Possible alternator issue.. mivec stops working

[richardc9052]

Sooo... I just got my FTO home today and everything was great until mivec stopped kicking in after about half an hour (limited at 6500?) . i turned the car off, took out the key, put it back in and turned the car back on, hit mivec fine then for about 20 mins, Now the fist time this happened i notices the voltmeter was just under 14 volts, the second time it was more like just under 13 volts.. I tried again turning off and on the ignition, it hit mivec, after 10 mins of normal driving i tried again, no mivec.. now i am quite upset about this.

I searched and found that Kace ha a similar problem although the thread wasnt completed with a solution or wasnt updated to say the alternator was the problem... i also do not have the whirring sound Kace had..

Its late now so i will disconnect the battery tommorrow to see if the car dies..

If it is the altenator, does anyone have one spare? im quit broke now..

Anything else i can try???

Ps. I checked oil and waited for the car to warm up before hitting mivec..

[colm_mcm]

Without being funny, is the garage giving any warranty? Was there any advantage over buying private?
Alternator is a likely cause, hopefully its nothing more complex.

[StewyD32]

Hopefully you did get a warranty with the garage and you can fall back on that

As I said on the phone its probably the alternator.
I'd get the one you have on it at the moment refurbished if it is the root of the problem. Between €120-€150.

or there is this one on ebay
http://cgi.ebay.ie/MITSUBISHI-FTO-IMPORT-ALTERNATOR-4-PIN-PLUG-BRAND-NEW-/280616308064?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item4156090d60
and add on the postage and fitting if you can't to it yourself. the €120-€150 above will include the removal and fitting.

do the test tomorrow and see what happens.
I don't think the bad weather the past few weeks would have helped the alternator when it was sitting up in the garage yard doing nothing

[richardc9052]

Without being funny, is the garage giving any warranty? Was there any advantage over buying private?
Alternator is a likely cause, hopefully its nothing more complex.

No there wasnt .... And to be fair i had taken it for a good old spin at the start and it was perfectly fine... the car had been sat doin nothing for close to 2 years, only moved to pass nct when the previous owner (Before garage)... kind of sickened now..

Thanks Stewy, but as you know, my situation doesnt really allow for me to spend any more money, well for a while anyway, especially with the christening coming up soon and everything..

Its my own fault really..

[colm_mcm]

As any gr owner will swear, mivec isn't that important anyway

Hopefully it'll get sorted anyway, plenty reasonably priced parts around anyway and you havent lived till you figure out how to get an fto alternator out!

[richardc9052]

As any gr owner will swear, mivec isn't that important anyway
Hopefully it'll get sorted anyway, plenty reasonably priced parts around anyway and you havent lived till you figure out how to get an fto alternator out!

To be honest i watched a video on youtube of a Gr beating a Gpx in a drag.. dissapointment!! haha - I like the noise, and the fact i can say i drive a Mivec

Yes i have heard its a b1t*h of a job!! I might get it refurbe with a local guy and give him a few quid a week..

Next question.. does the alternator have any specialist parts in it that are difficult be sourced/replaced like a normal altenator?

[Mitsubishi-Mental]

It could be your oil pressure as well, if its being tempremental check the sump pan underneath any kind of a dent can cause mivec to stop engaging, it did on the 4g92 Mivec engines anyway, not sure about the 6a12 engine though. i think its vital to have an oil pressure gauge on mivecs, driven them for years and 9 times out of ten its oil pressure related

easy fix bout 60 quid for a new pan, bolt off

[mivecmad27]

It could be your oil pressure as well, if its being tempremental check the sump pan underneath any kind of a dent can cause mivec to stop engaging, it did on the 4g92 Mivec engines anyway, not sure about the 6a12 engine though. i think its vital to have an oil pressure gauge on mivecs, driven them for years and 9 times out of ten its oil pressure related

easy fix bout 60 quid for a new pan, bolt off

This isnt the case on the 6a12. There's been a dent in my sump since i bought her and i've never had any mivec issues...

[richardc9052]

It could be your oil pressure as well, if its being tempremental check the sump pan underneath any kind of a dent can cause mivec to stop engaging, it did on the 4g92 Mivec engines anyway, not sure about the 6a12 engine though. i think its vital to have an oil pressure gauge on mivecs, driven them for years and 9 times out of ten its oil pressure related

easy fix bout 60 quid for a new pan, bolt off

This isnt the case on the 6a12. There's been a dent in my sump since i bought her and i've never had any mivec issues...

There goes the cheaper solution...

If i drive it the way it is and just stay out of mivec will it eventually lose power because the altenator seems to be working a bit as i started her up for a bit today and it was at 14 volts??

[colm_mcm]

Not exactly well up on alternators, but as far as I know, there is a diode pack that goes on them. the alternator uses 2 sets of terminals, one set specifically for MIVEC.

[richardc9052]

Not exactly well up on alternators, but as far as I know, there is a diode pack that goes on them. the alternator uses 2 sets of terminals, one set specifically for MIVEC.

So the alt wont charge the battery when its in MIVEC or when its priming the MIVEC solenoid? If thats right, i can drive the car below 4500rpm and get away with not changing the alt for a few weeks... i hope thats the case, ill just bring jump leads with me or maybe not drive it at all until i get a new one..
Thanks for the help guys

[Sebastian]

To be honest i watched a video on youtube of a Gr beating a Gpx in a drag.. dissapointment!!

i drove that GR





/ swap alternators ,see what happens

[colm_mcm]

Er....

I drove the gpx


I guess Richard knew that.....

Still got a better time later in the day
(And got beaten by an ITR DC2 in the final )

[richardc9052]

Er....

I drove the gpx


I guess Richard knew that.....

Still got a better time later in the day
(And got beaten by an ITR DC2 in the final )

ya i saw all the event vids where an fto was racing, the itr didnt get you by much though...

[colm_mcm]

Yeah I had him halfway, fecked up a gear change 3/4 way through. Took me long enough to get the starts right.
Would've been nice to have had another crack at it with the toyos on, Mondello and limerick were both wet.

Maybe wildhound will resurrect the car and get some times down.