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  #31  
Old 01-16-2005, 02:41 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Carlton
First, I am very pleased that you received a new battery from Advanced Auto after this harrowing experience.

However, what are the chances of the alternator going out and the battery being defective at the same time? Both items are less than one year old.

With all due respect to the Advanced computerized charger and testing equipment, I do not see any possibility of properly diagnosing a battery until it is fully charged. On a battery that is stone dead, this has to take a minimum of two hours to get anywhere near a decent charge and, preferably, would be done overnight at a much lower current level.

You cannot charge a dead battery in fifteen minutes and test it for cold cranking amps. The results are not valid.
The comp in that unit can, it takes into account bettery temp, rate it charged up and several other factors and makes a pretty darn accurate guess. Aint this techno **** fun sometimes? I was working there when they first started getting those units, they are pretty well idiot proof(for good reason). I've never seen one spec'd bad and it was not.

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  #32  
Old 01-16-2005, 03:13 PM
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Besides, even if the old battery was salvagable, it couldn't have been better than a brand new battery, which they gave him for free, so he still made out better than having his old battery.

Sometimes, far from home, the easiest solution is the best solution.

BTW, here is the thread about the Saab alternator that works in W123s:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=93569&highlight=saab+alternator

As I recall, it is an easy to find alternator, but requires you to modify the case a tiny bit, by unbolting the cover, rotating it a few degrees, and bolting it back on. Something easy like that. The thread will explain it all.

peace,
sam
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  #33  
Old 01-16-2005, 04:45 PM
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may be right

Mr. Carlton, you may be right. You sound like you know quite a bit. But what if the alternator rebuild was bad? That battery may have not been getting full recharge on all the short trips I take around town for seven months. Having never gone on a long trip in a while, I may have never known my alternator was bad. I guess it would have just kept using battery.

Anyway, the new Advance Battery is on the charger here on my carport. I will charge the new Diehard too. Should I take it out of the car to do so? Or just leave it in and hooked up?

Once I heard that sitting a battery on concrete would cause it to discharge over time. Is there any truth to this? I am guessing not. Chime in.
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  #34  
Old 01-16-2005, 04:58 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wolf_walker
The comp in that unit can, it takes into account bettery temp, rate it charged up and several other factors and makes a pretty darn accurate guess. Aint this techno **** fun sometimes? I was working there when they first started getting those units, they are pretty well idiot proof(for good reason). I've never seen one spec'd bad and it was not.
Well, that would be quite amazing. But, I have to give it the benefit of the doubt. No way that Advanced is going to give you a brand new battery unless they were quite sure that the dead one will not hold a charge.

How long is the battery hooked up to this miraculous device?

If the battery comes up OK, do they leave it on the charge for a few hours, or does the unit have a massive input current with the goal to charge it in one hour or less?
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  #35  
Old 01-16-2005, 05:05 PM
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I don't know

Looks like Wolf Walker who used to work there at Advance will have to answer that question.

Mr. Carlton, do you know if the 1982 300sd has the 55amp or 65 amp alternator? I think the tag is gone off of mine.

It looks like the best price on the 55amp is $130.

I do not have heated seats. But is that saab alternator a better bet?
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  #36  
Old 01-16-2005, 05:06 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by willrev
Mr. Carlton, you may be right. You sound like you know quite a bit. But what if the alternator rebuild was bad? That battery may have not been getting full recharge on all the short trips I take around town for seven months. Having never gone on a long trip in a while, I may have never known my alternator was bad. I guess it would have just kept using battery.
I am quite confident that the alternator rebuild was a "quick replacement" where only the faulty part was changed. They might have only changed the regulator to get it to work. I've been down this road, personally, with the SD. They rebuild it for $80. and then, two years later, they rebuild it again for another $80. Total BS.

But, if the battery was not being charged, you would be the first to know, because a diesel requires a good battery even in warmer temperatures. You could not drive the vehicle without a functioning alternator for more than about two or three days (estimation).

If the battery is discharged, this simply means that it needs to be recharged. My thought, although incorrect, was that the old batttery was discharged and would function fine if it were properly recharged. But, if that sophisticated machine can determine that the battery will not accept a full charge even though it is currently dead, well then so be it.
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  #37  
Old 01-16-2005, 05:11 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by willrev

Mr. Carlton, do you know if the 1982 300sd has the 55amp or 65 amp alternator? I think the tag is gone off of mine.

It looks like the best price on the 55amp is $130.

I do not have heated seats. But is that saab alternator a better bet?
I do not know if you have the 55 amp or the 65 amp unit.

However, unless you plan to add additional electrical loads such as high powered stereo equipment or high powered headlamps or heated seats, the stock alternator will function just fine.
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  #38  
Old 01-16-2005, 06:31 PM
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would euro lights be high power?

