The Alternator works by charging up the battery to power the starter motor, ignition and all other electrical components, replacing the generator used in pre 1960’s cars. If this fails your cars electronics will follow.
If your car starts to fail and the lights dim, the radio stops chances are your alternator has gone faulty, not the battery itself as people usually assume.
The alternator is located near the front of the engine driven by the crankshaft. The four components of the alternator are the stator, rotor, diode & voltage regulator. The rotor spins inside the stator, producing electricity which is converted by the diode from AC to DC current to be used by the car’s battery. The voltage regulator makes sure the current flowing to the battery does not get too high and ‘cook’ the battery.
If the charging voltage is too low in the alternator, the charging system could fail, causing the car to break down. Factors that might affect the charging voltage are drained batteries or worn/loose cables. It’s always best to check out the whole charging system — battery, voltage regulator and alternator if power fails. If you need to replace the alternator give us a call for a free quote and we will be guaranteed to supply you with one and beat any like for like quote.
