your pockets much.

Another question, what happened to old alternator, what were the issues. You can still have it repaired & keep it as spare; if required in future.
I still have my esteems alternator with me.

[princenoble]

I know it is late, nevertheless, my experience.

My alternator also got damaged recently (Innova at 85K). It was never dead, taken to service center due to a noise from there. Toyota suggested overhaul and cost was approximately 15K.

Got it done from a trusted workshop outside, Cost about 5k & it was 1 hour job. Vehicle is doing absolutely fine.

[yogeshnagpal]

My 2002 Maruti Zen alternator failed about 2 years ago. My local FNG diagnosed it as a Rectifier and Cut-out unit failure in the Alternator and got it repaired for about 1500-2000 bucks. Still works! I think getting the alternator repaired from a competent FNG makes a lot of sense.

[Locomotive]

Originally Posted by saurabh2711

Can I please ask you an question. --NOM--
When alternator is dead, battery never charges & all the current required is drawn from the battery. In such cases, the instrument cluster does indicates that battery is not charging or Alternator is not working. How did you missed that. The battery sign glows when key is in Acc position & disappears when engine is running. this indicates proper functioning. If the battery sign still glows with engine running, means trouble & running the vehicle should be avoided.

This light must be glowing when your alternator failed. Please ensure to keep an eye on this, from here on.

Just a suggestion & apologies if something sounded harsh.

Replacement will give you a peace of mind in long run. However, repairing would not have impacted your pockets much.

Another question, what happened to old alternator, what were the issues. You can still have it repaired & keep it as spare; if required in future.
I still have my esteems alternator with me.

You got me I was not paying attention. Lesson learnt. I noticed the issue when my stereo first switched off followed by my cars power steering. Initially i thought that rats have chewed off the wires as something similar had happened before.

[stanjohn123]

My Esteem just wouldn't start 2 days back. Initially all the lights on the dashboard was lit as usual but when I tried to key in and start , there was nothing. It was just dead silent. The power windows did work though.

Later I tried removing and checking the fuse but after that nothing worked, neither the windows nor the dashboard warning lights.

I tried to jump start my car with another car of mine and that didn't work as well. So I checked the battery at a shop and they said it's working perfectly fine.

So is mine also an alternator problem?

[Akshitsi]

Hi. Recently suffered a similar problem with my Civic. Replacement cost was somewhat around 20k including labour, which didn't make sense on an old car. So i went ahead to get it diagnosed by a technician and he told me that the bearings had worn off, due to monsoon. He replaced three bearings for around 2.8k and the car is working fine now. So I guess replacement does not make sense.

[blackbeast]

My Hyundai Tucson's alternator gave up at 125000 kms. It had the alternator pulley issue. Replaces it with the genuine pulley but a used one. It conked off in sometime. Replaced the alternator itself. Price was 27k.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

I tried to jump start my car with another car of mine and that didn't work as well. So I checked the battery at a shop and they said it's working perfectly fine. So is mine also an alternator problem?

The battery shop would have been able to test the alternator output for you. Does the battery symbol light up when the engine is on? If yes, it is probably an alternator problem.

Check the battery clamps and cables (both negative and positive ends) for corrosion and make sure they are clean and fixed tight. If these are ok you need to get your car checked by an auto electrician.

[rubicon]

My personal experience with different vehicles is that alternators & self start motors (4 Wheeler & 2 Wheeler) is 100% serviceable.

If you do not have access to a local trusted auto electrician, then you can go to the Lucas company workshop (super professional) or their designated service dealers.

Extract from their website :

http://www.lucas-service.in/

We have 20 company-owned Workshops, more than 550 Service Dealers, and a network of 30,000 Auto Electricians / Mechanics. Our services span auto-electrical and diesel systems and include the diagnosis, repair, and testing of individual parts.

ALTERNATORS : For alternators, our services include the diagnosis, repair, and testing of individual parts like stator assembly, rotor, rectifier assembly, regulator, and brushes.

STARTER MOTORS : For starter motors, our services include the diagnosis, repair, and testing of individual parts like solenoid switches, armature, brushes assembly, pinion drive assembly, and field coils.

Workshop Locator :

http://www.lucas-service.in/work-shop/

Lastly, in the event of replacement, please do check their online store instead of looking elsewhere,

http://121.241.226.145/lucaswebstore

[Leoshashi]

Get it repaired. The alternator isn't a super complex thing which has to depend on success rate statistics. In my experience, most of the alternator failures happen because of one of these reasons: Regulator/rectifier unit, brushes, winding(very uncommon) or bearings.

I'll try to post in a point wise form:

1. All the above mentioned child parts are available. Refer to the PDF attached at the bottom.

2. Most alternators are made by Lucas TVS or Denso. Both of them sell child parts in aftermarket.

3. Alternator replacement is considered only when many parts fail together and the cost of repair almost touches the replacement cost.

4. Denso's repair is expensive, whereas Lucas TVS' repair is relatively cheaper.

5. Even if you need to change the whole unit, opt to get it changed from the aftermarket. The same thing in aftermarket will cost much cheaper. For example, alternator of a Maruti 800 MPFI costs Rs. 11000 in MGP(Denso Make). The same thing without the MGP tag, sold by Denso costs Rs. 5200.

Attaching pricelist and child part details of Lucas TVS and Denso:

Regards,
Shashi