Well ... I have a crazy story and a lesson to be learned.
So, we went down to Orlando (again) for a second attempt at a little mini vacation. A few days of driving around that dreadful town really took it's toll on poor Large Marge. The alternator needle bearings seized and failed all at once. By the way, we were 45 miles from anywhere, and the closest tow truck was 4 hours from getting to us! I had myself, wife, two kids, and her grandmother in our vehicle. 30 seconds into the ordeal, the griping began. I decided right then and there, to remove the alternator belt, and continue home, and hope that my Optima Red Top would hold us over, seeing as it was also getting dark. The funny thing is that the alternator gave no indications of bearings going bad, not even the typical screeching and grinding that comes with it. So, we made it back the 45 miles on the battery, and as usual, the truck started to go into "fail-safe I'm a Montero and I'm going to get you home no matter what" mode.
Let me explain what happens in this mode from first hand experience.
1.) Our 4WD systems are backwards in the sense that if they fail, they fail INTO 4WD, so if you are somewhere, and the vacuum solenoid fails, or the battery loses juice, it fails into 4 so you can make it home no matter what. So you can figure out what happened. Battery light came on, my voltage meter started dropping, A/T light came on, and the truck started to try to throw itself into 4HI. I pushed the lever up into 4HI and drove like that (since it isn't going to hurt anything) on the interstate home. Mainly because I didn't want the Auto hubs trying to engage at interstate speeds. And if you've ever driven I-4 during rush hour, if you do 5 under the speed limit, you're toast.
2.) Everything runs at a degraded (but doesn't shut off) level. The truck won't start to pick and choose what to shut off. You make those decisions, but it will equally split the power between everything that needs it. But obviously, the a/c, radio, and other amenities were the first to go.
3.) Your water pump/thermostat will fail to wide open. Don't freak out. It's fine. But apparently our water pumps use some sort of electrical current to run, versus the belt driven kind. Correct me if I'm wrong, please. But this is what happened to me. The truck started running about 25 degrees (F) cooler. I accepted it and moved on (didn't have a choice really).
I drove home, monitoring for funny engine/drivetrain sounds and staring at the gauges until we pulled into the driveway of the inlaw's house. I'm in awe at what this vehicle did for us.
So, I went and bought a new alternator from AutoZone for about $120, but be careful, the core charge is $90. Replaced the alternator in the driveway with a 12mm and 15mm socket set. I did have to take the stock airbox and hose off, just to make it more accessible. I have the 3.0L SOHC.
After everything was replaced and plugged in and double and triple checked, I started the truck. Ran like new again. No funny sounds, no funny lights, nothing. SWEET!
... but the story isn't over.
Drove back into town the next day. Went to "the happiest place on earth". What happens in the parking garage? I all of a sudden hear a rattling coming from the engine. You can only imagine the new and improved expletives I came up with. Then all the lights in the world started going off. I shut the truck off instantly (10 seconds(ish) after I heard the rattling) and walked to the front. Nothing looked out of place. No fluids were on the ground. No smoke. Engine looked fine. My wife instantly thought that my in depth mechanical prowess in the replacement of the alternator was to blame for this breakdown. I hoped it wasn't. I had her start the engine real quick while I looked/listened for any funny signs. It was apparent. NONE of the pulleys were turning while the engine was running. Again, colorful expletives filled my vocabulary. I called for the tow truck.
While waiting the 3 hours for a tow truck alone (the wife and kids got picked up by the inlaws and taken back to the house) I had plenty of time with my smart phone and google. Turns out, there was a recall back in 1994 on the 3.0L engine for the crankshaft bolt. Apparently it had a tendency to snap in half and do exactly what my truck is doing.
Surely, I thought, that when I got the timing belt replaced and the new-owner maintenance on it, that would have been noticed. But the culprit WAS the maintenance. The Mitsubishi dealership that I had the truck towed to told me this: If you or someone other than a Mitsubishi tech replaces the timing belt, there's a tendency to over-torque the crankshaft bolt. If that is done, then it WILL snap off eventually. Who knew?
So now I wait, hoping that all we have to do is drill out the bolt and slap a new one in. I don't want to think worse case, but I'm pretty sure your minds can wonder about what damage can be done.
Endgame though, it took 196,000 HARD miles to finally break that truck. That is the first major issue this vehicle has had in it's illustrious 16 year lifespan, and with a little love, I can get another 196,000 hard miles out of it. I have no doubt that any other vehicle would have failed a lot worse than that, and have seen it. I've had friends belts break and the entire rig blow up (in other makes of vehicle not to be named here). I also now have renewed faith in our wonderful 3 red diamonds of domination vehicles.
I'm currently waiting until tomorrow to hear from the shop about what the true issue is.
Hindsight being 20/20, I think the brief moment of the alternator belt being seized up put enough resistance to the turning motor to push the already weak crankshaft bolt to it's breaking point. It just didn't at the time, but instead the truck drove for another 75 miles (after going back into town after replacing the alternator) before it gave out.
