donpisto

This one is quite long, and I really need help. First off, I don't have a Civic, but I have an '01 Accord 4 cyl sedan. Reason why I'm posting here is because a friend of mine referred me and I have seen many threads on alternator issues so I figured I might be able to get some help.

I have an audio setup that is in the works, currently only have 1 amp hooked up (RF T30001bd) and I've tested it to pull about 162A at 11.4V (voltage was taken at the amp, not the battery). I have 1/0 wiring and the Big 3 done as well as an Odyssey PC 1200 under the hood.

About 3 months ago I got the battery put in and there was dimming, of course...but other than that, no problem. I then got my stock alt upgraded to a 160A alt with a smaller pulley. After about 5 mins of installing I drive off and the lights for the low battery, doors and trunk open, and e-brake lit up. It happens when I'm slowing down, probably around 20 mph and under. When I am stopped it sometimes flashes or stays lit. Sometimes it does nothing. When it's flashing or lit, I put it in neutral and back into drive and it goes away.

I was told the computer needs to be reset and going to the dealership they said they can do it, but dont think it will fix the problem and it will cost $90 to fix. I'm not going to pay that much for them to try it out and it possibly not work. This wasn't too big of an issue, but I do want it to go away...read on to find out the real issue thats worrying me. I was told something about revving the vehicle at 3k or something to reset the ECU, does anyone know what this is about?

About two weeks ago i let my gas tank get way too low and drove on fumes for quite some time. After filling up with a full tank I drove and the car shut off. I tried starting it but nothing happened. After a minute I got it to work. Every now and then for the rest of the 15 minute drive it would nearly shut off and I would have to press the gas pedal all the way down so the vehicle would stay on. My mechanic said it was air bubbles or something. That problem seemed to have gone away. But this past week I put my subs back in and I do play quite loud at times on the freeway. Now I'm not sure if it does this after playing the system loud for some time or without, but sometimes the vehicle stalls. If I press the brakes and then take my foot off the pedal and decide to accelerate normally it sometimes jerks the car. Kinda like pressing the pedal, hearing it rev as if its in neutral and then dropping it in drive. Also, when I come to a stop, the car is still, but a second or two later, it kind of jerks as well.

What could be the problem of this? I'm tempted to swap the alt, which isn't difficult as the Civics, but it is time consuming, especially since one of the bolts got stripped and I had to get a new one and re-thread it. Tightening the alternator in place is also tough with limited space. Just wondering if anyone has an idea what is going on. Thanks.

bomerman19

iTrader: (1)

From the sound of it, it looks like your are tying to put too much of a load on your car. Anything you do in a honda from pressing the brakes to turning on the a/c puts an extra load on the electrical system which in turn affects your idle that is why when you are at the light and you put the brakes on and then try to accelerate you idle dips and your car wants to stall. when you stuck in the bigger alternator you should have not stuck a smaller pulley on it. By sticking in a smaller pulley on the alt you have essentially turned the pulley into an under drive pulley. Which is fine if you are on the track and running almost no electrical system cause it frees up a little horsepower. But for an audio system is bad because your alternator won't spin enough to do any good, and you won't get enough power to your car or your battery.


So stick a bigger pulley on your alternator and you should be fine

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

agreed, if the battery light is coming on, you dont have enough power to make the car work properly. that light comes on when the alternator is bad essentially, so there you go.