Breakdown Information
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RV: 1998 Fleetwood Southwind 35s on 1999 Ford F53 Chassis
Engine/transmission: Ford 6.8L EFI SOHC V-10 w/ 4 Speed Auto E40D trans
41,000 miles
Year: 1999
Breakdown: Alternator failure
Symptom: 1. Smell of burning wire/metal 2. Battery light on dash activated 3. Declining voltage reading on alternator gauge
Effect: Loss of electrical power, dead battery, and shutdown of engine while cruising
Cause: Meltdown of positive post and alternator-to-battery cable lug. (suspect a simple loose connection was initial cause)
Outcome: Replaced alternator, cable, and battery
Late yesterday afternoon, while cruising eastbound on I-70 towards Kansas City, MO from Golden, CO, my wife and I noticed a strange sudden odor in the cabin. She thought something was burning, and it smelled like popcorn to her. I thought we may have passed a pile of rotting manure LOL. We pulled over and checked the cabin, and found nothing of interest, as the smell quickly went away. I glanced under the hood and in the engine compartment, didn't see any problems, so I resumed driving, planning to inspect our rig thoroughly when we reached WaKeeney, KS, where we had reservations to park for the night.
As we crossed into Kansas, the battery warning light on the dash came on, and I noticed that the alternator output gauge seemed low, but I was still hoping to make it to WaKeeney. It didn't happen. While driving about 65 mph, the engine suddenly started losing power. I pulled off the road, and the engine died.
I looked in the engine compartment, didn't notice anything right off, so I tested the battery, and it checked very bad. Since it was 3+ years old, and only had a 3 year warranty, I believed it may have just croaked. I took the battery out of our Mitsubishi Toad, and everything seemed okay EXCEPT the battery light was still on. I hoped it just needed to be reset, and started driving towards WaKeeney again.
However, just after Colby, KS, I saw that the alternator gauge was dropping slightly again, and there was a slight odor of something hot again. We decided to stop at an RV park just before Oakley so I could go ahead and find out what was going on.
This time, when I opened the hatch inside, I immediately found the problem; the cable that goes to the hot lug on the alternator was fried and completely detached, and the threaded positive post and nuts on the back of the alternator were welded into an ugly blob of metal.
Apparently, there was a bad connection that began arcing, and it eventually caused a total meltdown.
This morning, I drove into Oakley and purchased a new alternator and cable. I did most of the work to change it out from inside the cabin, bending over the hatch. (The first parts store I went to may have "know-how", but they didn't have the 130 amp replacement alternator that I needed. Maybe a 90 amp would work, but I think the bigger one is optimal; think of how much current is pulled when you're driving with lights, dash air, radio, back-up camera, wipers, etc. pulling loads).
At Bumper to Bumper, they had the 130 amp alternator. It was $200+ dollars, and there was a $50 core charge deposit, which I got back later in the day.
I had to remove the rubber tubing of the air handler (by loosening two large worm clamps) and push it to the drivers' side of the compartment. I then turned my attention to the serpentine belt, and used a long 1/2" drive breaker bar to insert into the tension idler. (I had my wife hold the handle of the breaker bar from inside, while I crawled underneath the motorhome and inserted the drive into the square hole in the idler bracket).
Back inside, from the top, I turned the breaker bar handle towards the steering wheel, releasing pressure on the belt so I could remove it from the alternator pulley.
Now, there was one bolt on the back of the alternator, and two mounting bolts on the face. All have a metric #10 head. If you could see the alternator through the radiator, and imagine it as a clock, the bolts are located in front (there are mounting "ears" more or less) at about the 4:30 and 7:30 positions. I used a ratchet and number 10 socket with no extension for these front two bolts. The bolt on top (alos number 10) required a short extension. You'll probably have to cut a couple of cable ties and pull some cables out of the way to access it.
I used a screwdriver to pry the large and small wire connector plugs out of the back of the alternator, and then lifted it out through the hatch. It is heavy. I only mashed one finger one time, and only uttered a couple of choice curse words.
I put the new positive cable (with new "Loom" chafe tube around the entire length, other than the lugs) on the new alternator, before I installed with the 3 bolts. Now I attached the two wire harness plugs on the back.
