Your vehicle's alternator is a wonderful piece of engineering that does a lot more than you might realize. For example, many people don't know that the alternator is the heavy lifter while the vehicle is running, and it also helps keep the battery charged.
It's a common misconception to think that the battery is actively powering all of your vehicle's electronics as you move along, but this isn't the case.
An alternator is basically a mini electrical generator that turns mechanical energy from your vehicle's spinning engine into electrical energy. It generates the electricity that your vehicle's ancillary systems will utilize. The alternator also charges the car's battery while the vehicle's engine is running because the battery experiences strong depletion once it powers the starter at vehicle startup.
The alternator uses a rotor (basically an electromagnet), initially powered by the vehicle's battery, which spins inside a fixed part called the stator. The stator contains copper wiring, which is subjected to an alternating current when the rotor's electromagnet spins inside of it. The vehicle creates this electrical generation by powering the alternator via a shaft connected to the car's accessory belt through a pulley.
This helps the alternator create a current as long as the car's engine is running, and once the alternator is up to speed, some alternators can power the electromagnet on their own. There are various things to sort out, though.
A bad alternator can cause many issues, one being the inadequate recharging of your car's battery. This is obviously a huge problem because if the alternator isn't charging your battery, you won't be able to start your car the next time you try to turn it on. However, a failing alternator also produces a host of symptoms that might be terrifying if you don't know what you're dealing with. Some common ones are lights that suddenly dim out for no reason.
This is because your alternator isn't charging the battery correctly, which leads to the battery being unable to handle the load the car is asking of it. The radio might also stop working, along with a host of other electronic items in your vehicle that won't function correctly or at all. Basically, anything that needs electricity in your vehicle will start acting weird if your alternator is going bad.
The best thing to do is to take your vehicle to a qualified mechanic once you start noticing any mild symptoms before the symptoms escalate to major problems.
A failing alternator can also present itself in the form of your vehicle having difficulty starting due to a weak 12V car battery. But, the problem is actually the alternator not charging the battery correctly, and not the battery itself.
Electrical issues in cars are some of the most difficult to detect, and they can also be extremely annoying because they creep up when you least expect them to. Telling the difference between a failing battery and a bad alternator is difficult.
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