Edit: Meant to post this in 2 gen Dakota forum. Mods, please move. Thx

While driving to work this morning, check gauges light turned on and I saw that the battery gauge was at zero. It has always been rock steady a hair above halfway point. I turned around and drove home with only my fog lights, to preserve battery.

Let truck cool off, checked voltage with truck off and it was 12V. Turned truck on and voltage was now 14V, with no check gauges light. Drove to O'Reilly's and had it checked with truck running and everything passed. Drove a mile down the road and it happened again. Checked while running and it was 12.6V. Drove back to O'Reilly's tested again and this time the voltage regulator failed.

The alternator is a Delphi 136A reman. It was installed in 2012, and has 52K miles on it.

I've read a few threads and it says the voltage regulator is located in the PCM, another said ECM. Saw a few people had replaced alternators only to still have the issue....

Any thoughts?

 

Dodge calls it the PCM, not ECM, and yes the voltage regulator is part of it.

 

Thanks. Could I swap it out with a junkyard unit, or is programming needed?

 

I wish it was an external regulator, would fix so many things. Have always wondered if the PCM would completely flip out if you were to swap to a GM aftermarket 1 wire alt.

 

Well, fellas. I decided to take it back to basics.

O'Reilly's has that fancy pants tester which tested it on the truck. Remember now, after the first time it flipped out and I parked it, I was reading 14V after it cooled down. I was believing their tester when it said bad regulator. I just said to heck with it, yanked the alternator and took it to Autozone to have it bench tested. It failed with flying colors. I then took it to Advance and it failed again. So I picked up their house brand CARQUEST, Made in Mexico, alt. It's lifetime warranty and it's easy enough to change, so if it dies every three or four years, that ain't so bad. Just test drove it for a few miles and steady voltage so far. Will report back again after I drive it to work tomorrow.

By the way, where is the freakin Alternator fuse on this engine? I checked the under hood fuse block and the most I saw was 50V.

 

There's not one. There's a fusible link somewhere. I took it out when i relocated battery with a master switch, and put a 200 amp MAXI fuse in line.

 

Thanks, fellas. Looks like I'm in the clear. Drove 26 miles to work and no issues.