driving on no alt, LAC

[George Selby]

At 11:33 AM 7/2/01 -0400, you wrote:
> > Question:  If I charge the battery each night, will I be able to drive
> > about 14 miles <there is NEVER traffic and only 3 stoplights) <highway
> > driving> to work and then 14 miles back each day?

Depends on your battery and the time of day.

The alt belt broke on my Subaru earlier this year (several times actually, 
bearing was shot and causing resistance to the belt moving which would take 
it out in 1000 miles) and I made it home at night like 20 miles.  The next 
day it started right up after I changed the belt, no jump.  The next week 
it did it again.  I tried to make it home, again at night, and got within 5 
miles.  Then had the AAA tow it.

Another time, in my former Isuzu P'up I had (still do, need to install it 
somewhere) a 160 amp alternator.  It burned up (replaced free under 
waranty) while driving home from the mountains.  I drove till the batteries 
died.  I was about 200 miles from home at this point. The truck was for 
4-wheeling and had a winch, so it had two batteries, one in the bed, one 
under the hood.  Anyway, I broke down near the NASCAR shops in Lexington, 
NC (musta been at a race 'cause they were all empty; they have a race track 
just off the road near here too, looks like if a car left the track he'd 
fly into the highway they are so close, and this is a former NASCAR track.) 
and called AAA.  I told the guy to tow me 100 miles (the AAA limit) towards 
my house.  At about the 95 miles point I saw an open service station, so I 
told the guy to drop me off there.  I then got the service station to 
charge my battery (I didn't tell him I had two, but I left them connected 
(I could control the second bat from the cab, modes were: off, on after 
start, self-jump) and the charge he gave me was enough to drive the 
remainder of the way home.  The alternator cooled a little during the tow, 
and would put out a few amps every 10 minutes or so, you could see the volt 
meter jump every time it engaged briefly.  All this occurred during the 
day, and I was quite relieved to make it home.

George Selby
70 F-100 Ranger XLT 400 C6
78 F-150 4x4 400 4 spd
83 Audi Coupe GT
86 Nissan 300ZX
92 Subaru Legacy Wagon AWD
gselby4x4 at earthlink.net