Electrical Guru's...... Please Help :-/
 

Hey guys, long time no see.... I have been (and still am) very busy with work and college and have almost no time to work on the SVX or the Rabbit anymore. That said, let me get down to the problem that I am having.... Some of you will remember me posting something like this alittle earlier this year (August)...

-My dash lights (Brake, Battery, ABS, and stoplight)all come on and stay on.... It takes about 15 - 20 minutes, but they will go off eventually... However, on a long trip they sometimes come back on... (Usually when they are on the alternator belt is squealing)...
-At times my interior lights will dim... When this happens, usually the alternator belt starts squealing...
-Sometimes when the alternator belt starts squealing, I get intermittent Powersteering (liike it is pulsing....)
-If I turn on the Climate control, I can see my interior lights dim and the belt usually starts squealing again...
-When the belt is squealing, I notice that the car seems to be down on power alittle, When it stops squealing the car seems more powerful than before....
-HERE IS THE BIG ONE... I have had this problem for a while now... Sometimes when downshifting (slowing down for a stoplight) the car will Stall or come VERY close to stalling... The Tach drops below the idle line and then returns to idle or actually stalls out... This seems to be VERY common when the interior lights are "dimmed" (problem above)...

*!* I have broken one alternator belt so far.... I fear that this one is very close to breaking too... I know simply replacing the belt will work for a while, but I don't want to "cover up" the problem... I want to find it and fix it*!*

Does anyone have any input for me?? ANyone have a wiring diagram for the whole car??

Thanks very much guys :)

Chris,
It sounds like a dieing Alternator to me....

I agree huck369.

To be more specific, it sounds like bearings in the alternator are freezing up causing the alternator to slow down or stop altogether.

That would preatty much explain all of your symptoms.

Alt. freezes, belt slips and wears out.

Alt. freezes, belt doesn't completely slip at low RPMs, engine stalls.

Alt. freezes, belt slips then grabs then slips, etc., power steering pump would be affected.

Alt. freezes, belt slips alt. isn't charging, lights dim.

I think you get the idea.

I have a '69 Ford truck, had very similar symptoms, smelled rubber burning, popped the hood, Alt. was frozen, belts was slipping and smoking, replaced Alt. and belt. Problem solved. Only about $45 for the truck fix . . .

Good Luck,

Since I'm sure you have a one piece crank pulley, that's not separating.

That leaves 4 options:

1. The alternator (as previously mentioned).
2. The belt (as previously mentioned). Have you tried a different brand/style?
3. The powersteering system needs an unusual amount of power.
4. The tensioner pulley bearing is failing.

The belt is only slipping on the crank pulley as both the alternator and steering are affected.

He took the words right out of my mouth.

Take off the belt and try spinning the three pulleys. The idler and alternator should spin freely. The PS will be a little tough but should turn by hand. If any of them don't, you most likely have found your problem.

Doug

Great minds think alike! :D

Same problem
 

damn what is it, everyone i talk to seems to have this problem cuase i sure do , i hope someone finds out how to fix it soon, oh huck if you wouldnt mind how much would you sell that blue 00' wrx for?

Thanks for the help guys... I'll be off work on thursday and will take the belt off in the morning and try spinning all of the pullies in line with that belt... I will probably also have the alternator tested... However, I needed to mention that it is a "new" alternator... I replaced it a few months ago... Youguys still think that the Alternator could be the problem?? Thanks again guys, I'll keep following up in my spare time from now till thursday...

Later!!!

Sounds like you are just suffering from what we have dubbed... the 5mt illness... The stalling when comming to a stop is very common. My 5mt does it sometimes... The lights (not just the interior) dim when the engine spins at anything less than normal idle... As of now there is no fix because no one really knows for sure what the issue is to begin with...

Are you sure all of your tensioners are good??? Remove the belt and check the bearings... I am sure you know what a good bearing feels like... Also check the PS and make sure you are at a good level. Then check the brake fluid res. If you are low on fluid or the rubber seal inside is poking down... it will set off the brake light...

Tom

I'll send ya a PM to keep this thread in line....

Awesome Tom... Thanks for the input. Yeah, I have been experiencing the "stalling" eversince I did the 5MT swap... Sucks that no one really knows what it is... It is REALLY REALLY Anoying!!!!!! :mad:

With that said, here is what I saw today......

I went outside at 7am and started the car.... No squeaking... :rolleyes:.... I pop the hood and look at the belt.... I notice that the engine (turning about 2,000rpm's) is in the "choke" mode for cold weather. The alternator/power steering belt is turning WAAAY slower than the crank pully is spinning.... There was definitly slippage there somewhere... There was just no squeaking as of yet... On my way to work it did start squeaking though...When I opened the hood there were TONS of rubber shavings all over the engine bay... This belt is only about a month old and is being torn to pieces!!! Tomorrow I'm gonna take the belt off and test all the pullies and tensioners, ect..... Will report back tomorrow :):)

Tom, have ya ever gotten a "pulsing" of the interior light when the car as at idle??almost like it goes from bright to dim (very little diffrence, but still noticable) very quickly??? It happens sometimes with mine, and other times it doesn't... I'll post tomorrow on what I find... THanks again guys :D:cool:

Yeah that happened to me once after an engine swap... Turns out the alt was beginning to crap out :rolleyes: This could be causing your issues as well... Was the alt a rebuild??? I would imagine so... maybe you got a faulty one?? Anyway... check the idlers and such before you go nuts

Tom

Alright, well I took the belt off and checked to makesure that everything turned just fine... It does. (**Note: after spinning the Powersteering pump a few revolutions, it got hard to turn... I imagine that this is normal**)... The only thing that I can think is that everything is slightly out of alignment... It looks to me like everything is off just a hair.... But that could be an error that you make by looking at things with one eye... I'm not totally sure... I think that I should send my old alternator back though and just order one from Subaru... Any thoughts???

Oh, I checked my brake fluid too... It was normal... The black rubber thing was sticking down into the fluid though...

The thing about the dash lights that worry me is that they all go off or come on at the same time... How can they do that?? How are all of those lights related??

You checked the idler as well? The PS pump shouldn't get impossible to turn, perhaps that is what you should investigate...


That's the one thing that always bugged me about the car. The alternator idiot light never comes. Even when it is completly fried and draining the battery it doesn't come on??? Just consider the dash "Christmas Lights" the real alternator warning light.

This problem still doesn't sound like the alternator to me.