Holy crap, I love this truck.
So, we went down to Orlando (again) for a second attempt at a little mini vacation. A few days of driving around that dreadful town really took it's toll on poor Large Marge. The alternator needle bearings seized and failed all at once. By the way, we were 45 miles from anywhere, and the closest tow truck was 4 hours from getting to us! I had myself, wife, two kids, and her grandmother in our vehicle. 30 seconds into the ordeal, the griping began. I decided right then and there, to remove the alternator belt, and continue home, and hope that my Optima Red Top would hold us over, seeing as it was also getting dark. The funny thing is that the alternator gave no indications of bearings going bad, not even the typical screeching and grinding that comes with it. So, we made it back the 45 miles on the battery, and as usual, the truck started to go into "fail-safe I'm a Montero and I'm going to get you home no matter what" mode.
Let me explain what happens in this mode from first hand experience.
1.) Our 4WD systems are backwards in the sense that if they fail, they fail INTO 4WD, so if you are somewhere, and the vacuum solenoid fails, or the battery loses juice, it fails into 4 so you can make it home no matter what. So you can figure out what happened. Battery light came on, my voltage meter started dropping, A/T light came on, and the truck started to try to throw itself into 4HI. I pushed the lever up into 4HI and drove like that (since it isn't going to hurt anything) on the interstate home. Mainly because I didn't want the Auto hubs trying to engage at interstate speeds. And if you've ever driven I-4 during rush hour, if you do 5 under the speed limit, you're toast.
2.) Everything runs at a degraded (but doesn't shut off) level. The truck won't start to pick and choose what to shut off. You make those decisions, but it will equally split the power between everything that needs it. But obviously, the a/c, radio, and other amenities were the first to go.
3.) Your water pump/thermostat will fail to wide open. Don't freak out. It's fine. But apparently our water pumps use some sort of electrical current to run, versus the belt driven kind. Correct me if I'm wrong, please. But this is what happened to me. The truck started running about 25 degrees (F) cooler. I accepted it and moved on (didn't have a choice really).
I drove home, monitoring for funny engine/drivetrain sounds and staring at the gauges until we pulled into the driveway of the inlaw's house. I'm in awe at what this vehicle did for us.
So, I went and bought a new alternator from AutoZone for about $120, but be careful, the core charge is $90. Replaced the alternator in the driveway with a 12mm and 15mm socket set. I did have to take the stock airbox and hose off, just to make it more accessible. I have the 3.0L SOHC.
After everything was replaced and plugged in and double and triple checked, I started the truck. Ran like new again. No funny sounds, no funny lights, nothing. SWEET!
... but the story isn't over.
Drove back into town the next day. Went to "the happiest place on earth". What happens in the parking garage? I all of a sudden hear a rattling coming from the engine. You can only imagine the new and improved expletives I came up with. Then all the lights in the world started going off. I shut the truck off instantly (10 seconds(ish) after I heard the rattling) and walked to the front. Nothing looked out of place. No fluids were on the ground. No smoke. Engine looked fine. My wife instantly thought that my in depth mechanical prowess in the replacement of the alternator was to blame for this breakdown. I hoped it wasn't. I had her start the engine real quick while I looked/listened for any funny signs. It was apparent. NONE of the pulleys were turning while the engine was running. Again, colorful expletives filled my vocabulary. I called for the tow truck.
While waiting the 3 hours for a tow truck alone (the wife and kids got picked up by the inlaws and taken back to the house) I had plenty of time with my smart phone and google. Turns out, there was a recall back in 1994 on the 3.0L engine for the crankshaft bolt. Apparently it had a tendency to snap in half and do exactly what my truck is doing.
Surely, I thought, that when I got the timing belt replaced and the new-owner maintenance on it, that would have been noticed. But the culprit WAS the maintenance. The Mitsubishi dealership that I had the truck towed to told me this: If you or someone other than a Mitsubishi tech replaces the timing belt, there's a tendency to over-torque the crankshaft bolt. If that is done, then it WILL snap off eventually. Who knew?
So now I wait, hoping that all we have to do is drill out the bolt and slap a new one in. I don't want to think worse case, but I'm pretty sure your minds can wonder about what damage can be done.
Endgame though, it took 196,000 HARD miles to finally break that truck. That is the first major issue this vehicle has had in it's illustrious 16 year lifespan, and with a little love, I can get another 196,000 hard miles out of it. I have no doubt that any other vehicle would have failed a lot worse than that, and have seen it. I've had friends belts break and the entire rig blow up (in other makes of vehicle not to be named here). I also now have renewed faith in our wonderful 3 red diamonds of domination vehicles.
I'm currently waiting until tomorrow to hear from the shop about what the true issue is.
Hindsight being 20/20, I think the brief moment of the alternator belt being seized up put enough resistance to the turning motor to push the already weak crankshaft bolt to it's breaking point. It just didn't at the time, but instead the truck drove for another 75 miles (after going back into town after replacing the alternator) before it gave out.
Holy crap, I love this truck.
