haolepinoy
Incomplete Idiot
So, I've got a 2003 Montero Limited. She's great, but as with most she's got a few problems. This is a tale about one of them, and like all good mysteries it actually begins on a dark, stormy night...
A little background on this poor girl's previous life...basically it sucked. Corporate lease, 5 total previous owners, last owner's choice mechanics were total hacks. You know that insanity that drives people to get the feels for abused animals, well, I've got a pinch of that for vehicles, and I'm sure Sarah McLachlan was humming in my head when I saw this poor rig. I just had to rescue it from these abusive bastards, nurse it back to health, and set it free to the life of mountains and sandy shores it was build and bred for. Anyways, as it relates to this tale, here's how I found the battery and fuse boxes once I got her home:
Broken battery box, corrosion everywhere, velcro lashing holding two fuse boxes closed, and a cheapo battery. Basic fixes included epoxying the battery box back together, cleaning and painting rusty hold-down components, and cleaning up all the visible corrosion. All things electrical seemed good. 14.3v on start-up, stayed between 13.8 and 14.1 while driving, above battery voltage under heavy load (low 13v or so). Battery consistent 12.7v, load tested fine at work. Good...I can focus on other stuff, right? Well, then comes a problem...
I first noticed it one dark and stormy night after coming to a stop. The Montero's idle dropped really low, shuddered, and stalled. It started right back up, but I immediately noticed a problem with the vehicle's voltage. I have a plug-in digital volt meter that I keep plugged into the center console's 12v outlet, and what I noticed was that the voltage would drop down to 12.5v or less when I wasn't on the skinny pedal. I turned off the a/c, fan, and rear defroster and the voltage climbed back up to ~14.0v, both when driving or idling at a stop. I chocked it up to maybe having a bad ground or hidden corrosion that kept the vehicle's alternator from keeping up under a full load (hot, rainy night meant I had almost everything on: a/c, wiper, lights, rear defrost, etc.). Told myself I'd take care of it later, turned off the a/c, and made it home with no more troubles. Looked around a little and saw that simple things like having a bad serpentine belt can manifest during rainy conditions, slipping more than normal. It doesn't turn the pulley, thus voltage drops, thus stalling. Ok, that sounds logical. Maybe I just need a new belt.
Problem summarized: Montero's voltage drops below 12.5v at idle (in drive, not park) with a/c and other accessories on causing the vehicle to stall.
So what did I do? Change the belt? Uh, well...we loaded the kids, a fridge, and a few hundred pounds of camping gear into the rig and went on a 500-mile dirt road trip. I told myself, "It'll be fine. Just don't use the A/C."
A little background on this poor girl's previous life...basically it sucked. Corporate lease, 5 total previous owners, last owner's choice mechanics were total hacks. You know that insanity that drives people to get the feels for abused animals, well, I've got a pinch of that for vehicles, and I'm sure Sarah McLachlan was humming in my head when I saw this poor rig. I just had to rescue it from these abusive bastards, nurse it back to health, and set it free to the life of mountains and sandy shores it was build and bred for. Anyways, as it relates to this tale, here's how I found the battery and fuse boxes once I got her home:
Broken battery box, corrosion everywhere, velcro lashing holding two fuse boxes closed, and a cheapo battery. Basic fixes included epoxying the battery box back together, cleaning and painting rusty hold-down components, and cleaning up all the visible corrosion. All things electrical seemed good. 14.3v on start-up, stayed between 13.8 and 14.1 while driving, above battery voltage under heavy load (low 13v or so). Battery consistent 12.7v, load tested fine at work. Good...I can focus on other stuff, right? Well, then comes a problem...
I first noticed it one dark and stormy night after coming to a stop. The Montero's idle dropped really low, shuddered, and stalled. It started right back up, but I immediately noticed a problem with the vehicle's voltage. I have a plug-in digital volt meter that I keep plugged into the center console's 12v outlet, and what I noticed was that the voltage would drop down to 12.5v or less when I wasn't on the skinny pedal. I turned off the a/c, fan, and rear defroster and the voltage climbed back up to ~14.0v, both when driving or idling at a stop. I chocked it up to maybe having a bad ground or hidden corrosion that kept the vehicle's alternator from keeping up under a full load (hot, rainy night meant I had almost everything on: a/c, wiper, lights, rear defrost, etc.). Told myself I'd take care of it later, turned off the a/c, and made it home with no more troubles. Looked around a little and saw that simple things like having a bad serpentine belt can manifest during rainy conditions, slipping more than normal. It doesn't turn the pulley, thus voltage drops, thus stalling. Ok, that sounds logical. Maybe I just need a new belt.
Problem summarized: Montero's voltage drops below 12.5v at idle (in drive, not park) with a/c and other accessories on causing the vehicle to stall.
So what did I do? Change the belt? Uh, well...we loaded the kids, a fridge, and a few hundred pounds of camping gear into the rig and went on a 500-mile dirt road trip. I told myself, "It'll be fine. Just don't use the A/C."