I've been tied up with my parents... one in the hospital since very early last Tuesday morning and the other at home. After an 18 hour day last Monday I got to bed around midnight. The bulk of the day was tied up doing yard work at my home and at my parents. That evening I had a dinner with folks from 23 countries and other local "experts" on sustainability. The dinner was sponsored by the US Department of State. I was tagged as a non-motorized transportation authority so was on invite.... Saturday evening there was an informal event with those folks where I fell in love with the women from Lebanon and Ukraine.Family issues have consumed me... elder care has become a big part of my life. I'm not complaining. I've had a good life through their efforts and we've always had a good relationship. Anyhow, I am just getting back to the Blazer.
This was the IPC with the battery and alternator connected:
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This is the IPC with the battery and alternator disconnected. It seems to have overheated and nearly run out of gas sitting for the past 8-9 days.
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I'm waiting for a new alternator to arrive at the auto parts store around noon today. I'm so done with remanufactured alternators... When I replaced the alternator in my father's truck two remanufactured units were bad... voltage regulator in the first one and the stud for the wire was broken off inside the housing of the second--I bought a new one. I'm going straight to a new one this time as 1 out of 3 swaps to get a working one is a bad ratio!
I'm going to pull the IPC and send that out to the place that MechanicMatt recommended. The repair to the IPC in my father's truck worked out well... I didn't know I'd be sending out another one!
I need the Blazer working as they can get in and out of it reasonably well. They have a hell of a time with my Accord... The Blazer is a stop gap until I get my brother's handicapped van back on the road. I'm pretty sure the wheel chair lift will be needed in the fairly short future. The van has been sitting since my brother died and needs things like a battery, brakes all around, and who knows what else. I'm excited to tackle that project! Not...
Actually the whole bunch of the representatives were interesting to speak with... smart, worldly and out-going! The phone rang Tuesday morning at about 3:20 AM and I was off to meet the ambulance at the hospital... If all goes well Mom goes home tomorrow with visiting nurse service to help (me). As such the Blazer has gotten only a bit of attention since last weekend.I replaced the alternator. While messing around I knocked the garage door opener remote off the sun visor. While messing around with that I discovered that the hinge on the lighted vanity mirror is broken. Because it isn't closing properly the switch for the vanity mirror light wasn't depressing properly... the light was staying on. A generous application of 100 MPH tape was applied. That problem was missed by two mechanics and my son and I... almost everything else on that circuit had been disabled! Its seems so obvious now! LOL The net result of those two fixes is the battery holds up for 3+ days now instead of going dead over night. The IPC gauges are now functioning well except for the fuel gauge that falters a bit while driving it. I'll send that out for evaluation and repair... I noticed that the ABS warning light is staying on now. I wonder, could there be a draw at an ABS sensor or is it more likely a problem at the IPC??
I'm heading out to get groceries for my father and then heading up to check on him and wish him a happy father's day. Then I'm off to the hospital to advocate for my mother. The elderly are screwed if they have no family there to do that... which seems to be the case for the majority of them. Inadequate staffing levels exacerbate the problem... It's a sad state of affairs.
