Hello all,

Today leaving the house, the Pathfinder went into limp mode and has what sounds like a whine coming from the alternator along with a burning smell. Multimeter shows that it is running on battery power only, around 11v when I checked it, and not the 13-14v you'd expect. I swapped batteries and it seemed to have engine power again, but still the whine and the smell, and only 11-12v. Is it safe to say the alternator needs replacing or could it be something else? No issues prior to today. Thanks for your suggestions.

Sounds like the alternator to me as well. If you have questions, maybe find an old one in a upullit yard as a test unit.

Also, if you go to AAP, AZ, etc., they can test the alt for you (call first though, to make sure someone knows how to test the alt).

Is it normal to have an alternator fail with a it burning up?

Depends on the mode of failure. If the bearings got hot and failed, the rotor could hit the stator, but it's unlikely. Could be the rectifier assembly.

Regardless of the cause, it's still dead - But take it off and get it checked at one of the local auto stores or get a replacement with a lifetime warranty.

Got the old one out, it's definitely shot. Smells burnt and has a small crack in the housing. Went through the wheel well to get it out, worked pretty good if anyone else needs to do this. Thanks for info.

Great job!!

Please share the news when you get it up and running again.