Hello,

I placed this thread on the fiatforum.co.uk site already (http://www.fiatforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=105).

Can someone help me with some alternator issues...


"Hi all - nice to join your forum.

I found it when I was looking online for help about my 98 Cinquecento Sporting. It's a great car and I totally rate it but...

Alternator's deceased - bloody thing seized on the M25.

I wouldn't mind (it's done over 60k and all I had to do in the end was cut the belt off and drive home on battery power) but, I can't get the broken alternator off to replace it because the adjuster bolt hits the engine mount before it's fully un-done.

To add insult to injury the offending engine mount is held on by (among other things) a stud/nut (obviously the nut is rusted on and the stud came out, as they always do), which goes through the cooling system - so all of the coolant has poored out.

So I can't get the alternator off without removing an engine mount, I can't remove the engine mount because access is so poor and something is still holding the bugger on, I can't get the stud back in (poor access, crap thread) and I can't drive the car because the coolant has come out.

Has anyone else had a similar and problem - am I missing something?
It seems ridiculous that I have to drop the engine out to replace a consumable like an alternator!!

Assuming I have to drop the engine out to sort this problem (it's looking like the easiest option)...

Should I replace the clutch while I'm there - it's the origional clutch and has done just over 60k but doesn't seem worn - I have no idea how much milleage I can expect from a fiat Cinq clutch.

Sorry for the huge load of questions when I've barely introduced myself!

Please help!!..."

right 1st i will recommend a haynes manual as it wil help in may ways

ive recently done my alternator on the turbo cinq so know what its like.you need to remove the wheel and wheel arch liner. you will then need to support the engine on a jack and remove the engine mount bolt and lower the engine about an inch!

as for coolant i dont know which bolt you have removed to drop coolant? all of the alternator work can be done from the drivers arch(well it has to) and the alternator comes out that way as well(just!)

if ive missed anything post back as i dont have my haynes in the flat

edit fiatforum.co. uk bleugh

Buy a Haynes manual it will save you a lot of grief.

You stick a jack under the engine to take the load, unbolt the mount, remove alternator, do it in reverse, job done, its not hard.

And yes both the nuts for the alternator are on studs which go into the engine and yes they will rather amusingly relieve you of engine coolant if the studs come out with the nuts whcih can happen as the nuts rust onto them, this is what happened to mine, just use it as an excuse to flush the system and renew antifreeze and water with good stuff for winter, and as you are in London with its crap hard water buy a big 5L drinking water from ASDA fro £2.50 or something as its better for the car.

Aaron.

When my alternator went I was gonna change it myself but read Haynes manaul and it says you have to drop the engine so had garage do it (Unless anyone else knows another way as haynes manuals often arnt that good). Not sure on Clutch mines the original and its just done of 80k and its fine touch wood. I hope this helps.

it is possible to get the bolt out without taking the engine mounting off, you just have to be very patient and use a spanner rather than a ratchet. it's an arse to get back in... BUT if you cut it down a bit it will go in a dream and mean next time you need to do anything with the alternator you will not have as much hassle!

YELLOWNITR8 said:

When my alternator went I was gonna change it myself but read Haynes manaul and it says you have to drop the engine so had garage do it (Unless anyone else knows another way as haynes manuals often arnt that good). Not sure on Clutch mines the original and its just done of 80k and its fine touch wood. I hope this helps.

Click to expand...

Must be reading a diff book from me then as mine said to support it remove mount and drop a inch like Custard said then reverse.

its a blooming easy job, feek fannying about trying to squeeze a bolt out when it takes like 10mins to remove the mount tops!!!!!!

yeah, easy as. I used a piece of wood on top of the jack to spread the weight out and then put the jack under the sump. Jacked it till it took the weight and then took the mount off.

Of course my car was awkward about it, it had to be on axle stands at the front because you can't actually get a trolley jack under my bumper never mind under the sump!

Thanks guys, all sounds a lot more promising now - I'll have another go this week with the Haynes Manual (my manual is some rubbish Haynes copy which says "undo the three bolts [there's 2!] and re-fitting is the reverse of removal" ! ).

Cheers

Binned_it

Ahhh had the same problem with a sei at work the other day! Managed to do it in the end with out dropping the engine mount, took a while though, was a right pain in the arse!

binned_it said:

Thanks guys, all sounds a lot more promising now - I'll have another go this week with the Haynes Manual (my manual is some rubbish Haynes copy which says "undo the three bolts [there's 2!] and re-fitting is the reverse of removal" ! ).

Cheers

Binned_it

Click to expand...

Theres only the one bolt on the engine mount that you need to take off And there is 3 on the engine side of the engine - 2 bolts and 1 nut.

From recently doing this job myself, its really is easy. As whats been said, just jack up the car and take off the driver wheel, arch liner out, jack plus plank of wood under the sump and support weight, undo mount bolt, drop engine about 1 to 2 inches (may be helpful to undo the wiring before dropping the engine), take off the engine mount off the block, undo the alternator bolts, swap over for new one, and do complete reverse

Luke said:

Theres only the one bolt on the engine mount that you need to take off And there is 3 on the engine side of the engine - 2 bolts and 1 nut.

From recently doing this job myself, its really is easy. As whats been said, just jack up the car and take off the driver wheel, arch liner out, jack plus plank of wood under the sump and support weight, undo mount bolt, drop engine about 1 to 2 inches (may be helpful to undo the wiring before dropping the engine), take off the engine mount off the block, undo the alternator bolts, swap over for new one, and do complete reverse

Click to expand...

you can get it off without removing the engine mount just jack the engine up a bit loosen all 3 mount nuts/bolts and get a lever bar in between the engine and mount worked fine for me!!

Use the guide. Mine came out really easily without touching the mount or jacking the engine up etc. You just cut 1cm off the bolt before you put it back. Took me 15/20 mins. No harm in trying it before undoing the mount. Dan

Great that the search facility is being used, but I reckon the alternator might have been fitted in the last 4 and a bit years.

Cheers

SPD

D4NS said:

Use the guide. Mine came out really easily without touching the mount or jacking the engine up etc. You just cut 1cm off the bolt before you put it back. Took me 15/20 mins. No harm in trying it before undoing the mount. Dan

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Thanks for a great tip Dan!
Took me 20 min changing the alternator without removing engine mounts!
A reconditioned one cost me 70 pound from unipart,had to deliver the old back.
To cut off 1 cm of the bolt worked really well!

Martini Gasolini