Question-------------------------
Followup To
Question -
Ted-
I drive a 1990 Toyota 4Runner with a V6 engine and automatic transmission. It has about 139,000 miles on it. Last night, when I turned off the engine, all the the electronics immediately stopped working, like the battery was unplugged. Nothing happened when I tried to start it again. I popped the hood and tried to remove the alternator fuse. I wasn't able to get it out, but the act of jostling the fuse around trying to remove it somehow fixed the problem. Everything works fine now. I was wondering if this means that my alternator or battery may be starting to go. I also used my fairly powerful auxilary lights for the first time in a while right before this happened. Could that have had something to do with it?
Answer -
It sounds like the alternator fuse may be the problem, the reason it can't be pulled out is that it is connected with bolts, in order to replace it you will have to remove the part that contains the fuse from the fuse block and remove the small bolts that connect it to the electrical system, this fuse is rated at either 80 or 100 amps, any current draw above this will blow the fuse. Also, did you or anyone else try to jump start the engine with another battery?
Ted-
No, I never tried to jump start the engine. The only thing we did was try and remove the alternator fuse, which for some reason fixed the problem. It hasn't had any electrical problems since then. Are there fuses that would be compatible replacements for my alternator fuse that have higher amperage and can tolerate the extra current draw from my auxilary lights? Also, I have considered upgrading to an Optima deep cycle battery. Would that help things at all?
AnswerNormal alternator output is about 60-80amps uner full load, I doubt if the off road lights are drawing more than 10amps each, if that was the case they would be rated at 120watts, do you know what the watt rating of the lights is? Changing the battery won't make any difference, all batteries are 12 volts, the only difference in batteries is the cold cranking rating which means how long can the battery crank an engine before going dead, or how long the battery can be discharged before going dead under certain load conditions, it's the alternator that has to provide enough current for all the accessories and normal engine functions to work without discharging the battery.
Since everything is working ok at this time I don't know what else to tell you except maybe to replace the alternator fuse.
