bill1013
Full Access Member
Aloha Everyone! I'm writing in hopes of getting a few possible answers or fixes to a very weird problem. Here goes, I got a new battery about 5 months ago and it has kept my alt meter at above 12 o'clock ever since I bought it. I get in and start my baby up and it stands more than *****. But as I drive it slowly goes down to around the 10 o'clock position and stays there for the entire drive. I turn her off then start her back up and the needle stands straight up. This only happens during daylight hours. When I drive at night the alt meter stays exactly where it was when I started her up. And that's with all the lights and accessories going full blast! During the day, with nothing on except the radio, the alt meter shows a slight drain. Which, to me is weird, as during the daytime running there really isn't a drain, but at night, when you expect a slight drain...there's nothing. Not the slightest drain whatsoever. The only thing I could come up with is maybe the serpentine belt is slipping during the heat of the day. Hot expand...cold retract. Sounds crazy I know. What's even crazier is my dealer says it's the alternator. And he said that over the phone without even doing any diagnostics! I'm really hesitant to give my baby to him and then have him charge me an arm & a leg when it can be just a lose/worn belt. Also, the belt is really tight as far as I can tell, but I know the tensioner could be slightly off and that might be what's causing it. Any ideas before I try to remedy this on my own? Appreciate any insight, troubleshooting or repair thoughts. Mahalo for the advice in advance. May the Force Be With You!