Last Saturday I broke down (well the car anyway). The symptoms were the ABS light came on, then the MIL, then the steering went heavy and my lights started dimming. Checked the voltage and it was down to about 7-8 Volts. No battery warning light and no charging. Nice RAC man lent me his battery pack so that I could drive the rest of the way home.
Well, after carrying out some voltage checks it was 95% certain that it was a knackered alternator. I was going to use the one off the VVC engine that I just bought, but it was different connections and I didn't want to start altering the car wiring.
I removed the old one and exchanged it for a re-manufactured one (Wallet is now best part of £200 lighter).
Here is how I did it.
If there is any doubt in your mind, disconnect the battery. However, on my TF there is an 80 Amp fuse just inside the engine bay, near where the two torsion bars come together. First you have to take off a plastic cover, and then the fuse just pulls out. If you don't do this then you can short out the alternator connection with the chassis causing damage to the car and maybe yourself
First of all you have take the rear roof and inspection panel off to gain access from the top. If you aren't sure how to do this look here http://forums.mg-rover.org/showthread.php?t=198762&highlight=30k+servicing
Next, jack up the car so that you can gain access from underneath. Remember to chock the front wheels and use axle stands for safety.
Remove the offside rear wheel and you will see a plastic cover between you and the engine. This is held on with about 3 plastic crosshead screws. Remove these and remove the plastic panel.
This will now give you access to the crankshaft pulley, alternator belt and two of the bolts that you need to undo.
You can also just see the alternator through the subframe
You can also see the offending alternator form above, through the inspection cover. This picture shows the belt removed, but we haven't got that far yet.
To give yourself more room, remove the heatshield from the exhaust. Obviously this will be hot if you have recently run the engine, so be careful. There is a 13mm nut and 2 10mm self tappers (one just out of view.
Loosen and remove the nut from the top securing bolt. Leave the bolt in for now.
Next, loosen the bolt that holds the adjuster bracket to the engine, from the wheelarch.
Well, after carrying out some voltage checks it was 95% certain that it was a knackered alternator. I was going to use the one off the VVC engine that I just bought, but it was different connections and I didn't want to start altering the car wiring.
I removed the old one and exchanged it for a re-manufactured one (Wallet is now best part of £200 lighter).
Here is how I did it.
If there is any doubt in your mind, disconnect the battery. However, on my TF there is an 80 Amp fuse just inside the engine bay, near where the two torsion bars come together. First you have to take off a plastic cover, and then the fuse just pulls out. If you don't do this then you can short out the alternator connection with the chassis causing damage to the car and maybe yourself
First of all you have take the rear roof and inspection panel off to gain access from the top. If you aren't sure how to do this look here http://forums.mg-rover.org/showthread.php?t=198762&highlight=30k+servicing
Next, jack up the car so that you can gain access from underneath. Remember to chock the front wheels and use axle stands for safety.
Remove the offside rear wheel and you will see a plastic cover between you and the engine. This is held on with about 3 plastic crosshead screws. Remove these and remove the plastic panel.
This will now give you access to the crankshaft pulley, alternator belt and two of the bolts that you need to undo.
You can also just see the alternator through the subframe
You can also see the offending alternator form above, through the inspection cover. This picture shows the belt removed, but we haven't got that far yet.
To give yourself more room, remove the heatshield from the exhaust. Obviously this will be hot if you have recently run the engine, so be careful. There is a 13mm nut and 2 10mm self tappers (one just out of view.
Loosen and remove the nut from the top securing bolt. Leave the bolt in for now.
Next, loosen the bolt that holds the adjuster bracket to the engine, from the wheelarch.