[teamjoe]

An update: Bad Alternator! She's back on the road after my mechanic threw in a new one. I haven't replaced the starter. I've had a few no-starts since owning the car (6yrs.) and I always suspected my elec./charging system but one time it was a bad fuel pump and another time way back it was actually the battery. The battery was 5 years old when I replaced it a few days ago. I figure that's a respectable run for the little Bosch. Pep Boys are the only ones who carry these in my area and I only looked for another because it's what was in the car when I bought it from the PO.

The alternator was replaced by a mechanic last June, and I was incredulous that it would crap out after so little time, but I guess it's not unheard of. I'd love to get a new unit from the dealer but it's pricey and according to Pelican the OEM supplier is Valeo. The reman. unit I bought last year at Oreilly comes in an Ultima box, but the replacement I got yesterday had a Valeo stamp on it. Whatever the brand, I hope this one lasts more than 15 months.

I am thinking now, however, to preemptively chase down any electric gremlins. I've had some issues with my euro lights, but I tracked that down to a loose ground cable in the Umnitza PnP adapters. I kinda want to just go in there and hardwire the Euro lights, for peace of mind. But I'm thinking now of replacing the headunit, and maybe y'all can provide some insight. I have the original C43 tape deck in there. I installed a USA SPEC iPod adapter shortly after buying the car and promptly threw out the CD changer in the trunk.I've always noticed a slight ground whine when using the aux port of that adapter and didn't mind since I just used an old iPod anyway and rarely needed the aux function. But, every once in a while I would get a loud piercing ground whine from even the iPod connection. Maybe a wire's pinched or stripped somewhere along the way but I'm thinking maybe this zapped my alternator because if I recall anytime I connected my iPod (or iPhone) to the USA Spec adapter the device would begin charging, even if the car was off. So I'm suspicious and am hesitant to re-connect the adapter.

I'll probably just replace the headunit. Even if I hate the idea of throwing something in there that is aftermarket, I will feel more at ease knowing that the iPod adapter is gone. Am I just crazy here?