Alternator replacement?

CALEBM7

MEMBER
2002 FORD F-150
V8
4WD
AUTOMATIC
126,000 MILES

I was driving on the highway last night and noticed my battery light came on. I noticed that right after my dash lights seemed to dim. I immediately shut off my brights and radio, I drove about 30 more miles and made it to a friend's. My question is, if I put the battery on the charger and let it charge before I go will I be able to make it 15 miles back home? (I know driving it is not recommended driving it without replacing the alternator but that's out of the question for today). Will I be able to make it back home about 15 miles with a a chance of having to stop at 2 or 3 stoplights? Thanks

Sunday, September 15th, 2019 AT 6:04 AM

2 Replies

BMDOUBLE

MECHANIC
1,139 POSTS

I wouldn't recommend it because I've seen alternators with various levels of failure and have even seen some catch on fire!

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Sunday, September 15th, 2019 AT 9:33 AM

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

It is hard to know for sure how far a battery will last if the alternator has failed. Clearly it is not something you want to test but in a jam I would definitely put a charger on it for as long as you can and then turn as much off as possible while you are driving. Clearly the head lamps are a large draw on the battery so if you can wait until day time, that would help.

Here is a guide on how to replace the alternator:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-replace-an-alternator

Also, I attached the process from the manual on how to replace it. Let us know what questions you have. Thanks

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