I then pulled the serpentine belt tensioner the same direction again, and slid the belt onto the new alternator.
(NOTES: 1. When you buy a new alternator, make sure it has the IDENTICAL pulley as the one coming off. The parts store where I bought mine swapped them out, because the normal stock pulley is too narrow, and won't work.
2. If you're not experienced with installing a serpentine belt, study and, if necessary, draw the routing of the serpentine belt BEFORE you ever begin to remove the old alternator, because when you take it off of the alternator, it may slide off of other pulleys, and you'll be cussing mad when it won't go back on properly.
Lastly, you may be wondering what I did with the other end of that positive cable coming off of the hot post of the alternator.
If you scoot up under your motorhome on the front passenger side, there is a space just big enough to practically sit up and look around. You'll see that the wiring comes down from the alternator, around a piece of the frame, and back up to a mounting terminal with two posts sticking out. There will probably be two black plastic covers over the threaded posts. I removed the plastic cover, then took the nut off of the bottom post. That's where the cable mounts, and then the current goes to the battery through another cable.
I used several cable ties to attach the new cable to other cables on the way, so that it won't be rubbing or lying against any part of the engine.
Since my original battery was old and had been drawn down to dead, I bit the bullet and bought a new one, paying about $120 for it.
After installation was complete, I hooked a voltage tester to the battery posts. It read a bit over 12.4 volts DC. I cranked the engine, then looked again, the voltage was dead on 14 vDC. I turned on the lights and dash air, and it still read 14 volts.
So, tomorrow, we will head for Kansas City, a day late and $500 short. (That figure isn't just the alternator, cable, and battery, but includes the approximatelly $70 in forfeited deposits at WaKeeney KOA from last night, and from Longview Lake Campground for tonight in Kansas City, MO.)
Hey, I'm looking on the bright side, though. If I had to pay a mechanic to take care of this, we would probably be several days late and at least $1,000 dollars short!
NOTES TO SELF: 1. I'll try to check all connections more often in the future. 2. We'll probably go back to NOT making reservations that require a credit card, unless it is a holiday or other reason for peak demand.
Engine/transmission: Ford 6.8L EFI SOHC V-10 w/ 4 Speed Auto E40D trans
41,000 miles
Year: 1999
Breakdown: Alternator failure
Symptom: 1. Smell of burning wire/metal 2. Battery light on dash activated 3. Declining voltage reading on alternator gauge
Effect: Loss of electrical power, dead battery, and shutdown of engine while cruising
Cause: Meltdown of positive post and alternator-to-battery cable lug. (suspect a simple loose connection was initial cause)
Outcome: Replaced alternator, cable, and battery
Late yesterday afternoon, while cruising eastbound on I-70 towards Kansas City, MO from Golden, CO, my wife and I noticed a strange sudden odor in the cabin. She thought something was burning, and it smelled like popcorn to her. I thought we may have passed a pile of rotting manure LOL. We pulled over and checked the cabin, and found nothing of interest, as the smell quickly went away. I glanced under the hood and in the engine compartment, didn't see any problems, so I resumed driving, planning to inspect our rig thoroughly when we reached WaKeeney, KS, where we had reservations to park for the night.
As we crossed into Kansas, the battery warning light on the dash came on, and I noticed that the alternator output gauge seemed low, but I was still hoping to make it to WaKeeney. It didn't happen. While driving about 65 mph, the engine suddenly started losing power. I pulled off the road, and the engine died.
I looked in the engine compartment, didn't notice anything right off, so I tested the battery, and it checked very bad. Since it was 3+ years old, and only had a 3 year warranty, I believed it may have just croaked. I took the battery out of our Mitsubishi Toad, and everything seemed okay EXCEPT the battery light was still on. I hoped it just needed to be reset, and started driving towards WaKeeney again.
However, just after Colby, KS, I saw that the alternator gauge was dropping slightly again, and there was a slight odor of something hot again. We decided to stop at an RV park just before Oakley so I could go ahead and find out what was going on.
This time, when I opened the hatch inside, I immediately found the problem; the cable that goes to the hot lug on the alternator was fried and completely detached, and the threaded positive post and nuts on the back of the alternator were welded into an ugly blob of metal.
