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Electrical: Engine Starting, Charging
Alternator Stops Charging: How to Get Home? My battery charging light just
came on and I am far from home. Belt is fine. What to do? [Steve] No reason to
be stranded because of this problem. You can get it home like this: Simply run a
hot wire from the battery positive and connect it to the terminal on the back of the
alternator....the one with the small red wire connected to it. This wire provides
excitation voltage for the alternator. If you can get the engine started and then
apply 12 volts to the excitation terminal, the alternator will charge. You don't even
have to connect the wire. Simply touching the jumper wire to the terminal will
cause the alternator to start charging, and remain so as long as the engine is
running. If you did connect it, you will need to disconnect it when you stop the
engine else it will drain your battery.
Alternator & Starter Applications and Parts. [Dave Stevens] Wood Auto
Supplies Ltd. in the Huddersfield, Yorkshire, UK has an excellent on-line alternator
and starter reference tool for parts. Visit
site. They ship worldwide. For alternators/starters, if you know the Bosch (or
Marchal or whatever) part number then enter it in the upper right search box. Each
major listing will give you the specs, a list of equivalent or similar units, the Volvo
part numbers, the years, models and engines in which it was used and a list of the
component replacement part numbers and an indication of availability. Many of
those components are linked to their own page with further information on the part
including a typically long list of all the alternators/starters in which that part was
used. If you don't have the alternator/starter number handy then you can use this
vehicle search page:
http://www.woodauto.com/woodauto/vehicle.aspx. First, make sure the upper right
search box is clear (or you'll come up empty). Select Volvo as the manufacturer
and then your particular model and/or engine. You'll then be given a list of the
alternators and starts by model year and application. You may need to try a couple
of model/engine/alternator/starter configurations to find the appropriate list of
alternators/starters. From the list just start following the hotlinks to find the full
descriptions and the parts you're interested in. Most are complete with pics. [Jay
Simkin] Contact
alternator parts (diodes, etc.) to rebuild your own units.
Starter:
Starter and Solenoid Problems.
What causes a starter to fail?
[Tips from Counterman Magazine, August 01 & Underhood Service, May 04] Starter
problems can be caused by worn brushes (carbon pads inside the motor that
supply current to the rotating armature), by shorts or opens in the armature or
field coils or by worn bushings that increase drag or allow the armature shaft to
rub against the pole shoes. Continuous and prolonged cranking is very hard on a
starter because it generates excessive heat. If not allowed to cool down every 30
seconds or so for at least a couple of minutes, the starter will be damaged by
continuous cranking. Other failure modes include:
file:///C|/Users/Steve/Documents/Volvo%20FAQ%20Updated/ElectricalStarting.html[01/13/14 10:02:47 PM]
Barsanco
in Centerline, Michigan (800-421-3374) for starter and
http://www.woodauto.com
to enter their
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