My GR is Almost DEAD

[jpsautostyling]

Hello everyone my story goes like this... About 4yrs ago i had a gpx mivec a beautiful car but ended up crashing it at 100mph into the back of a 106 as you can imagine it was a mess so from then on i vowed to get another FTO one day anyway the chance arose 2weeks ago with the opportunity of getting a 95 GR its totally standard not even got alloys so it was the start of a new project as i had just finished and sold my punto now here goes the problem as iv never worked on a jap import after picking the car up with a big smile on my face i drove it all day buzzing away then later that night all power is draining fast i watched the volt meter drop from 14v all the way to 0 then she died after calling my mate for a jump start i got her going again turned the lights on she died again so jumped her again kept it going for 10mins with nothing on i managed to drive the 5miles or so to get home then died again outside my house then a none starter just clicking so off came the battery which looked like it came off a disability scooter then i decided to upgrade the battery to a bigger one so the now fully charged big battery goes back in then off out i go she lasted about 2-3hrs then died again after getting the local garage to check her over i was told she might just need a good run so a good run she got but no joy the power just drains before my eyes so she now sits dead outside my house waiting to get the alternator replaced which iv been qouted £95 for a recon alternator and £60 labour sounds reasonable so im just wondering if anyone else has had this problem with there GR and did it turn out to be the alternator or something else any help would be grateful.

[colm_mcm]

sounds like an alternator to me, You should keep in mind that it IS an old car, and things WILL wear out, don't worry about it too much. you may as well do aux belts if they need doing while you're at it

[Muad_dib77]

I agree with the Alternator theory.. sounds like it's not charging at all..

[CJ]

This is a very common problem on the FTO and pretty much every other 10+ year old car. Its a simple job to recon the alternator and usually consists of replacing the diode pack (rectifier).

Welcome to the site by the way.

CJ

[jpsautostyling]

thx for the response folks much appreciated i had a feeling it would be the alternator at least if its not that the most expensive part is done then cause this baby is going to want for nothing ill post some pics as she is standard then some as im modding it thx again folks.

[TonyC]

I also have a FTO GR and this exact problem happened to me yesterday. Power indicator just dropped completely in about 20 minutes. Car was chuggin and about to cut out and i barely made it home.
Alternator you say...
Cheers
Tony

[mark]

any of you lads get any warning lights up on the dash. My alt went a few years ago and you could actually hear it dying (dronning sound with the battery light fading in and out on dash). I still managed to drive it around for a week or so before getting it fixed without the battery dying.
If its the alternator then get a new one, not even a factory recon. It's a lot of work to take it out and you don't need the extra hassle if it goes a month later! Also the GR alt differs from the the GPX in fitments and also from a 1.8 I think. Run a search from a couple of years ago as my GR got a new one and I posted the part number. Some also have different mountings and it's difficult to tell until you have them in your hand.
I popped the drive shaft out and half the suspension to get at it. Be wary of people saying stuff like it's just the engine mounts that need to be un done as these would get a lot of stress with the angles needed to pull out the alternator with the engine being jacked up. It's not a difficult job just a bit of work. Be mindful of gear box oil leaking (due to drive shaft removal) so it's a good time to change that too, can't do any harm!
good luck

[steelroe]

New one is expensive and recon will come with a warranty.

http://www.camskill.co.uk/products.php?plid=m3b0s9p192 150 sterling plus carriage, prob another 20sterling and you have to send them your old one at postage cost and they will then decide if it is servicable. If not It will cost you 250 sterling plus carriage.

Re-con iis a much chaeper option!!

[mark]

I got a recon first and about 2 weeks later it gave trouble. Bought a new one here in Ireland for around 250/350 euros.

[steelroe]

Recon is 60-100 max.h taking the chance I would think.

[mark]

You'd easily pay 150 incl vat in Dublin.

[steelroe]

given that you are in the UK i would say you could pick up a secondhand alt for pittance.
easy to check if alt is problem, put a voltmeter across the battery terminals and rev the engine. Voltage should rise to 14-14.5v

[jpsautostyling]

its got to be the alternator i cant see it being anything else well she is in the garage this morning gettin a new alty (well recon) i never heard any noise from it just the battery light was staying on till i reved it over 2500rpm then went out and when i put a volt meter on the battery which i fully charged before puttin it on the battery would charge about half a volt and the garage volt reader said the battery was ok to low but its a new battery anyway i should get her back later today all fixed the alternator cost £91.50(recon) from a local garage supplier (rays garage supplies Accrington) so ill let you folks know how i get on.

[jpsautostyling]

Well folks i got my car back today it turned out to be the alternator she runs like a dream again now it cost £91 for a recon alty that looked like brand new and the guy at the garage (AutoFix Accrington) charged me £50 cash for the fitting of it so thx for all your replies folks no doubt ill be pecking all your heads in the future ill post some pics of the standard beast.

[pergau]

Another success story for the F-team