Rep Power: 0

My 04 Civic's alternator went last month while i was driving on the highway. Easy fix yes, but I had no tools nor a place to be able to do the job. So I had to get my car towed to a shitty auto parts/service centre (Canadian Tire) I bought the alternator from them and told them to just replace it, don't touch anything else. They did and I drove the car back to my city no problems. Just over a month later my car randomly over heats and the battery light comes on in the car. I couldn't pullover safely so the car redlined on the temp gauge. I popped the hood and saw the alternator belt was off and the alternator had one bolt missing and the other was 3/4 out.
Did my car overheat because the alternator belt came off? Does the belt also run the water pump? Im trying to figure out all the damage and what canadian tire is going to be responsible for. Definetly have a blown head gasket now Id say.

 
Rep Power: 308

Your water pump is timing belt driven.

The alternator R & R needs special attention on 01-05s to prevent problems.

 
Rep Power: 0

why did my car overheat when the belt came off? I don't understand how that happened. just a coincidence?

 
Rep Power: 518

Did it really overheat at all?
Was the temp gauge lying to you?
Yes, it's certainly possible.

Did it blow antifreeze all over?
Was the antifreeze low in the radiator?
Is it now?

Got radiator fans that operate correctly now?
Does the car run poorly now?

CEL on?
Got codes?
No communication with a scanner?



Reassemble the alternator, hardware, and belt correctly, then see how it acts.
See how many issues can be resolved by simply restoring proper operation of the alternator.

And see what may still be broken.

 
Rep Power: 0

hmmm, never thought of the gauge playing tricks on me. I was reluctant to fix the problem since I wanted to get the place that messed it up to fix the problem and whatever other problems it might have caused. Should I just let it go and fix it myself? There didn't seem to be any "new" coolant sprayed everywhere. Just leftover mess from when I changed the thermostat a few weeks ago.

 
Rep Power: 518

If this alternator was replaced only a month ago, there should be a written warranty the shop will honor.

(You may have to fight for it though, depends on the integrity of the particular manager you deal with. Be calm, courteous, and professional. Stick to the facts. Don't be a crazy LOL)


Talk to the shop that did the work--- explain that your warning light came on, you stopped and found the alternator belt came off, the bolts appear to have been left loose (you said you saw them backed out) and (some?) bolts are now missing.

And it seems it may have possibly overheated because the temp gauge shot to HOT as soon as you saw the battery symbol came on.

YES, of course you shut it off as soon as you saw the battery light came on.


See how they would like for you to proceed.

They might opt to tow it back in, they might have you take it to another shop if you are too far away from their shop. Might be another CT local to you, or maybe you can take it to a dealership or your favorite shop.


HTH

 
Rep Power: 0

I called them and told them what happened. They Took the car to their garage and said they since the Charging system and cooling system are completely separate on the car they would only fix the alternator problem. Is there anyway this alternator problem had anything to do with the car overheating? The guy said its impossible for it to cause overheating..
Im going to pick up the car now. They told me over the phone the head gasket was gone, but it was blown before this issue happened. I don't really have an argument

 
Rep Power: 518

Yay for warranty.



IMO it's possible.
However, my first suspicion (not considering the head gasket issue yet) is not that it truly overheated, my suspicion is that the gauge may have been affected by the alternator problem.

See:
The engine computer is what monitors and controls the voltage regulator and charging voltage.

The same engine computer is what controls the temp gauge on the dash, among other things.

The loose alternator bolts creates a ground fault for the charging system and has the potential for seriously affecting the engine computer, and has been known to ruin the engine computer from excessive voltage.
(Don't sweat this if the car still runs good when you get it back.)


Best to let them fix the current problem IMO, and see how the car acts when you get it back.
I'd also request they check for any fault codes in the engine computer, and let you know what the code numbers are in writing. Don't have them diagnose anything yet, just check if it has any codes.

(Was the check engine light on when you last saw the car? Had it been on prior to the alternator mishap?)
Yeah, you don't have much of a leg to stand on if you already KNEW it was blown. This also may be why it showed the overheat....especially of the radiator was low at the time, along with low voltage to run the radiator fans.
Did they refill the radiator for you? Do you fill it regularly and check it often?