FloridaThomas

Hey guys Pulling out of the parking lot today I notice I’ve lost all my power steering. Then I get a warning light that says Alternator Fault Battery Not Charging. I had the alternator replaced around a year ago and have had no issues since. I was able to make it home but I have a Few questions for you guys

can I safely drive my car to the mechanic?
how difficult is replacing the alternator yourself?
Is there something internally I need to check before I drive anywhere else?

Thanks for the time
- Tom

jagtoes

Did you look to see if the alternator belt is loose or broken. If it is OK then check the battery voltage and see what you get. Then start the car and check the battery voltage as it is idling. You should see around 13.5 volts or more. Usually if the voltage is below 9 Volts the car will stop. So you may have been lucky in getting it home. Depending how far your mechanic is you may or may not be able to reach him . Charge the battery with a good charger of 10Amps or more . Changing the alternator is not to bad of a job but you may want to leave it to your mechanic if that is what the problem is.

FloridaThomas

I opened her up and my serpentine belt was half shredded. So lucky I made it home. Would this alone be enough to cause this fault? Thanks

- Tom

Mesquite77

Yes, it is likely slipping, so alternator could be fine, just not turning under load. Two things to do:

1) Check if both alternator, and A/C compressor are spinning without the serp belt on, something shredded it.
2) It is possible, but unlikely, that some debris got in there and caused the shredding.
3) If this is original belt, then time it was changed anyway.
4) Possible belt not installed correctly (off a groove?) when alternator replaced a year ago, causing shredding. Was belt replaced with new one at that time?
5) All belt does is run alternator and A/c, so if battery is charged, you can get some distance without belt, but a lot of electrical things in car, not sure how far.

Mesquite77

Was your replacement alternator a genuine VW or Audi OEM, or aftermarket?

If not OEM, aftermarket alternators can fail in a year, this is one part you do not want to go cheap on.

FloridaThomas

Yea man it was OEM. So underneath the alternator one of the pulleys is loose, I’m not sure the exact name of the pulley or what it’s connected to but I would imagine this would be enough to throw the belt off and cause the fault, does anyone have a detailed engine diagram or belt diagram so I can investigate this further? Thanks

Mesquite77

Simply search for "audi online parts", the sites will have pics with numbers of parts for your particular model, year, engine etc. Sounds like tensioner or damper pulley, not too bad a fix. In pic, big pulley is damper, small one is tensioner.

FloridaThomas

Update: so it looks like a bearing broke on the Idler pulley https://www.audipartsnationwide.com/...VkIFByb2R1Y3Rz Anyone have any experience replacing this pulley? Just trying to find the easiest approach to removing it without taking the front end off. Thanks for everyone’s help so far