2020 Alternator Issues

[SONIC]

Hey Guys,
My 2020 SA has had the alternator replaced per the Indmar recall/TSB.
I had it at the dealer for the warranty transfer and the tech said he was only getting 12V from the alternator.
I've always seen it staying at 13-14V .

Yesterday on the water I noticed my batteries hovering around 11-12V. I bumped up the RPMs up to try and charge no dice, so I turned the key off and back on and boom right back to charging 13-14V. No issues the rest o the day.

Does anyone know the specific issue that the alternators of the 2019-2020 Raptors are having? I find it really odd that simple toggling the ignition would have any effect on the alternator.

[larry_arizona]

I find it alarming that SC is still having alternator issues since 2019.


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[MJHSupra]

I thought it was the wiring harness from a 3rd party. Might be multiple things going.

[Isaguel]

Twice I have had to switch the battery because I get a read on screen that says "low voltage, increase RPM to 1500" this is while pulling tubers.
I thought I had a bad battery but now I wonder if I'm having the same issue.
Before I call my dealer, how do I know whether is alt low voltage or battery?
Just FYI, I plug my batteries into the onboard charger every day when I get home.

[SONIC]

Twice I have had to switch the battery because I get a read on screen that says "low voltage, increase RPM to 1500" this is while pulling tubers.
I thought I had a bad battery but now I wonder if I'm having the same issue.
Before I call my dealer, how do I know whether is alt low voltage or battery?
Just FYI, I plug my batteries into the onboard charger every day when I get home.

It's 95% an alternator issue if you're seeing low voltage while at tubing rpm.
You should always be 14+v at those rpm.

It could also be battery but unlikely on something this new. It would show up more when you're sitting listening to music than what on the go.

[larry_arizona]

It’s interesting. The 2020 manual recommends running the boat in 1+2 battery setting, 2018 for example recommends only running in 1 or 2 and only using 1+2 mode in emergency low battery conditions.

My assumption is they changed how the batteries are wired.


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[SONIC]

It’s interesting. The 2020 manual recommends running the boat in 1+2 battery setting, 2018 for example recommends only running in 1 or 2 and only using 1+2 mode in emergency low battery conditions.

My assumption is they changed how the batteries are wired.


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No change on wiring according to my tech, just 2 batteries is better able to deal with the large amp draws on the system these days. 6 ballast pumps + stereo + lighting + ecu + etc etc ends up with large draw that can pull down a single battery quickly.
I run in both and switch to a single if I'm sitting with the engine off with the stereo on for more than a couple house so I have a backup to crank from if the stereo kills the battery.

[Hayden]

So this appears to have happened to me today. For reference, we have always had the dual battery switch on 1+2 (combo) when running the boat. Always. Session starts out normal, after we fill and start surfing we get the, "low voltage, increase RPM to 1500". We were obviously at much higher (i.e. 4800 rpm) for surfing. We do one more pull to see if it changes, it does not, so we start deballast and head back to dock. We're at far end of lake from our dock. We go from 11V down to 10V, 9V during the deballast. We're losing 1V every 3min or so I'd guess. I get worried about the engine cutting out so I turn off ballast and we continue to head back to dock with about 30% ballast still left in. We run for a minute with no other electrical draw on the system and we gain back +1V. Eventually we get back to dock and are able to finish deballast. Voltage is still showing low ~9-10V after the deballast. (Ran in neutral at 2000 rpm to finish deballast.)

So after all that, I start reading forum, see this thread, call dealer, talk to local non-dealer marina mechanic, and take batteries out for testing at local auto shop. Dealer says that other moomba 2021's have had some alternator issues this spring/summer but wants us to confirm that it isn't water in the bilge sloshing up on the serpentine belt and shorting/stopping the alternator from working??? Tells us to air out the engine compartment and alternator for a few hours and try again the next day...see if problem persists. We are 3.5 hours from dealer and just starting a 10 day stint at the lake so the timing here is real bad.

The testing from the auto shop on the two batteries is interesting. They are both 850 CCA batteries. One of the batteries checks out at 12.5V and 810/850 CCA. The other battery comes up at 440/850 CCA. Both batteries pass the structural integrity??? part of the test. The auto mechanics saying the one battery is just low and needs to be charged up. This kinda took me by surprise because I thought that when we set it to 1+2 that we're essentially paralleling the batteries, are we not? Why would one battery be so low compared to the other if I always run 1+2? Is there some sort of controller circuit happening in the background that would isolate one battery over the other during starting or ballasting? I thought I understood the dual battery switch and now I'm not sure.

Anyone have any ideas on this?

The plan for tomorrow is to finish charging the one battery overnight, then do everything the same as today but run a meter across both sets of battery terminals and see whether I'm getting +13-14V on the battery terminals at 4000 rpm. If we are not, then I think I can safely say it is alternator, yes?

[larry_arizona]

You are not supposed to run in 1+2.

Recharge fully and use only 1 or 2.

If you run in 1+2, the alternator can’t keep both batteries charged.

Check you owners manual. The 2020’s were wired differently and recommended using 1&2, but 2021 changed back to how it was before.

Perhaps your dealer used the 2019 battery hookup method.




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[Hayden]

Hrm. When I talked to dealer he asked the question to confirm that I was running 1+2. He never mentioned or insinuated that I should've been running 1 or 2. Thanks for the heads up, I will take a look at the manual.