An automobile alternator converts the mechanical energy of an internal combustion engine to alternating current needed to operate the lights, horn and electrical system of a car or truck. Eventually an alternator will wear out and need to be replaced.
Sometimes replacing an alternator is much easier than making an accurate prognosis of what is ailing your automobile. It is not all that uncommon for a do-it-yourselfer to replace an alternator only to find that nothing about the way the car runs has changed. To avoid this scenario, it is best to have the alternator checked while the car is running or after you have removed it from the car.
Old model cars often have lots of room to work, so taking out and replacing an alternator is rarely a difficult task. However, with older vehicles the number of electrical problems that might occur and be incorrectly diagnosed as a faulty alternator are much larger than in newer models. This is largely to the general corrosion that affects all parts of the automobile, including the electrical system.
In late model vehicles, gaining access to or---in some cases---just finding the alternator can make this task challenging. This is especially true with four-cylinder, front-wheel-drive makes, where the engine is aligned along the front axle. Changing an alternator in one of these cars might require a large investment in tools and take a long time.
