Honda Car Forum

Hi all,

My local Crappy Tire dealer has quoted me 2.4 hrs labour to replace the
alternator in my 90 accord...says the driveshaft may have to be removed. Sounds
like a load of crap to me...oh why do I keep going back to them?!

TIA
DB

dyerr@sympatico.ca (Dennyboy) spake unto the masses in
news:400f0dfa.8831781@news1.on.sympatico.ca:

> Hi all,
>
> My local Crappy Tire dealer has quoted me 2.4 hrs labour to replace
> the alternator in my 90 accord...says the driveshaft may have to be
> removed. Sounds like a load of crap to me...oh why do I keep going
> back to them?!



If it's anything like that year of Integra, they're telling the truth.

What's wrong with the alternator? If it's just brushes, that can be done
without removing the alternator.

--
TeGGeR®

He's confusing your accord with the older bodystyle

"Dennyboy" <dyerr@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:400f0dfa.8831781@news1.on.sympatico.ca...
> Hi all,
>
> My local Crappy Tire dealer has quoted me 2.4 hrs labour to replace the
> alternator in my 90 accord...says the driveshaft may have to be removed.
Sounds
> like a load of crap to me...oh why do I keep going back to them?!
>
> TIA
> DB

"Tegger®" <teggeratistopdotcom@changetheobvious.invalid> wrote:

>dyerr@sympatico.ca (Dennyboy) spake unto the masses in
>news:400f0dfa.8831781@news1.on.sympatico.ca:
>
>> Hi all,
>>
>> My local Crappy Tire dealer has quoted me 2.4 hrs labour to replace
>> the alternator in my 90 accord...says the driveshaft may have to be
>> removed. Sounds like a load of crap to me...oh why do I keep going
>> back to them?!
>
>
>
>If it's anything like that year of Integra, they're telling the truth.
>
>What's wrong with the alternator? If it's just brushes, that can be done
>without removing the alternator.
>
>--
>TeGGeR®

I seem to have the classic intermittent battery light problem (started a week
ago), running total loss ignition for portions of every car trip, today being
the worst..almost stranded but after 10 mins it started again and the light
stayed off, battery charged up before getting to work. I've had the car into
the shop twice during the past week...they said it was the battery and replaced
it (it was 7 years old...had run its course...but had never failed me). This
did not solve the problem and since the alternator is more that 10 years old
(actually it might be original, car has 283K km) its a safe bet thats where the
problem is. Since the weather has been -20 to -30 lately (northern Ontario) I
don't much feel like playing around with it. Anyway I haven't been able to find
a brush kit in town. The Honda dealer doesn't have them. If I pull it off
myself I could get a local shop to rebuild it for $180. But Crappy Tire has one
for $198 so I'm going to go with that and be done with it (hopefully). My
haynes manual doesn't say anything about having to remove the axle. The alt
looks pretty accessible from up top. Possibly there is some configuration of
90-93 accord that would require getting at it from below?

DB

"Dennyboy" <dyerr@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:400f4915.23963015@news1.on.sympatico.ca...
>
> "Tegger®" <teggeratistopdotcom@changetheobvious.invalid> wrote:
>
> >dyerr@sympatico.ca (Dennyboy) spake unto the masses in
> >news:400f0dfa.8831781@news1.on.sympatico.ca:
> >
> >> Hi all,
> >>
> >> My local Crappy Tire dealer has quoted me 2.4 hrs labour to replace
> >> the alternator in my 90 accord...says the driveshaft may have to be
> >> removed. Sounds like a load of crap to me...oh why do I keep going
> >> back to them?!
> >
> >
> >
> >If it's anything like that year of Integra, they're telling the truth.
> >
> >What's wrong with the alternator? If it's just brushes, that can be done
> >without removing the alternator.
> >
> >--
> >TeGGeR®
>
> I seem to have the classic intermittent battery light problem (started a
week
> ago), running total loss ignition for portions of every car trip, today
being
> the worst..almost stranded but after 10 mins it started again and the
light
> stayed off, battery charged up before getting to work. I've had the car
into
> the shop twice during the past week...they said it was the battery and
replaced
> it (it was 7 years old...had run its course...but had never failed me).
This
> did not solve the problem and since the alternator is more that 10 years
old
> (actually it might be original, car has 283K km) its a safe bet thats
where the
> problem is. Since the weather has been -20 to -30 lately (northern
Ontario) I
> don't much feel like playing around with it. Anyway I haven't been able
to find
> a brush kit in town. The Honda dealer doesn't have them. If I pull it
off
> myself I could get a local shop to rebuild it for $180. But Crappy Tire
has one
> for $198 so I'm going to go with that and be done with it (hopefully). My
> haynes manual doesn't say anything about having to remove the axle. The
alt
> looks pretty accessible from up top. Possibly there is some configuration
of
> 90-93 accord that would require getting at it from below?
>
> DB

I just had mine done in my 90 Accord, too cold to fool with it myself....
Axle does not have to come out, but the power steering pump has to to access
the alt.
Figure 1.5 hrs labour, spend $16 on a new drive belt too.
How north are you?, I bought a used alt for $40 in Scarborough.
When my battery light was on, I found that if I tapped the alt with a
wrench, it would turn on and start charging... light out, but eventually it
would have failed for good.
I had the same symptoms you described, even changed the battery first... so
far, so good with the new(used) alternator.

