348 battery lite

Do you use a battery tender? I read somewhere that batteries have a typical life of 3-5 years depending on use and conditions.

 

Jeff 348?? Hmmm, what kind of a name is that? Just kidding!!

Chances are pretty good that you have a problem in your alternator, but it certainly shouldn't need to be replaced. You probably have a Delco alternator, if your 348 is a 1990, and all of the internal working parts are Delco/GM parts, not Ferrari parts, so it can easily be rebuilt by any good automotive electrical shop. I had my Delco alternator completely rebuilt locally for less than $100, and it has been fine for more than five years now. My Costco battery is now seven years old, and still works fine!

Even if it's not a Delco alternator, that just means it's a Nippondenso, and still should be rebuildable.

The alternator can be removed from below without much trouble, using simple hand tools. But first, make sure that the belt is tight. It's not unusual for the tensioner to loosen up if the bolts aren't properly torqued.

Good luck, and keep us informed!

 

This has been posted before, of course, but just to refresh:

The alternator is bolted solidly into place in the bracket - it does not pivot. The tensioner rides against the outside of the belt and keeps the belt tight. You loosen nut "C" to release the tensioner to slide in the ovaled slot behind the nut. You use bolt "D" to move the tensioner until the belt is properly tightened, then you re-tighten nut "C". If nut "C" is NOT properly tightened, then eventually the tensioner will back off and the belt will loosen, which COULD cause the alternator light to come on when there is actually nothing wrong with it.
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wonder if that could cause lights to dim at idle. I noticed one time when my batt. wasn't fully charged I was driving at night with A/C, radio, lights etc on. while stopped at a light with the brake pedal pressed (brake lights on) and a blinker going I noticed the dash lights dim with the blink of the turn signals.

Only seems to happen if the charger hasn't been kept on and I go out at night with the lights on

either the belt is slightly loose or these alternators are barely enough to support the demand of lights A/C cooling fans radio blinker and brake lights all at once

 

My lite has been coming on for 2 yrs under load , while doing other repairs , I figured it was a good time to check it out . Removed it & took it to 2 separate alt shops for bench testing & both stated it was "ok" . So , either my battery can infact start the car but has a dead cell , or its the wiring , next time I have the energy I'll have to load test the battery , then OHM check wiring , Good Luck.

 

These pictures may help: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?p=136541707

 

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=169319

Read post #1. Hope it helps! Drew.

Also, this pic may help you to see what bolt is doing what in terms of locking and tensioner adjustment.
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I would suspect your voltage regulator is bad, but only experiencing symptons at high revs. Unless the shop can spin it up as high as your engine would at 7k rpm or whatever trips the light (I'm not sure how fast it is actually spinning with all the pulleys and such), then it will check out as "okay". So, you probably need a new voltage regulator to keep the light out at high revs.

The reason everything is working okay, is that it is charging your battery fine at lower revs, and idle, and you are not continuously running at high revs, right?

 

The boys have pretty much covered everything but...................you should check the condition of the bullet connectors under the air box (that one goes to the positive terminal on the battery), and bullet connector near the battery (that one goes to the negative terminal on the battery). They have a bad tendency to get loose over time. If they have a bad connection you will run on only the battery until it is drained, and the battery will not get charged. I have completely done away with the stupid bullet connectors on my car, and have run solid cables for both the positive and negative cables. It is possible to have an alternator that is performing just fine, and when you go to test the charge it will looks as if the alternator isn't working. All because of those stupid bullet connectors. So have a look at those while you're in there.

 

TOTALLY rebuildable, and for $100 or less if you do it yourself. No Doubt already posted a link to the thread with the how-to.

 

Damn - too late. Bolt "D" is the reverse of what you would expect - counter-clockwise to increase tension, clockwise to release tension. Ask me how I know. You think you are releasing tension, but it cranks it up and the bracket snaps. Try Eurospares; the bracket is around $250 used vs. something like $800 new from Ferrari.

You need to remove the shift cable bracket to get the long bolt out of the alternator. Three 13mm bolts; the bottom two are easy, the top one is a little more tricky. It also helps to remove the shield behind the shift cable bracket to get easier access to the bolts holding the bracket.

Inexpensive heavy duty regulators and rectifiers for your Delco-Remy CS-130 alternator can be purchased from Elreg.com. Like 10 bucks each. Since mine was rebuilt with those parts it has worked perfectly. There are numerous threads on here with the specific part numbers and step-by-step instructions. Good luck - it is a great feeling to fix your own Ferrari!

 

AIN'T THAT THE TRUTH!

 

Bracket itself is very easy to remove. It just unbolts. I got my replacement from Daniel at Ricambi America. Good price, quick despatch and he had them in stock (at least a few weeks ago).

While you've got everything stripped, might as well replace the top bracket at the same time as they are a known weak point and aren't too expensive.

 

The heavy duty parts are so cheap might as well replace them all when the alternator is tested and stripped down for a rebuild. Unless you want to pull everything apart again down the road because the stock internals will give out sooner or later! The broken bracket is easy enough to remove; two 13mm bolts on the "front" (facing the firewall) and three 13mm bolts on the "side" (facing the alternator body). Looks like you already have that done. It goes a lot quicker putting everything back in now that you know the layout.