Land Rover Repair: range rover 98 warning light, tensioner pulley, pep boys

Question
hi,i have a 4.6 range rover auto 1998,on the dash for the first time the battery light is illuminated,it stays on whilst driving,and a bleep is heard and alternator fault is shown,however this makes no difference to the driving of the car....what could it be

Answer
Hi Shaun,

could be that the alternator, serpentine belt or even the battery are having some problem.  It may take some time before the vehicle just stops running due to a dead battery, so have this problem fixed as quickly as possible.

It could be that the alternator is not generating enough 'juice' to recharge the battery.  This could be caused by an internal failure OR perhaps the serpentine belt is slipping on the pulley or is stretched and too old.  Best way to tell is to connect a multimeter and read how many volts are going to the battery.  Most autoshops in N.America (Advance auto, PEP Boys, NAPA Auto) will take a moment to do this for you (free too).  

It could also be that the battery can no longer hold a charge due to its age.  In my experience with old batteries on my '95 Disco, if you suspect the battery is at fault, replace it immediately.  It could have a detrimental affect on the alternator and then you have to replace that too. $$$

SO...verify that the battery is fully charged; make sure the alternator is recharging the battery; examine the serpentine belt for cracks, signs of slipping.  On the rare instance, the tensioner pulley can sometimes fail - this then causes some slack on the belt.

Best of luck,
JohnMc

NB:  send me an email and I'll respond with some notes on how to test your battery and alternator.   jmcinnis64@hotmail.com