2006 F450 6.0L diesel landscape dump - was dumping yesterday w/ the truck running & when the bed was 1/2 way up, the truck died. Tried starting it but it just clicks. Hooked jumper cables up & it barely started to crank then clicks. Pouring rain so I said eff it for today. Batteries were purchased from Ford dealership 6/14 so they're not even 2.5 years old. I'm thinking it's the alternator??? If so, what alternator (manufacturer & amps) do you recommend, need to get the truck running today or tomorrow at the latest so buying one online is prob. out of the question. Thinking of AdvanceAuto, AutoZone, or CarQuest... Not sure if single or dual alternators but will check later today... Thanks!

 

I would go to Car Quest. They probably have a better part than the Zone. I would get the highest amp alternator that will install in the truck. As for the batteries. They may have to be replaced also. If they are discharged to much than they could be toast. Have them checked also.

 

I'd test the batteries first before changing the alternator. It's possible for batteries to go bad after a few years. If you have dual batteries, one may have been bad and helped to kill both batteries.

If they are bad, put new ones in and test them with a multimeter while the engine is running to see if the alternator is bad.

 

CARQUEST and Advance Auto are the same company (have been for a couple of years now).

AutoZone "DuraLast" alternators and O'Reilly "Ultima" alternators come from the same (Chinese) company.

All genuine Motorcraft alternators for this old of application (6.0) are remanufactured, not new.

Most local rebuilders don't bother to rebuild these anymore, since store bought alternatives (remans from Mexico, and new from China) are so much cheaper. The local alternator shop can make far more money per unit of time reselling a sweat shop reman than actually rebuilding it himself.

And even if you insist, and bring in a wheelbarrow of money, and he does rebuild it... all the WAI and Transpo component parts come from China anyway, so what difference does it really make? It isn't like the rotors get rewound, or the stators get rewired. What usually happens is either the diodes burn or the brushes wear into the slip rings. A rebuild will consist of throwing in a new regulator that already has new brushes and springs inside, replacing the slip rings, and if a diode or two is burned... replacing the entire rectifier plate is faster and cheaper than dorking with the diodes. All those parts are imported, and are the same parts as the import alternators.

So the point is, it doesn't really matter where you get an alternator from. Unless you spend over $500 for a different alternator technology, they are all the same junk, relatively speaking. Including the OEM 6G from Ford... otherwise you wouldn't be having this problem.

 

What he said. Do a little troubleshooting to figure out what's wrong before you start buying parts.

 

Talk to Ed@FICMrepair about his price on the Leece Neville 230 amp replacement for the stock alt. It bolts right in and it is a night and day better alternator, you will need to upgrade the alt to battery and battery to battery wiring, which you should do even with a stock alt, but that is an easy job, lots of info on here. If you don't go that route get at least the 140 amp OEM alt.

 

Careful though. Even though Prestolite, a Chinese company, bought Leece Neville a number of years ago, and has over time moved more production (and internal component production) of genuine Leece Neville alternators to China as a result... there is still yet a Chinese knock off of this 230 amp alternator, dressed in black and all.

Many vendors (including big names like Nations and OBB) do not disclose that the Leece Neville 230 amp that you think you are buying is actually not the genuine Prestolite article (which of itself is mostly Chinese built now). Buyer beware, it is a thicket out there when it comes to alternators. There are small subtle things that the aftermarket manufacturers do to cut costs in ways unnoticed. From eliminating circuits in the regulator (reducing/eliminating thermal protection), to shaving the edge off of pulleys (a blip in the belt tensioner could ramp the belt on that sharp edge which will quickly shred a $70 gates, never mind wreck other havoc).

Very frustrating experience separating the wheat from the chaff out there. And then the vendors get miffed when you call their bluff (misleading advertising).

 

1) At Advance Auto, you can order their 140A (the higher rated OEM) unit online and use the code TRT30 for a 30% discount, then pick it up from your local store. This is the best deal going for a stock alternator.

2) I won't suggest replacing the alternator without are bare minimum load testing each battery separately, and checking the alternator output voltage and amperage during the GP cycle. Could be as simple as bad/corroded connections. Clamp meter for output:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

3) When the LN unit got popular DC Power had a couple of high profile failures and a lead time problem. They still make good alternators for the 6.0, they just aren't as cheap as other options. FICMrepair.com stocks them, so it's easier to order through Ed as the vendor versus direct from DC. The 185A unit is good for basic trucks, but if you're running anything that draws a lot of power (dump body? unless you have a PTO unit) a higher powered unit isn't a bad idea. This is what I run:
270 Amp XP Series Alternator for 6.0L

4) Still not sold electrical is the root problem of a stall/ hot no-start. Do you have a scan tool of some kind?
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...eral-info.html

 

Thanks guys. Alternator was shot, so was 1 battery. Tested both batteries (before & after trickle charging), 1 was putting out low 300s CCAs & the other is mid-700 CCAs. They are both 2.5 year old Ford Motorcraft 850 CCA batteries, is the one putting out mid-700s (after trickle charging overnight) OK or should that be replaced also?

 

should replace in pairs - hopefully the Ford batteries had some warranty left!?

 

Yes, replace in pairs.

 

I've never got more than 3 years out of Motorcraft batteries in my truck. So seems par for the course with a stock alt and a high amp draw.

Replace the batteries in pairs. Upgrade the alt to minimum 140A. There's a cable upgrade based on adding a ground to the driver's side of the engine bay, the guy who came up with it (TooManyToys aka Jack) makes a very convincing argument with lots of hard data for adding it.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...tery-life.html

 

Interstate batteries and keep the water level full.

 

In the first decade of owning my 7.3L, I too, went through 3 sets of Motorcraft batteries. The OEMs. The Tested Tough MAX. And finally, the Tested Tough Super Duty BSD-65 with 1,000 cranking amps and a 4 year full replacement warranty. I had to special order those. No dealer stocked them. I marked on my calendar when the 4 years would expire. They worked great up until that day. The next day, they didn't anymore. (Figuratively speaking... in other words, by the time I detected their weakness, I had just missed the warranty).

I was done replacing batteries at that point, so I bought a pair of Enersys Odyssey Extreme AGM (absorbed glass mat) batteries. That was seven years ago. I'm still running those batteries today, and at one point I was able to drive home on those batteries alone, with no alternator connected, as I had lost the belt. On that short drive home, it was raining, so I had to have the wiper motor running, and it was nighttime, so my headlights, and all 16 clearance/marker lights were also on for that trip without an alternator. Those AGM batteries were already 6 years old at that point, and when I think about how power hungry the Injector Driver Module alone is, I'm fairly impressed.

When it comes time to replace the batteries, I'll definitely be getting another pair of high quality AGM batteries from Enersys. "If", I should say, instead of "when". Usually it's the other way around, but I'm not sure if these batteries are ever going to die.

 

Fudge...

So I replaced one of the batteries & the alternator and the truck worked well all week until this afternoon. The guys were on their way back to the shop & the battery light started flashing. Is the 110 Amp alternator not enough (that's what was in the truck to begin with) or is the battery I didn't replace shot or both? What alternator do you recommend for an '06 F450 landscape dump w/ 6.0L diesel single alternator set-up? I'll order on-line as soon as I hear from y'all I guess...