Did you ever had this trouble trying to start your car in the morning and it doesn’t work ? If it never happened to you , at minimum you’ve already had that fear. So when you find out an alternator noise on Kia Sorento, you can already imagine yourself breaking down, stuck awaiting the tow truck. That’s why our team has decided to produce this post to help you find the sources of alternator sounds. In this article, you will first discover the role and operation of the alternator in your Kia Sorento and then what the causes and solutions to alternator noise on Kia Sorento may be.
Role and alternator operation Kia Sorento
Alternator role
Your alternator is an fundamental component of your Kia Sorento. In fact, its objective is to provide power to your entire electrical system: headlights, interior lighting, signalling, computer… It will have the goal of recharging the battery once the automobile is in motion, to provide power to the automobile in motion and to let you to always have a enough energy source to be able to restart the next time.
Alternator functioning
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The alternator operates on an electrical principle that has been used for decades, the principle of copper coil wound around a magnet . This coil while spinning generates electricity. It is the engine itself that will provide the energy needed by the alternator to create the energy, via the accessory belt or alternator belt. When your Kia Sorento engine stops, the battery takes over to provide the automobile with energy.
What are the distinctive alternator noises or sounds on my Kia Sorento and what are the causes?
I listen to a knocking noise caused by the alternator of my Kia Sorento
One of the typical noises of a tired alternator on Kia Sorento is a knocking noise. This alternator sound on Kia Sorento will generally happen when your engine is idling, it can be connected to voltage drops that could disturb the normal operation of electrical elements such as headlights for example. In many cases, it is a of both bearings of the alternator that is defective, to verify it, use a multimeter on the terminals of your automobile with the engine running and you must get a value between 12 and 14.7 volts, which means that your alternator is recharging your battery well. If the value is lower, the alternator of your Kia Sorento is tired and you should consider swapping the bearing if it is the only reason otherwise the complete part.
I find out a grinding noise coming from the alternator of my Kia Sorento
If you are in the case where the alternator of your Kia Sorento generates grinding sounds, in this circumstance you will have to look at it more seriously. This symptom can testify as for the knocking sound of a tired bearing, but generally, we often realise by looking more meticulously that it is the accessory belt that is loosened or worn and is therefore the reason of it. In this circumstance, we recommend that you read this article to find all the necessary information to solve an accessory belt noise on Kia Sorento.
I find out a loud noise from the alternator of my Kia Sorento
Finding out a loud noise from the alternator of your Kia Sorento is quite regular, in fact, it produces an audible sound when producing the electrical pulses it generates. It is up to you to verify that the battery indicator light on your dashboard does not show up, and that you do not have a voltage drop when your engine is running (headlight or dashboard light that jumps for example. If this noise is too loud, we recommend that you look into this article to find other ways to solve problem of noises from front end on Kia Sorento.
