Rut could go wrong? "Charging System: Service Now" fault & disabled Bronco from muddy good time

[Wild Horses 4x4]

Was it worth it?​

First off we want to thank the Gold Country Bronco Group for inviting us out to their meet up. We highly recommend new Bronco owners living in Northern California to join this group!​

Bronco Academy: An event to learn about your rig with minimal risk of damage. A verity of obstacles, spotters, and like minded Bronco owners all meeting up to enjoy the California outdoors. Unfortunately, the weather had different plans … what looked like a safe place to wheel turned into a big MUD PIT –– Heavy rain, slippery conditions, puddles, cloudy and among all this, the most adventurous group of Bronco owners. Everybody who attended the event got home safely and are probably power washing their Bronco more than once.​

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Be sure to visit the thread by Mark Brooks to see photos/videos of all the fun we had!​

Of course one of our own had too much fun… Mitch Creel.​

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After the event he had his own adventure…​

On the way home from the event his Bronco dashboard turned into a Christmas Tree all lit up.​

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The explanation:​

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We'll get it sorted out soon. Early thoughts: Alternator might've gone bad as seen in another Bronco video.​

Note: Next time you send it and see mud or water getting on the hood of your rig then you're probably going too fast. If you have any questions please leave them down below we'll be updating the story/repair on this thread. If you had any crazy water/mud stories with your rig then let us know how that went!​

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UPDATE:​

Mitch had to overcome a handful of hangups while trying to fix his 2.7L Ford Bronco Alternator.​

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Avoid these snags: ​

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[Beach_Bum]

Wait, did you just refer to yourself in the third person?

Of course one of our own had too much fun… Mitch Creel.

With regards to the alternator with muddy water, it's been known for some time even before J1.

 

[Hank 615]

Killing an alternator in mud is more like a rite of passage, not a weakness specific to a Bronco.

 

[Beach_Bum]

Killing an alternator in mud is more like a rite of passage, not a weakness specific to a Bronco.

Well, Yes and No. It is a known design flaw.

 

[Broncoman7072]

Guilty of Alternator death by mud


Technically it was a mistake. Didn't realize it was so deep until I was in it.

 

[Bdisco]

Should have got an old subi if you want to splashy in puddles.

 

[Bronco cat]

Guilty of Alternator death by mud


Technically it was a mistake. Didn't realize it was so deep until I was in it.

Rule one of off roading never drive in water you don’t know the depth of.

 

[Broncoman7072]

Rule one of off roading never drive in water you don’t know the depth of.

Thanks

 

[Bronco cat]

Well, Yes and No. It is a known design flaw.

This isn’t a “design flaw” it’s common sense 101. Lots of 4wd vehicles have low mounted alternators. All Toyotas do, the bronco does, they are designed to handle a certain amount of mud but sending any vehicle at 40 plus mph over and over and over again in a short span of time should he expecting all kinds of issues. I love getting my truck dirty and using it to its potential. Blasting through a wet mud hole over and over again at high speed is not anywhere in the design and testing spec of any vehicle like the bronco. Low alternator or not. It’s no different than all these knuckleheads jumping shit. Once again not designed to do that. It’s a shame it happened but not unexpected. No car company is going to engineer a system rated to handle that.

 

[Bronco cat]

Thanks

Just here to spread the love

 

[22Badskwatch]

Oh man - sorry dude... that sucks!!
Thanks again for coming out - got a few cool shots of ya ..

 

[FleshTuxedo]

At least now I know why there are parts shortages

 

[cracKen]

One thing I’ll probably never do is mudding. Seems like such a pita to clean up afterwards. An alternator replacement seems simple … but one YouTuber had to replace his axle bc the boot ripped off and mud and rocks got inside, broke things.

 

[rak2]

Rule one of off roading never drive in water you don’t know the depth of.

Rule of Thumb from military survival school: Never stick any part of your body into any hole when you're not absolutely sure of what's in there. ... .. .

 

[da_jokker]

There's going to be a lot of Ford fanboys that claim that there isn't an issue with these alternators and mud but they're full of it.

There are tons of other off road vehicles that have low hanging alts that don't die after playing in the mud... Ford's Alternators are just weak.

And 100% it's a design flaw. Do you think Jeep puts there alternators at the top and backwards just because it looks good?
They learned... Hopefully someday Ford will too.

To be honest, this is my largest concern with the Bronco. Fuel pumps, leaking roofs, electronics, weak steering components..... They can all be addressed.... The alternator, No matter how many times you replace it, you're still where you started.


Please keep us informed, the alternators are extremely expensive. I believe buckle up buttercup took her off and cleaned it out and got it working again but it was a big job.

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