"Dennyboy" <dyerr@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:400f4915.23963015@news1.on.sympatico.ca...
> >> My local Crappy Tire dealer has quoted me 2.4 hrs labour to replace
> >> the alternator in my 90 accord...says the driveshaft may have to be
> >> removed. Sounds like a load of crap to me...oh why do I keep going
> >> back to them?!

no, you don't have to remove the driveshaft. you just move the tensioner
bolt, the bolt that holds the alternator, remove the alternator belt and
wires and remove the alternator. changing brushes is also quite easy - took
me about 1 hour to remove alternator, change brushes and reinstall the
alternator again.

--
Talituli
accord ex '90

dyerr@sympatico.ca (Dennyboy) spake unto the masses in
news:400f4915.23963015@news1.on.sympatico.ca:

>
> I seem to have the classic intermittent battery light problem (started
> a week ago),


Brushes!!


Two years ago, I bought a pair of new brushes for $5 cash at a local
rebuilders, pulled the brush holder from my alternator and soldered the new
brushes into the old brush holder. Been fine ever since.

I did mine in my driveway in January. The temperature unaccountably went up
to freezing, so I had a relatively balmy time of it.



> Anyway I haven't been able to find a brush kit in town. The Honda
> dealer doesn't have them.


A Toyota dealer will. Toyota's use the same ND alternator. It's called a
Brush Holder. About $20. I don't know the part number. I know it's too cold
for this, but if you could, it would be best to bring it in so they can
match it.



> If I pull it off myself I could get a
> local shop to rebuild it for $180. But Crappy Tire has one for $198
> so I'm going to go with that and be done with it (hopefully). My
> haynes manual doesn't say anything about having to remove the axle.



It could be that the young monkeys at Crappy Tire just looked it up in the
wrong manual. Except for Motorvac services, my car NEVER sees the inside of
a Canadian Tire repair bay.


--
TeGGeR®

Dennyboy wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> My local Crappy Tire dealer has quoted me 2.4 hrs labour to replace the
> alternator in my 90 accord...says the driveshaft may have to be removed. Sounds
> like a load of crap to me...oh why do I keep going back to them?!
>
> TIA
> DB
==============

Canadian Tire is great for (purchasing) some things, but I'd scarcely
trust them to change a tire, let alone an alternator, and certainly not
a HONDA alternator.

Gives me hemmorhoids just thinking about dealing with their service
people. Ewww!

'Curly'

===============

> I seem to have the classic intermittent battery light problem (started a
week
> ago), running total loss ignition for portions of every car trip, today
being
> the worst..almost stranded but after 10 mins it started again and the
light
> stayed off, battery charged up before getting to work. I've had the car
into
> the shop twice during the past week...they said it was the battery and
replaced
> it (it was 7 years old...had run its course...but had never failed me).
This
> did not solve the problem and since the alternator is more that 10 years
old
> (actually it might be original, car has 283K km) its a safe bet thats
where the
> problem is. Since the weather has been -20 to -30 lately (northern
Ontario) I
> don't much feel like playing around with it. Anyway I haven't been able
to find
> a brush kit in town. The Honda dealer doesn't have them. If I pull it
off
> myself I could get a local shop to rebuild it for $180. But Crappy Tire
has one
> for $198 so I'm going to go with that and be done with it (hopefully). My
> haynes manual doesn't say anything about having to remove the axle. The
alt
> looks pretty accessible from up top. Possibly there is some configuration
of
> 90-93 accord that would require getting at it from below?
>
The bad alternator will weaken your new battery too.
If you discharge your battery completely, it sounds like you already did, it
will never charge back to its original power.
The guys at the garage are clowns and went for a quick sale. A car cannot
stall because of bad battery. Once it is started, you can remove the battery
completely if you want. For sure, if you drove your car to the garage with a
bad alternator, the battery would show weak and it is just too easy to
conclude that the battery is the problem.

"Paul Bielec" <me@no.spam> spake unto the masses in
news:buosid$4mr$1@dns3.cae.ca:

> The guys at the garage are clowns and went for a quick sale.


No, Canadian Tire mechanics are generally just young and very
inexperienced.


> Once it is started, you can
> remove the battery completely if you want.



NEVER DO THIS!!!!! NEVER NEVER!


This tip was valid in the days of points-and-condenser ignition, but
definitely NOT these days. Driving around with the battery out of the
circuit will do damage to electronic ignition components.



--
TeGGeR®