electrical problem

[Tx-Sx-FS]

one of my relays under the hook keeps blowing after about an hour of replacing...what could it be? if there is a grounding problem or something..how would i fix that without taking in?? could i just add a ground from battery to body? or is it more complex than that?? any help would be great.

[NISTECH]

which relay? or are you talking about a fuseable link?

[Tx-Sx-FS]

on the relay it says ALT 75

[NISTECH]

thats a fuse link. You probably have a short in the altenator or the large wire to it. look to see if the wire was damaged near the oil filter. otherwise rip the altenator out and take it to be tested.

[NISTECH]

what year is your car?

[Tx-Sx-FS]

if that is an alternator problem..will that cause everythinkg electrical in my car to turn off...for example..my radio, windshiled wipers, a/c, gauges drop to zero, seatbelts dont work,

[Tx-Sx-FS]

its an 1989 sohc fastback

[NISTECH]

yea depending on what all it feeds.

[NISTECH]

thats a very large fuse if the problem were in the car the wiring would melt down before that fuse would blow. the fuse is the altenators mainline and it sends power to one of the fuse panels. then each circuit from that point is fused from the fuse box.

[Tx-Sx-FS]

how easily can it be fixed? i dont wanna pay alot of money to take to a shop and them simply tighten a bolt or something...ill prolly end up taking somewhere anyways..any help or support is appreciated

[NISTECH]

are you not capable of removing and replaceing the altenator? some of the parts stores are able to test the altenator in the vehicle. the problem with this is, if its more then simply the altenator the cost to diagnose it/locate the short could be up there. Especially since it takes some time to fry the fuse.

[Tx-Sx-FS]

yea..i could possibly remove the alt my self..but have school and work..not much time to do...and i was gonna take up to a shop that does testing for 60 an hour but after 120 bucks..they stop charging and if its 120..they replace parts with the money you paid...when i took the alternator up there..where would i ask them to start checking first..that way if they can find it fast i can pay less...

[NISTECH]

have them do a charging system check. I suspect they will find it is overcharging.

[Tx-Sx-FS]

what does that do? i mean if they just look for electrical..or will they have to diagnost the whole thing? what u mean overcharging?

[NISTECH]

it determines the output of the altenator, the integrity of the diode tree, and the amps created by the alt. This test is a basic test of the charging system operation. and not a general electrical diagnostics. If the rectifyer bridge in the altenator goes south it can cause the altenator to put out upwards of 18 volts and boost the amperage output. Usually a rotten egg smell can be associated with an overcharging condition since it will sulfate the batteries cells.

[NISTECH]

the test takes no more then 10 to 20 mins to perform

[Tx-Sx-FS]

cool..i dont smell the eggs or anything...if its not the alternator itself...and its the wiring..how hard or time consuming could that be..meaning will it costs alot for parts and labor?

[NISTECH]

it shouldnt be all that hard to find I would think since its only a couple of wires and they are big wires so a visual inspection may reveal the problem. This is assuming its not the altenator.