Its a Montego Estate M Reg - the (new) battery doesn't hold its charge more than a day.........alternator I thought. Looking at the connections to the alternator, there is the big one with several wires (sorry if I'm getting too technical) and a spade conector alongside with nothing on it. Am I right in thinking, having looked at my Haynes, that this is the suppression capacitor? If it is, is it vital and would explain the battery drain if its missing? What connects to it and from where? Many thanks for any advice/replies.
Basic alternator question - apologies
Oct 24, 2005
5 Replies
The message from "Catullus" contains these words:
The two big spades are the output. They're connected in parallel to the battery. The single wire is the sense wire which runs to the warning lamp on the dashboard. Without it connected the alternator will not do anything.
If your battery's going flat overnightish then either the battery is shagged or the current is going somewhere. Apart from the obvious like making sure the boot light isn't on, it's most likely to be the alternator itself.
Check that the red light goes out fully when the engine's running. If you're able, check the current drain from the batter with everything switched off.
Sometimes the diodes in the alternator fail and current leaks back through it all the time. When the engine's stone cold the alternator may feel slightly warm.
On the subject of Montego diesels. Anyone got a good Perkins TD engine?
Is there such thing?
The message from "SimonJ" contains these words:
Yes - I had two!
Do you have a working alternator warning light?
mrcheerful
Yes , but I don't think a 2306 won't fit it in the boot of a montego
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