Common Signs of a Faulty Alternator

A dead battery, lights playing up, trouble starting/stalling, unusual smells/sounds, and electricals malfunctioning are all indicators of a faulty alternator.

 

An alternator is a vital part of your vehicle that both charges the battery while you are driving and delivers power to the various electrical systems such as the lights, wipers, power windows, power steering, dashboard displays and stereo. For obvious reasons, then, a faulty alternator is something that must be replaced, and there are a number of common signs that indicate when this might be the case.

 

Dead Battery

While a car battery will eventually wear out, it may also go dead because the alternator isn’t doing its job and charging it while you drive. Test the battery with a voltmeter or have your mechanic do it for you to find out whether it has simply worn out. If the battery is OK, the problem is likely with the alternator.

 

Lights Playing Up

If your headlights are dimmer than normal or much brighter, or if they are flickering between dim and bright, this could indicate your alternator is faulty. The dimming obviously results from the alternator not being able to deliver enough power. Brightening, on the other hand, seems counter-intuitive. However, it can be caused by your vehicle’s computer hardware attempting to compensate, perhaps diverting power from elsewhere. If you observe that the car’s lights are more inclined to play up when you are doing multiple things that require electricity, this is a giveaway something is wrong with your alternator. Note that this headlight-related info also applies to dashboard displays.

 

Trouble Starting/Stalling

There are many things that can lead to a vehicle being regularly hard to start. One of these is a faulty alternator, due to the fact that if this part is not charging the battery while driving, then the battery will not be able to provide the energy to initially get the car going. A faulty alternator will likely also fail to supply enough power to the spark plugs, resulting in the engine stalling unexpectedly. These two things together – trouble starting and stalling – should be a clear pointer to alternator trouble.

 

Unusual Smells or Sounds from the Engine

As with the previous point, unusual smells/sounds can originate from many different engine problems. Nevertheless, an overworked alternator may give off a burning metallic smell or a burning rubber one (from its rubber belt). Similarly, when the alternator is not running correctly or this has already done damage to the engine, whining and rattling sounds may come from belts and bearings during operation.

 

Electrical Systems Malfunctioning

In the intro, we mentioned how, as well as charging the battery, the alternator delivers electricity to the wipers, power windows, power steering, stereo, etc. If any of these are behaving strangely – e.g. moving slowly or erratically – it’s definitely worth investigating if a faulty alternator is responsible. Try utilising a few of these “extras” at once and seeing whether this increases the frequency or severity of the malfunctions. That should give you your answer.

 

Where Can I Get a Replacement Alternator?

At Auto Parts Supply in Southport, we stock a wide range of replacement alternators and batteries – all at competitive prices. Check out what’s available in the Charge/Start System section of our online store, and feel free to ask us if there’s a particular item you’re after that you don’t see listed. You can phone Auto Parts Supply on (07) 5503 0169 or send an enquiry via the form on the site.