Is a 110 amp alternator not enough? WTH

[phocas 10+ year member]

I have a USX800d and a profile clarus 640 and my lights dim. I checked into getting a new alternator but I am reading that people are getting by with a lot less. A local car audio store said a capacitor would help but i read differently here. What the crap should i do?//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

Click to read more...

 

[grizzjwill 10+ year member]

well how bad you rlights dim is it a little or do they go almost all the way off

 

[MikeofTulsa Moderator]

i'd suggest possiblly getting your alt rewound slightly to give alittlemorepower.......a cap may help w/ the dimming....but not w/ the overall problem....if your charging system is not up to par adding a cap will jus add to the strain to the alt....it may "appear" to solve the problem w/ the dimming lights......another option is to try to upgade your ground wires and wires from the alt to the batt...

 

[phocas 10+ year member]

They dim alot, to the point i have to turn the bass way down. I just was reading about replacing the wires on the "big 3" . How much does getting your alternator rewound cost?

The ***** of this is that my family owns a rather large late model junk yard and I wish that a wrecked pimped out focus would come in //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif. Thanks for the thoughts guys, what i will do is check into getting it rewound, then replace the wires, then try a cap. Its to the point where I "HAVE TO" do something...

-Matt

 

[MikeofTulsa Moderator]

rewinding is generally 1-3 bucks / amper

 

[bigred78797 10+ year member]

Im not sure how much wattage ur dealing with but i know that i had to buy a second amp for my truck plus two additional small gel cell batteries ( under each seat ) before the lights stopped dimming and the clipping stopped. I have a 1800w amp and a 660w amp. Also try upgrading your ground wire to the thickest that can fit in the terminal on the amp. When i just had the smaller amp my lights dimmed until i used 4 guage wire instead of 8 guage for the ground. You would be better off putting a small gel cell battery close to your amp(s) rather than buying a $1000 cap.

 

[Matador 10+ year member]

rewinding ur alt would be cheaper n more effective than getting a cap.

think about it, it's CHEAPER ($1 per amp) and it is more likely to fix ur dimming than a cap (~$100)

u gotta cahnge ur wires too, so remember taht

 

[phocas 10+ year member]

Thanks so much guys! I have to get my new alarm installed today then tomorrow I will try to get it in to get rewound and also see how hard it is to replace the big 3 wires myself with bigger gauge wire......Ill keep ya posted //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif.

 

[mp3master 10+ year member]

just was curios..... Are the lights dimming a lot when the car is idling? or when you're driving around with the engine rev at around 2000 or 2200 rpm. Reason being... if your simply idleing and pumping the system, your alternator is barely working..... you normally get full amps at around the 2000rpm.... Just a thought... good luck

 

[MrJollie 10+ year member]

man, i thought my situation was bad. i have 1400 watts (NOT RMS!!!) in my system, and am investing in a $325 110 amp alternator. maybe someone could help me out on this, but when someone talks about upgrading the wires from the alt to the battery, do they also mean the wires that have to go from the alt to the electrical system too? where would one be able to get the necessary wire for this? thanks

 

[Gauntlet 5,000+ posts]

Originally posted by MrJollie man, i thought my situation was bad. i have 1400 watts (NOT RMS!!!) in my system, and am investing in a $325 110 amp alternator. maybe someone could help me out on this, but when someone talks about upgrading the wires from the alt to the battery, do they also mean the wires that have to go from the alt to the electrical system too? where would one be able to get the necessary wire for this? thanks

Well....if you want to blow $$ you can get the wire from wherever you got the wire for your power wire.....but it's easier and cheaper to just get some welding wire, it's cheap as hell. Home Depot or Lowe's should have some...

 

[Randy Savage 5,000+ posts]

Originally posted by MrJollie man, i thought my situation was bad. i have 1400 watts (NOT RMS!!!) in my system, and am investing in a $325 110 amp alternator. maybe someone could help me out on this, but when someone talks about upgrading the wires from the alt to the battery, do they also mean the wires that have to go from the alt to the electrical system too? where would one be able to get the necessary wire for this? thanks

$325 for a 110 alt? Is it made with platinum?
You can get a 110 amp alt for a lot cheaper than that...

Also, to the guy that was saying get another battery...that won't do much with a stock alternator...Upgrading your alternator is the best thing to do in your situation...

 

[phocas 10+ year member]

It dims like hell when i am driving. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

What i am going to do is take it to pep boys and have them check my electrical system and tell me if there is something wrong with my alternator. I am also going to check the 4 gauge wire that i had installed right before my **** started dimming. I had the same amp in there with 2 tens and no dimming. Ill keep you posted, thanks for the suggestions guys....

Also, I asked about getting the alternator rewound and all the places that i called (4 places) said they hadnt done that in 10+ years and they dont do that..... WTF?!

 

[MrJollie 10+ year member]

that's exactly what happened to me when i asked around about rewinding. no one in my area does it. the reason why my alternator will be so expensive, is because it is for a nissan pickup. can't really find one cheaper unless someone can point me to a place?

NO ONE IN MY AREA REWINDS ALTERNATORS! here is the link for the alternator i'm looking at, it is a 115 amp alternator.

http://www.4x4parts.com/public_html/shop/index.php3?page=shop/flypage&product_id=216&category_id=f0c6bcd674384f5e1d1c2e0f62df768b&ps_session=f6a730dd49b4cc03ec3bc67b3e839209

 

[phocas 10+ year member]

Well i just got back from the car place and they tested my electrical system (battery, alternator, etc) and they said nothing was wrong with it. WTF!!!//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/mad.gif.c18f003ab0ef8a0d9c27ca78d77a6392.gif //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/mad.gif.c18f003ab0ef8a0d9c27ca78d77a6392.gif

When they tested the alternator it was putting out over 100 amps(or volts or whatever) and the battery was great.

Right before i took it there I unhooked both the amp positive wires (4 gauge for the sub amp and 8 guage for the speaker amp) and i just hooked the 8 gauge to the sub amp and when the bass was cranking the lights were still dimming with just that one amp. I am now led to believe that something is wrong with the amp.

I guess since i cannot afford $300+ (at very least) for a new alternator I will have to buy a two farad capacitor to see if that can help. To be honest I can play my bass happily in the day time (with only my speedometer light dimming) and at night i will have to turn it down.

I will keep you guys posted and thanks very much for the insight in this sh177y situation.//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif