melissac

my alternator died so i bought a new one and just put it in. car started right up but it has a funny smell and it is running really rough. Is this something to do with the alternator or do I have other problems?

trukn1

Realizing that you may not be too technical, please try to describe what the smell closely resembles. I think you may have another problem as the alternator's primary function is to keep the charge maintained on the battery and has nothing to do with the idle. Please provide as much detail as possible so we can try to help with you problem.

melissac

well the reason i thought it was related to the alternator is because the car ran great before i put the new alternator in. It smells like really strong wires burning.

trukn1

double check all of the electrical connections to make sure they are secure and tight,, and hooked up correctly. Also make sure that the serpentine belt was installed correctly and not fraying/tearing. Routing diagram for the belt should be on the underside of the hood. Sounds like something was not hooked up correctly.

melissac

let the car run for a couple of minutes and smell stopped and shaking stopped. Ya think maybe it had something to do with the car sitting for a long period?

trukn1

That may have had a little something to do with it. How long did the car sit?

melissac

couple of weeks

trukn1

could very well be the case. My car sits for a week, sometimes 2 weeks at a time with none of the symptoms you describe. Car could have been trying to re-align all of the fluids(get em circulating) and wake up from it's sleep period. Just keep an eye on it. Don't think it is anything serious though if the problem went away. See if it does the same thing in the am.

atoyot

perhaps it was low voltage at your battery and your new alternator was pumping juice to it to recharge at the alt. full capacity? Just a guess. Still sounds a little fishy. Are you sure you have the positive terminal hooked correctly at the alternator?