Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering

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Sat 24 Dec 2016 14:05
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - Jake Hill

Righto. I have a 1.6l Diesel Ford Fiesta MK6 (2006).

Couple times now I've had the power steering give out, ABS, handbrake, speedo all flickering on and off. Battery is a bit low at 11.5v. When driving at the minute there's a sort of whining/squealing sound which you only hear at idle with revs or when driving.

The mechanic who gave it a 30 second over said it's the alternator but before dropping £150+ on a new one I'm wondering if there's anything else.

To me it seems strange the power steering would give in and that there would be a noise if the alternator just wasn't working.

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Sat 24 Dec 2016 17:18
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - elekie&a/c doctor

Your mechanic could possibly be correct in his diagnosis,but I would check the wiring to the alternator is sound,especially the wiring to the 3 pin connector plug.Other possibles are a failing crankshaft pulley or alternator pulley.

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Sat 24 Dec 2016 23:55
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - Peter.N.

I would agree, if you only have 11.5v across the battery with the engine running something is clearly wrong with the charging circuit.

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Sun 25 Dec 2016 15:23
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - Jake Hill

Had the battery charger on it tonight. Able to start it up no problem.

Armed with a Haynes, multimeter and a socket set are there any good diagnostics I can do to narrow down the problem. There was a bit of oil to be seen just above the alternator; could it be oil making it slip?

Possible it's one of the fuses?

I don't see a rise in voltage in neutral with a few revs; I don't see a rise in voltage testing on the battery. It does look like the aux belt is moving but is it possible it's not spinning fast enough to offset the power usage?

The sound coming from the car is a whining/squealing sound, it's coming from the same side of the engine but I can't exactly place it to the belt, almost a bit lower.

I'm planning to get it in a garage asap but I want to be armed before they whack an alternator and everything else on top.

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Sun 25 Dec 2016 16:09
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - elekie&a/c doctor
If the noise is coming from lower down,then I suspect the crankshaft pulley is in trouble.there is a rubber damper section that separates from the main hub.
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Sun 25 Dec 2016 18:01
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - Jake Hill

Took a video of the drivebelt, seems to be some vibration by the tensioner?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpF1Z_aB5co

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Sun 25 Dec 2016 20:53
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - elekie&a/c doctor

Take a look at the crankshaft pulley .There is a nice rusty ring on the inner circumferance.Possible evidence of impending failure.Also,the alternator drive pulley has a one way clutch,could be an associated problem.

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Mon 26 Dec 2016 20:26
Ford Fiesta (MK6) - Losing power and power steering - Cyd

Armed with a Haynes, multimeter and a socket set are there any good diagnostics I can do to narrow down the problem. There was a bit of oil to be seen just above the alternator; could it be oil making it slip?

11.5V open circuit is a dead battery. If that's running, it could be the battery or alternator.

Have a watch of my video and follow the method carefully. See if it helps

youtu.be/AT_XmlwMVz4

Go to my channel and watch the Polo Serpentine Belt video where I talk about cleaning.

I've also done a video on listening to faults to track them down.

Edited by Cyd on 26/12/2016 at 20:28

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