so i was down in lbi yesterday driving my jeep on the beach. we went around the end of the island and we drove up the back side a bit. the tide came in and the only way out was to drive in the bay a little bit. about foot to a foot and a half of water. on the way off the island i began to loose charge from the alternator. i flushed it out with some water at a power washer place and some compressed air thinking that would help. long story short i drove 2 hours or so with the alternator giving me a small charge. every now and then the lights would get a little dimmer and i would loose an accesory like the radio or abs. it almost comletely died when i was in trenton nj near the ball park. then about 15 min from home it died. no power what so ever. tried cleaning connections and all that. tried to jump it. nothing. got a tow home and did an alternator today. i am wondering if the salt water could have been what made the alternator go or could it have been the 100k on it that made it decide to give up the ghost. it also had been in some sand and sandy water but i had it in that stuff before and it never stopped running like this. the tow truck guy said the salt water would kill the insides of an alternator but i dont know if he was blowing smoke up my tail pipe or not. my buddy had his tacoma in the same stuff i did but his is running fine, well not the same stuff he did not want to get it that dirty and wet. im just not sure if the salt water did me in or not. here are some pictures of what i did and how my night ended. im in the red shirt feeling like my best friend has just gotten shot and is being taken away in the meat wagon
alternator died
- Thread starter randy2kxj
- Start date
SteelHeadz
Super Moderator
Welcome to Jeepz. Firsts off, It's NEVER a good thing to get salt water into any electrical connectors or components. In exagerration, it's like pouring acid on aluminum. After Hurricane Katrina hit Houston, a friend of mine brought over 2 new Quad's for me to look at and fix. both were subjected thru saltwater. i began to flush all the fluids and disconnected all the electrical connectors for a thorough cleaning. these Quad's was only splashed around from the hurricane with saltwater, and it's only been 2 days when it was brought over. i could litterally poke my fingers through the engine crankcase due to the corrosion that had already eaten up the aluminum casing. all the electrical connectors are corroded beyond cleaning. if i was you, i would check the connections that are exposed and make sure it's clean. some electrical connectors on those XJ's are not fitted with seals. check those as well. take your alternator off and get it checked to see if the charging issue is in the Alternator or wiring in your Jeep. Both Copper and Aluminum does not play well with salt water. here's some pic's..
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Bounty__Hunter
Super Moderator
Doesn't help that the XJ's alternator is mounted down low. I'd stay out of the salt water.
well i replaced the alternator already. the connections looked ok. about 25 min after we got out of the water i was hitting it with a power washer so i think i took care of any salt remaining on the jeep. yeah i think i am done playing in the salt water. i need to find a fresh water lake near me and play in that. or just stick to the mud and loading dock ramps
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