I am planning to switch out my regular sealed beams for Bosch Euro lights. Would these be considered high power? Would I be better off to go to the 65 amp alternator?
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  #39  
Old 01-16-2005, 07:08 PM
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I'd like your old alt to see if I can see what died in it, assuming you don't need it is a core(or even if you do, you can have my old locked up one)
I'm just curious.

On the machine, I don't like them, that fast charging. It's not that it will charge a battery completly in such a short time, it's that the computer knows how much it should have charged with the high current input in a given amount of time factoring in the temp. If it does not "take" the charge to a specified level for the entered CCA, it's bad. And yes Advance will give out a new battery without much grief to a friendly customer(which I know Will is).

Check the price on a rebuilt Bosch for that saab, if it's no more than the MB model, go for it. Clocking it around is easy. Installing it was anoying on my w123, but not so bad. We can do it in an afternoon.
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  #40  
Old 01-16-2005, 07:57 PM
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I'd be sure to check your ground straps-failure to have a solid ground could cook your new alternator (diodes) as well as the old one-an extra one from the alt to the inside fenderwell is cheap insurance.
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  #41  
Old 01-16-2005, 08:57 PM
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I killed 3 batteries in less than 2 years

In my jeep, I always attributed it to "vibes and heat" from off-roading...

When autozone replaced it the third time they said it would be the last unless I brought the alternator in for testing...

Well I replaced the alternator and I'm going on 4 years now with my current battery.

Robert
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  #42  
Old 01-17-2005, 01:37 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by willrev
I am planning to switch out my regular sealed beams for Bosch Euro lights. Would these be considered high power? Would I be better off to go to the 65 amp alternator?
If you use the standard H4 lamps in the Euros, they don't consume any more power than the sealed beams. However, if you can easily obtain and install the 65 amp alternator, why not use it? I'm not sure of any installation differences, however. Maybe others who have installed it can comment please.
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  #43  
Old 01-17-2005, 02:15 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Carlton
If you use the standard H4 lamps in the Euros, they don't consume any more power than the sealed beams. However, if you can easily obtain and install the 65 amp alternator, why not use it? I'm not sure of any installation differences, however. Maybe others who have installed it can comment please.

If I remember correctly they use different mounting brackets, I thought about putting in the larger one when mine went out but just wanted to get it back on the road and not fuss with it.
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  #44  
Old 01-17-2005, 09:58 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Carlton

With all due respect to the Advanced computerized charger and testing equipment, I do not see any possibility of properly diagnosing a battery until it is fully charged. On a battery that is stone dead, this has to take a minimum of two hours to get anywhere near a decent charge and, preferably, would be done overnight at a much lower current level.

You cannot charge a dead battery in fifteen minutes and test it for cold cranking amps. The results are not valid.
I am not sure exactly what these testers are really testing. I have not seen the literature for one of them or seen the software or anything like that. I have had a couple batteries tested and got a good look at the machine. One of them looked for all of the world like a PC in a proprietary box.

Often when a battery fails it is really just one or two cells that fail. If you look at a battery it is made of six cells and each cell is a two volt battery. Six holes to put water into. Often if you look in the holes in the battery you can see the white powdery looking sulfation on the plates.

When one cell fails and you hook-up a charger you will often see the amperage indicator on the charger go pretty high initially and then fall off quickly to a lower rate of charge. This is based on an observation that I have made and discussed with others. I don't know the engineering background for this but it would be pretty easy to program into a smart battery tester.

I suspect that under a load the discharge rate would follow a similar pattern.

There are probably other simple tests that relate to other battery failures that can be easily programmed into such a machine.

Last edited by TwitchKitty; 01-19-2005 at 05:57 PM.
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  #45  
Old 01-21-2005, 01:04 PM
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alternator replaced

I finished replacing my alternator yesterday. I fully charged the new battery overnight since using it without the alternator working ran down. Installed a rebuilt Bosch alternator with a one year warranty and free roadside assistance. $160 total.

The old alternator had a little bit of bearing noise on the shaft. Not much, but the last time it was "rebuilt" they put an non-Bosch brushpack/regulator on it and it failed in 7months. The indy I use said he gets tons of cars to his shop like this and that people need to stick to Bosch brush packs or they will not last but about a year. The rebuild of the original alternator cost $192. It lasted 7months, but I was stranded and out of town and had no choice.

Lesson learned. This was not a difficult repair. The bottom bolt was awkward to get to. Otherwise I did have to take the old alt. to local shop and get them to switch pully to new one - cost $2. Nut was torqued so tight I could not get it off.

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