RE: just up and died

["Paul Wilson" <pwilson@ma.ultranet.com>]

This sounds like the brushes in the alternator.  When they wear, they get
too short for the springs to hold them against the stator.  The spinning
causes air to push them away and you lose power.  If it happens again give
the alternator a hard rap with a screw driver or something and see if it
fixes it.

You're going to need to rebuild the alternator.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-quattro@audifans.com [mailto:owner-quattro@audifans.com]On
> Behalf Of Kurt Wesseling
> Sent: Sunday, May 16, 1999 10:48 PM
> To: Tomas Leveckis
> Cc: quattro@audifans.com
> Subject: Re: just up and died
>
>
> Tom:
>
> First thing I would check is your ground connections--especially right at
> the battery post.  Take it off, use a wire brush on it, then smear some
> vaseline on the connection to prevent it from corroding, and put
> it back on.
> 'Course you could have some other dire problem, but I've been lucky in the
> past with this kind of thing.  Hope you are, too.
>
> HTH,
>
> --Kurt
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Tomas Leveckis <leveckis@ici.net>
> To: <quattro@audifans.com>
> Sent: Sunday, May 16, 1999 9:37 PM
> Subject: just up and died
>
>
> > In the middle of a 5hr drive, I stopped to get some
> > food (1hr by the time we fed the kids), and then to
> > gas (rest area on the mass pike, so a coupla hundred
> > yeards from the 1st stop....5-10min) got back in the
> > car, and it was dead (a little over 8V on the guage).
> > Got a jump and it started .... the ABS lite and the
> > seatbelt lite were blinking in unison, so I turned
> > off the ABS and the seatbelt lite stopped, too though
> > it would blink on whenever I tried to open a window
> > or the sunroof. I am assuming the alternator is fine
> > since I was able to drive it another 2.5hrs home with
> > AC on and headlites and whatever else....the car seemed
> > fine while running.....I get home, turn the car off, and
> > when I try to start, it is still totally dead.....
> >
> > what gives????? does a battery go just like that???? I
> > mean one minute it starts with nothing noticeable (to
> > go from eating to gas), and then next, nothing.....
> >
> > any insight to this problem would be greatly appreciated....
> >
> > Tom Leveckis
> > '91 90Q20V
> >
>