kvlebherz

Last night I was sitting at a stop light when all of sudden one of the indicator lamps on the dash of my 2005 GX 470 appeared weakly, and began to flicker, and within just a couple of seconds I lost all electrical power in the car and the car died. I shifted into park and attempted starting it again but got absolutely nothing. At that point I could not even pull the shifter out of park. If it would have any thing to do with it, it was -12 degrees windchill outside. I'd received no warning indicators or had any unusual problems leading up to this. Does anyone have any thoughts as to what may have happened?

Toys4RJill

Sounds like alternator.

deeken

I agree that it sounds like the alternator.

2013FSport

iTrader: (2)

^^ I disagree. That is not to say the alternator is not part of the problem, more so to say that to go from running to all power lost is not the because of the alternator.

You need to know the battery state - if it opened internally up and offers no current output it could explain this. Measure battery voltage. If under 10.5 volts with a small load on it, the battery is shot. If greater than 11v, Charge battery and load test it.

More likely is something else happened like the main fuse opened. This normally would not happen unless a dead short occurred elsewhere and although slim, the diodes in the alternator could have shorted and taken out the main fuse.

Paint the picture and tell the story: Its cold out, all electrical systems are being taxed. Likely has every known heater on in the vehicle. Alternator is being taxed. But even if it failed, it should not have lost all power from the battery so there is more to this.

Do a Battery test, fuse check under hood and in cabin, alternator test. Let us know what you find.

tz693

Ditto......

kvlebherz

Thanks to all for your responses. To add a little more information, the car only has about 93,000 miles on it, so not bad at all for a 2005, overall the car is in great shape, and the battery is a relatively new DieHard, only about a year old. I'm encouraged to hear the thought that this may only be the alternator or related, in that at this point, I am just trying to decide whether to have it taken to my local mechanic (who is very good) or would I have to take it to the dealer if it were a much deeper type of issue. I think, based on everyone's input, I'll start with my local mechanic. I'll post what the outcome is. Thanks again to everyone for your input.

jds4u2

Sounds exactly the same as my car but one week earlier. Dash lights flashed then all went dead. Couldn't turn on the hazards! Ended up having it towed. Prognosis; Alternator! Cost; $850 for a new one.

kvlebherz

I was in the inside lane of a busy 4 lane road after dark when this occurred, and like you (jds4u2) , I could not turn on my hazard lights either. I got out and used the light of my phone to wave cars around me. Fortunately my son showed up and put his flashers on behind me, but it was still a very dangerous situation. I ended up calling 911 explaining that we needed a police car or there was going to be an accident, and they thankfully sent one. AAA was so busy because of the cold that I couldn't even get through to talk to anyone, so I asked the police officer if he could call a tow truck for me, which he did. Not at all a great experience. Thanks for the further encouragement that it is probably the alternator. $850 isn't great, but I was afraid that this might be something even more involved and more expensive.

2013FSport

iTrader: (2)

I'm guessing this year old battery has not been tested? Have you put a volt meter across the battery?

If its freezing AND a good battery is left in a state of discharge it will freeze and ruin the battery. Just sayin...

Have you applied jumper cables to it to see if the dash powers up?

My point is the Alternator light should have came on BEFORE the battery was so depleted that the engine shut down and all accessories were rendered useless.

deeken

If you paid $850 for an alternator then you got ripped off. Rebuilt alternators go for around $125-200 and installation should be around $150-300. I bought mine for $150 and installed it myself.

kvlebherz

Well, we'll see tomorrow. I had the car towed earlier today to my local mechanic who I have a great deal of confidence and trust in. He's worked on several cars in our family, including this one, and I know that he'll do a good diagnostic job on it, before attempting any repair. My reason for posting was to see if this was maybe some common occurring and/or deeper problem that would best be taken care of by a dealership. Thanks again for everyone's input.

chiph9

Maybe the mechanic also replaced the splash shields. That's another couple hundred in parts.

Everyone needs to at least check that the front passenger splash shield is in place, as it's the one that protects the alternator. If you turn your wheel to the right and can see the alternator in the wheel well - yours is missing (they decay with age and fall off).

Chip H.

kvlebherz

Great piece of info. I'll have him check that out. Thanks

kvlebherz

Picked up my GX this afternoon. Alternator replaced with rebuilt model, battery recharged, splash guard checked and in place....$394 ! I obviously like that much better than a possible $850. Can someone remind me of the process to go through to reprogram the power windows. I had this happen when I replaced the battery and 3 of my 4 windows wouldn't work. It was something fairly simple, but kind of weird. Thanks agin to everyone for your input.

EddieK05

Here you go:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gx-...-or-reset.html