geoff bell

after my own alternator replacement i did not need lights reset. but six months later had to top up battery levels as cells only held enough charge for two starts a day.

my car seems to run better on the fuel i buy south-of-the-border (republic of ireland). better performance, better mpg and more fuel for £ (varies according to £/euro). pity the tank is too small to stock up on a regular basis. taking the 50-mile round-trip, the time to get there and back, the fuel used to get there and back, the amount of fuel the tank actually holds, i still haven't worked out if it's worth it. i usually just get as much as i can afford any time i'm across the border rather than going specially for it.

my stereo used to do the same. there was another problem too, can't remember. anyway. i was told to replace the alternator.

i got a 2000 felecia classic 10 months ago. for a grand. solid enough car. had to replace the complete exhaust system - that and a service cost me £400 or something. a few months later the laternator went. no scrap yards hard one and bough a recon from a dealer 70 miles away for £100+VAT, plus a few extra for fitting. there's something up electrically, hoping to get it sorted this week - i suspect it's the alternator. if it needs a complete alternator, i'm likely to consider cutting my losses and selling the car for scrap. the model of alternator i need was only available on felicias for something like a couple of years and is like gold dust in a scrap yard. something like £240+VAT if the car has aircon.

the mechanic put the battery on the charger and then i took it for a 20 mile drive. everything seems okay. all i need to do now is pay my bills.

okay. i got a reconditioned alternator from a skoda garage 50 miles away. mechanic fitted it earlier today and went to work. when i went to collect it the damn thing won't start. i don't hear starter turning over at all. there's like a humming sound when i switch the ignition on and the airbag light fades to nothing (i can't remember if this is what happens normally). the guy's probably going to look at it when he gets home from work at 11pm. should i worry that the ecu has been affected by the dodgy alternator or is it likely that the battery just won't hold a charge now? the aircon and flashers are working so the battery isn't completely dead. any ideas? also, if it is the ecu, do i need to match the car model if i get one from a scrap yard (ie 2000 skoda felicia classic 1.3mpi with aircon/pas, or match the engine only, or will any felicia ecu do the trick - i hear that later models' ecu has better mpg from other threads in this forum). there are a couple on ebay at the moment at £10 - £15 - is that cheaper than scrapyard prices?

i'm keeping my eyes on haynes manuals for skoda felicia on ebay. my car was first registered december 2000. do i need to get a manual covering up to 2000, or will there be no changes from the 1999 model. my car is a skoda felicia classic 1.3mpi.

before i left the car with the mechanic it sounded like there was a second engine in there. maybe the alternator is shot afterall!

anybody got any pics of a felicia alternator and/or regulator? none of the numbers on my regulator match oem numbers at autofactors or skoda garages.

cheers. i might just order the regulator. a new alternator looks like it'll cost close to a ton (was quoted something like £65+VAT, but i think that's for the non-pas/aircon version), so ten or fifteen quid looks like a good option. i'm sure the autoparts shop would give me a refund if i need more than the regulator.

if i was to get a new alternator would it have the regulator fitted? my mechanic tells me that the alternator was putting out too much current for the battery and that it needs replaced. if i was to just get the regulator (he says the guy who does his electrical work tells him that the fault in the alternator can't be fixed), would that mean that if i got a new alternator if the regulator replaced on it's own doesn't work that i'll have a new regulator on the alternator as well?

the alternator is a magneton

petrol engine that is

it's a felicia classic 1.3. can't remember off the top of my head what engine it's got - i think it's the high-powered skoda engine as opposed to the vw engine models. first registered december 2000. mechanic says the alternator has magneton fz82003 on it

i'm having bother finding an alternator in the scrap yards. does anybody know what model of vw or seat might have the same alternator?