​Retired

Charging Systems

Alternators

An alternator is responsible for replenishing current taken out of the battery by the starter while cranking the engine and for compensating for electrical loads of other systems while the engine is running.

Alternators are not designed for recharging a dead battery. If your battery is good but deeply discharged due to lights or other accessories being left on, you should recharge the battery with a battery charger to avoid damaging your car's alternator.

Many cars today have alternators that are controlled by or at least interface with the car's computer systems. 

Some cars and trucks today can potentially overload an alternator if some of the vehicles systems are not working correctly. The alternators output needs to be monitored under various conditions to determine if the vehicles systems could be over stressing the alternator causing repeated failures. 

A faulty battery in your car or truck can damage the alternator. 

A continuous drain condition on the battery by the vehicle systems will cause the battery to become discharged. You may or may not notice the condition but the alternator will feel the effects and will not last very long.  

To have your car's charging system properly repaired you need to have someone working on it that fully understands not only the charging system but how it interacts with the rest of your vehicle. At Steve's Auto Electric we can do just that. Steve's Auto Electric is not just interested in just replacing a failed alternator but understanding why it failed and taking the proper steps to insure that it will not happen again.