something wrong with my car - AGAIN!!!

[foreigngirl]

the baterry light is on for 2 days now. Now I'm scared to do my grocery shoping and go pick up my kids.....Do you guys and girls think that if I go somewhere its not gonna starts up when I leave to go home?

 

[foreigngirl]

thank you guys, you are all really helpfull

 

[newbiebynature]

buy a new car if its a piece of shit

 

[foreigngirl]

buy a new car if its a piece of shit

its 99 cavalier, I still owe 6000$ on it....but I need to know about what to do now. I need to go take care of the groceries and stuff and cant wake up my husband so he can work on it. So, do you think if I go to the store, when I get out of there to go home its gonna start back up or not?

 

[newbiebynature]

you owe 6000$ on a cavalier?...if you bought it from a dealership shouldnt u have a warantee or sumthing...take that shit in

 

[foreigngirl]

you owe 6000$ on a cavalier?...if you bought it from a dealership shouldnt u have a warantee or sumthing...take that shit in

thats all fine, but I have only one car and the dealers are closed today and I need to leave like right now

 

[hawaii50]

i thought cavaliers were like $6000 new. You should have your alternator checked out. batteries can be recharged.. but if your alternator is screwed.. well then i wouldn't leave town.

 

[newbiebynature]

when my car's check engine light came on i drove it for 2 and a half months before it broke down...so just drive it...but if you break down dont blame it on me

 

[dahamn]

Take it to AutoZone, they will check it for free, and don't run anything electrical like the radio or lights.

 

[foreigngirl]

i thought cavaliers were like $6000 new. You should have your alternator checked out. batteries can be recharged.. but if your alternator is screwed.. well then i wouldn't leave town.

my dad checked it friday...it is the alternator. Gosh, so I cant really go anywhere right now, huh.....

 

[foreigngirl]

Take it to AutoZone, they will check it for free, and don't run anything electrical like the radio or lights.

can my husband replace the alternator himself? Is it expensive?


God, I cant wake him up and I need to leave!!!

 

[hawaii50]

yeah its easy to replace.. just a couple bolts and slip a belt off and on. no biggie.. that is unless he has no clue about engines and such.. then you havea aproblem.

 

[dahamn]

can my husband replace the alternator himself? Is it expensive?


God, I cant wake him up and I need to leave!!!

Yes, it's not that difficult, an alternator runs between 50-100 dollars

 

[foreigngirl]

yeah its easy to replace.. just a couple bolts and slip a belt off and on. no biggie.. that is unless he has no clue about engines and such.. then you havea aproblem.

I think hes gonna have his brother help him or something


dahamn - thast a releif, I though they are like 200-300$

 

[Buddy_Christ]

when my car's check engine light came on i drove it for 2 and a half months before it broke down...so just drive it...but if you break down dont blame it on me

I've driven a car a lot longer than that with a Check Engine light on. O2 sensor in my Blazer. I just didn't give a shit. I drove for around 8 months with the light coming on and going off all the time.



Bad alternator = don't drive it until you get it replaced. If you HAVE to, make it short trips only AND get a battery charger on it when you park the car.

Alternators aren't too hard to replace. Remove the belt, remove the wiring, unbolt, bolt back up, put belt on, check tension, adjust if necessary, plug wiring back in.

 

[Buddy_Christ]

yeah its easy to replace.. just a couple bolts and slip a belt off and on. no biggie.. that is unless he has no clue about engines and such.. then you havea aproblem.

It's still extremely simple, even for the unmechanically skilled. If you can turn a wrench, you can replace an alternator.

 

[foreigngirl]

I've driven a car a lot longer than that with a Check Engine light on. O2 sensor in my Blazer. I just didn't give a shit. I drove for around 8 months with the light coming on and going off all the time.



Bad alternator = don't drive it until you get it replaced. If you HAVE to, make it short trips only AND get a battery charger on it when you park the car.

Alternators aren't too hard to replace. Remove the belt, remove the wiring, unbolt, bolt back up, put belt on, check tension, adjust if necessary, plug wiring back in.

I might have to show my husband this

 

[Buddy_Christ]

I might have to show my husband this

It's really simple. REALLY simple.

Going to have to loosen the bolts before taking the belt off, I should say that now. Put the belt on before it's tightened up all the way, that way it can be moved into position.

OR....if it's a serpentine belt (single belt) there should be a tensioner somewhere that you can put a big ass wrench on and crank to loosen the belt on everything. Makes life easy.

If the belt has any cracks in it, replace it. Belts are pretty cheap.

 

[hawaii50]

It's still extremely simple, even for the unmechanically skilled. If you can turn a wrench, you can replace an alternator.

i keep forgetting most of you are older than me.. its pretty sad, my generation you know. i'm considered an outcast, cuz i actually grew up building engines and such

i swear this: my roommates i have now, had never even used a wrench in their lifes. they seriously had no clue what a socket was, or an impact driver.

*sigh* thank goodness i grew up a country kid

 

[foreigngirl]

It's really simple. REALLY simple.

Going to have to loosen the bolts before taking the belt off, I should say that now. Put the belt on before it's tightened up all the way, that way it can be moved into position.

OR....if it's a serpentine belt (single belt) there should be a tensioner somewhere that you can put a big ass wrench on and crank to loosen the belt on everything. Makes life easy.

If the belt has any cracks in it, replace it. Belts are pretty cheap.

thank you soooo much for the instructions. I have a fealing he's gonna make me get into the grease with him

 

[DannoMight]

you can also look online on how to change your alternator for your car. it shouldn't be hard, but then again whenever i try to do something on one of my cars my car it turnes out to be a big hassle. good luck.

