about the alternarors on a vauxhall astra dti, my mum phoned me before to say her battery light had came on and the power steering had gone very hard to use, so initially i thought it had maybe threw a belt off but on closer inspection the belt is still on but theres a part on the alternator that looks like it should be spinning but it isnt, something like a centrifugal clutch on the end of it. so basically does anyone know about these and can they be fixed or is it a new one. i seem to remember somewhere that these alternators cost about £400 to replace, cos they also run the power steering etc. any help appreciated

Thanks Sean.

 

have you tested the alternater to c if it is still charging mate,
i have had one before when a big fuse was blown and another garage put an alt on it and the light was still on
you can pick them up from main dealer for about a ton i think dont put a pattern one on as my brothers mate did this and i replaced it with 4 of them before he put his hand in his pocket to buy a genuine one hope these help

 

ooops for got to mention if i am right the alt is at the back of the engine and what you have mentioned sounds like the air con pump

 

Depends on year and engine of astra really, if it's a x17dtl [i think] then the alternator is on the back and has a vacuum pump attached iirc.

If it's a y17dti [identifiable by ecu right on the top of the engine] then alternator is on the front and comes out through the wheelarch i think. You can get them from motorfactors but i think it's a bosch only part soo if your factor only lists delco remy for example expect it to be wrong, priced at about £70.

I've not worked on one of these beasts for a while though so don't go hounding my if i've got the engine codes the wrong way round

The power steering has gone stiff as it's driven by an electric pump, if the battery has died due to not being charged then thats why.

Check alt is charging and the fuse hasn't blown as said above.

HTH

 

Sean,
As mentioned, are you sure the thing you are looking at isn't the Aircon compressor, that has a clutch on the front that doesn't turn when it's disengaged.
AFAIK all Astra's use an electric power steering pump which stops working fairly quickly if the alternator stops charging, that is why the steering goes stiff.

Worth dropping this guy a line - http://stores.ebay.co.uk/STARTER-AND...Q3amesstQQtZkm - I've had an alternator and parts from him and been very happy - aftermarket parts but no problem at all.

 

think i was looking at the air con compressor the car is a Yreg 2000, 2001 model. its a 1.7dti.