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Oh no, 3.0 P2 alternator light on

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alternator
2K views 20 replies 7 participants last post by  edwardsuen 
#1 ·
When I had a 156 as a company car some 15 years ago, I swore I would never have another Alfa again when its power steering pipe perforated within its first year of life and left me stranded in France on a Good Friday with nobody able to help. Then I bought by 3.0 GTV P2, I couldn't resist it, and then a P1 TS (now sold) and had a P2 TS given to me by a friend. I am now realising having two Alfas is definately worse than one as it is twice the pain.

So yesterday evening as people were flashing at me and I didn't know why, (dim headlamps?), the alternator light came on and has stayed on. The day before yesterday I used jumper leads to start another car from my Alfa GTV 3.0, I wonder if a voltage surge had blown the Alfa alternator, although the Alfa was switched off......

Anyway, this looks like bad news. It looks even worse than taking the intake manifold and crank sensor off my P2 TS. If anyone can talk me through a step by step guide on how do get the alternator out I would appreciate it. Threads mention removing all sorts of things making me think its an engine out job.............
 
#5 ·
The battery still works, I drove the car 8 miles with no charge, I checked the voltage with the engine running, there is no charge.

Yes it looks like a subframe off job. May ask what you think I should budget for, allandwf, I cannot envisage taking the subframe off outside and I don't have time...
 
#6 ·
This is a really time consuming and awful job so I'd absolutely check it is definitely the alternator first.

I have a horror story of a local garage spending three days trying to do it without removing the sub frame, then the aux belt coming off jamming into the cam belt and totalling the engine. If any garage tells you there is a quick way then avoid.

Also there seems to be no chance of you getting a new bosch alternator, I tried everywhere. But try to get the best make you can because you don't want to be doing this job again in the near future. Karl at alfa shop manage to source me the last new magnetti one they had in Italy, so I'd give him a call and see what you can get.

I'd budget about £800 for the whole job. Also I'm not sure but it might be worth pricing up changing the variators and aux belt at the same time, but I'm sure others would know more than me if this was worth doing at the same time or not.

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#8 ·
Thanks. Oh sh!%. I am wondering if, given I want to keep the car, I should take the chance to have the engine taken out, do the cam belt and head gasket at the same time.

The head gasket is 98% fine, just that I get some oily scum from time to time in the coolant header tank, and this can only be oil getting past the gasket somewhere. It doesn't overheat or lose water, I wouldn't bother changing it yet other than the opportunity to do so with the alternator problem which is more pressing. The cam belt has done 20,000 miles in 10 years, so I reckon a change of that is in order...........

Overall bad news.......
 
#9 ·
PS I think its the voltage regulator in the alternator, this is the common failure point. This results in no charge on the multimeter, and the battery has drained to 11.5V but still starts the car.

There is a thread on the 147 forum about changing the voltage regulator with the alternator more or less in situ on a 3.2 GTA, not sure if this is possible on the GTV. I thought the chap must be bonkers for trying it but now I see why, it involves rotating the alternator to access and disemble the back of it. I don't fancy that, it could go badly wrong. Garage job....
 
#21 ·
I totally agree with you, I have the same thought also, I experience totally the same with you with my GT 2.0 JTS, except I am not jumping another vehicle, but being start from an external battery source, I am pretty sure the charging bushes is 100% fine as the car do charging very well before the alternator went bad!
I took off the alternator belts and found that no way that alternator can get out, or even to put the screw on top back in! Anyway, will be a garage job, just thinking if I should also pay for the cam belt job all at once?:thinking:
 
#10 ·
Actually you can take it out without removing subframe, but it's still a PITA to do. So much, that removing the subframe looks like an easier job!

Also, you can just slightly "drop" the subframe, instead of removing it completely.

Just do it as the manual though, to be sure.
 
#19 ·
Y not season, race...!

And indeed, it won very easily...! Laughing at the competition..! Thats why they banned it in no-time...

Italian spirit, always annoyed everyone, due to the fact that there is the "complex" way of doing things and there is the "simple" way of doing this..!

Italians (as Greeks also), mainly use the 2nd..! And this is what p i s s e s of the others which use the 1st, and pay millions in R&D etc etc
 
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