 

[foreigngirl]

you can also look online on how to change your alternator for your car. it shouldn't be hard, but then again whenever i try to do something on one of my cars my car it turnes out to be a big hassle. good luck.

thanks, I'll need it. I just wish I spent more time with my dad in the garage when I was like 15.

 

[Buddy_Christ]

i keep forgetting most of you are older than me.. its pretty sad, my generation you know. i'm considered an outcast, cuz i actually grew up building engines and such

i swear this: my roommates i have now, had never even used a wrench in their lifes. they seriously had no clue what a socket was, or an impact driver.

*sigh* thank goodness i grew up a country kid

How old are you? I'm not too old, only 28, but I've had to do the majority of my mechanical work for the past 11 years.

I pity your roommates. I hope they have AAA, cause it sounds like they couldn't change a flat tire on their own.


foreigngirl - if your husband is really unskilled, you might have to give him a hand anyway. Getting the belt on and getting the right tension can be a bitch if you havn't done it before. He might need you holding a prybar in place to keep the tension while he bolts down the alternator.

The alternator might not need to be moved though, another pulley might hold the tension. Without a picture of the engine, I couldn't tell you, and I'm not in the mood to go over to my neighbor's house and ask them to pop the hood on their Cavalier (which is in about the same age range yours is).

 

[foreigngirl]

How old are you? I'm not too old, only 28, but I've had to do the majority of my mechanical work for the past 11 years.

I pity your roommates. I hope they have AAA, cause it sounds like they couldn't change a flat tire on their own.


foreigngirl - if your husband is really unskilled, you might have to give him a hand anyway. Getting the belt on and getting the right tension can be a bitch if you havn't done it before. He might need you holding a prybar in place to keep the tension while he bolts down the alternator.

The alternator might not need to be moved though, another pulley might hold the tension. Without a picture of the engine, I couldn't tell you, and I'm not in the mood to go over to my neighbor's house and ask them to pop the hood on their Cavalier (which is in about the same age range yours is).

I tried to find a pic of the engine googling it, but cant really find it....
thanks again

 

[hawaii50]

i'm only 20.. when i moved to the city i was just in awe of how many people have never done a days hard work in their life.. its messed up

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

I've driven a car a lot longer than that with a Check Engine light on. O2 sensor in my Blazer. I just didn't give a shit. I drove for around 8 months with the light coming on and going off all the time.

Yeah that's not all that critical. When I didn't have a cat on my car the check engine light was always on because of the O2 sensor too.

 

[Castro_bigdog]

I met up with my bro and swapped it no prob. but now my damn belt squeaks sh**............... Now I need a new belt fu** it..... Better then getting a new car LOL............. I like bikes to much pluss bodybuilding is not cheep........

 

[GoldenDelicious]

it might not be the alternator itself - sometimes the wiring itself corrodes or burns away, and so you just arent making a connection. take it to someplace that checks it all out for free (its fairly straightforward, all they do is connect a multimeter to the alternator and check that its actually putting out current - if it is, then the alternator is ok, and its likely the wiring) and you might get out of it very cheaply, with a simple wire ($10? theyre quite thick and have lugs on them) changeover...but worst case scenario, changing your alternator isnt too much hassle, and takes hardly any time especially on an engine with a main belt. as everyone has said, anyone can do it pretty much, or just pay the minimum charge at a garage and get the guy to do it for you

my car started blowing up about 6 months ago, and so ive been forced to learn now ive been blessed with a radiator leak so it looks like im going to learn some more

 

[Buddy_Christ]

it might not be the alternator itself - sometimes the wiring itself corrodes or burns away, and so you just arent making a connection. take it to someplace that checks it all out for free (its fairly straightforward, all they do is connect a multimeter to the alternator and check that its actually putting out current - if it is, then the alternator is ok, and its likely the wiring) and you might get out of it very cheaply, with a simple wire ($10? theyre quite thick and have lugs on them) changeover...but worst case scenario, changing your alternator isnt too much hassle, and takes hardly any time especially on an engine with a main belt. as everyone has said, anyone can do it pretty much, or just pay the minimum charge at a garage and get the guy to do it for you

my car started blowing up about 6 months ago, and so ive been forced to learn now ive been blessed with a radiator leak so it looks like im going to learn some more

Radiator leak = replace it. You can have it pressure tested to see if there's a chance of it being patched or not, but most of the time you're going to have to replace it.

 

[CENTURION44]

the belt might be too tight if it squeaks.......they sell some spray for the squeaking...or just change the belt

 

[tiger88]

the belt might be too tight if it squeaks.......they sell some spray for the squeaking...or just change the belt

shoulda bought a civic..timing belt is now a chain

hahahaha 6000 upside down on a caviler ahahahah

 

[GoldenDelicious]

Radiator leak = replace it. You can have it pressure tested to see if there's a chance of it being patched or not, but most of the time you're going to have to replace it.

yeah i know im in denial, so waht

squeaky belts can also mean that the bearings in your pullys are about to pack it in - if those mofo bearings expand, they can sometimes bite into the axle and seize, then youre in for some fun (mine snapped the bloody alloy housing on the engine block, so i had to replace all of it)

bloody car. im getting a new one, its starting to be like a project car

 

[Whiskey]

it's fine. just go with it. OR have your man, or yourself, just change the alternator. it isn't hard.

Whiskey