What to do when the battery light on my Plymouth Voyager 1998, goes on.
Apr 20, 2009 at 11:28 PM
1998 Plymouth Voyager Battery light is on
ALBERT68
- MEMBER
- 1 POST
Get it fixed!
Ok; that's the short version. This charging system is real reliable. With the mileage you listed, I would suspect worn brushes in the alternator. On '95 and older vans and cars, I can change them without removing the alternator from the engine. I never tried that on a '96 or newer van.
If you want to test for worn brushes yourself, you'll need a voltmeter or a test light. Find the two small terminals on the back of the alternator. They will likely be coming out of a rectangular black plastic block. One should have battery voltage on it. The other one should have less, but not zero. The engine must be running for these voltages to be present. If only one has zero volts, the brushes are worn and must be replaced. Most people just replace the entire alternator.
caradiodoc
Ok; that's the short version. This charging system is real reliable. With the mileage you listed, I would suspect worn brushes in the alternator. On '95 and older vans and cars, I can change them without removing the alternator from the engine. I never tried that on a '96 or newer van.
If you want to test for worn brushes yourself, you'll need a voltmeter or a test light. Find the two small terminals on the back of the alternator. They will likely be coming out of a rectangular black plastic block. One should have battery voltage on it. The other one should have less, but not zero. The engine must be running for these voltages to be present. If only one has zero volts, the brushes are worn and must be replaced. Most people just replace the entire alternator.
caradiodoc
Apr 29, 2009 at 12:09 AM