Apparently, there was a bad connection that began arcing, and it eventually caused a total meltdown.
This morning, I drove into Oakley and purchased a new alternator and cable. I did most of the work to change it out from inside the cabin, bending over the hatch. (The first parts store I went to may have "know-how", but they didn't have the 130 amp replacement alternator that I needed. Maybe a 90 amp would work, but I think the bigger one is optimal; think of how much current is pulled when you're driving with lights, dash air, radio, back-up camera, wipers, etc. pulling loads).
At Bumper to Bumper, they had the 130 amp alternator. It was $200+ dollars, and there was a $50 core charge deposit, which I got back later in the day.
I had to remove the rubber tubing of the air handler (by loosening two large worm clamps) and push it to the drivers' side of the compartment. I then turned my attention to the serpentine belt, and used a long 1/2" drive breaker bar to insert into the tension idler. (I had my wife hold the handle of the breaker bar from inside, while I crawled underneath the motorhome and inserted the drive into the square hole in the idler bracket).
Back inside, from the top, I turned the breaker bar handle towards the steering wheel, releasing pressure on the belt so I could remove it from the alternator pulley.
Now, there was one bolt on the back of the alternator, and two mounting bolts on the face. All have a metric #10 head. If you could see the alternator through the radiator, and imagine it as a clock, the bolts are located in front (there are mounting "ears" more or less) at about the 4:30 and 7:30 positions. I used a ratchet and number 10 socket with no extension for these front two bolts. The bolt on top (alos number 10) required a short extension. You'll probably have to cut a couple of cable ties and pull some cables out of the way to access it.
I used a screwdriver to pry the large and small wire connector plugs out of the back of the alternator, and then lifted it out through the hatch. It is heavy. I only mashed one finger one time, and only uttered a couple of choice curse words.
I put the new positive cable (with new "Loom" chafe tube around the entire length, other than the lugs) on the new alternator, before I installed with the 3 bolts. Now I attached the two wire harness plugs on the back.
I then pulled the serpentine belt tensioner the same direction again, and slid the belt onto the new alternator.
(NOTES: 1. When you buy a new alternator, make sure it has the IDENTICAL pulley as the one coming off. The parts store where I bought mine swapped them out, because the normal stock pulley is too narrow, and won't work.
2. If you're not experienced with installing a serpentine belt, study and, if necessary, draw the routing of the serpentine belt BEFORE you ever begin to remove the old alternator, because when you take it off of the alternator, it may slide off of other pulleys, and you'll be cussing mad when it won't go back on properly.
Lastly, you may be wondering what I did with the other end of that positive cable coming off of the hot post of the alternator.
If you scoot up under your motorhome on the front passenger side, there is a space just big enough to practically sit up and look around. You'll see that the wiring comes down from the alternator, around a piece of the frame, and back up to a mounting terminal with two posts sticking out. There will probably be two black plastic covers over the threaded posts. I removed the plastic cover, then took the nut off of the bottom post. That's where the cable mounts, and then the current goes to the battery through another cable.
I used several cable ties to attach the new cable to other cables on the way, so that it won't be rubbing or lying against any part of the engine.
Since my original battery was old and had been drawn down to dead, I bit the bullet and bought a new one, paying about $120 for it.
After installation was complete, I hooked a voltage tester to the battery posts. It read a bit over 12.4 volts DC. I cranked the engine, then looked again, the voltage was dead on 14 vDC. I turned on the lights and dash air, and it still read 14 volts.
So, tomorrow, we will head for Kansas City, a day late and $500 short. (That figure isn't just the alternator, cable, and battery, but includes the approximatelly $70 in forfeited deposits at WaKeeney KOA from last night, and from Longview Lake Campground for tonight in Kansas City, MO.)
Hey, I'm looking on the bright side, though. If I had to pay a mechanic to take care of this, we would probably be several days late and at least $1,000 dollars short!
NOTES TO SELF: 1. I'll try to check all connections more often in the future. 2. We'll probably go back to NOT making reservations that require a credit card, unless it is a holiday or other reason for peak demand.
