background, for awhile now I've noticed the voltage level dropped close to 13 with accessories on, headlights, AC, stereo/sub; recently a dead no start, eventually jumped....volts down to about 12 with accessories on after jump; tested 18 month old battery; checked good; replaced Alt last night; with highway driving and no accessories on I'm seeing 11.6-11.9 volts. Upon shutdown I see 12.2 v
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possible replacement alt dead out of the box? Carquest remanned
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possible bad ground connection somewhere? the one at the pass engine mount is good; the contact at the Alt post looks good, no corrosion, North Carolina southern car, no rust.
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Thanks in advance

 

Very possible you got a re-manufactured dud. Take it back and have it tested.

We went through a bad reman that lasted a whopping 6 months. Second one has been good for 19 months or so. I will say, the first one we received was re-built by a different supplier as the second one definitely looked like the original Denso more so than the first (both from Oreilly)

 

Make sure to clean and tighten the ground strap from the engine to passenger side frame.
On the top passengers side

 

One other option is to get a refund from Carquest (if possible?) and go with a new alt from Rock Auto or one of the sponsors of the forums.

New Valeo is about ~240 and a Denso is about ~180, and I see there's also a Bosch for under $200.

Likely a better build than whoever built the carquest reman units.

 

 

The concern I have with RA is that those units have a 12 month warranty, and if/when it goes out you're down for awhile waiting for the replacement. The added cost of shipping the core to RA also adds to the price. I got a replacement remanned and put it in last night. I also used a flat file to clean up the metal contacts at the alt post, battery posts and terminals and ground strap at battery to body post. I noticed the nut holding down the ground strap at the boot was a little loose. That may have been my problem!!!
Now the voltage levels are within normal range with and without accessories on. The local auto parts store took some money off my price, ended up being $120 with a limited lifetime, and I kept my core Denso, which may still be good, 172k miles. Apparently testing these is difficult- no one seems to have the right adapter to hold the alt in the carriage while spinning it. I may have my oem tested and or rebuilt.
Alot of work, but it's my fault for not checking all connections first. oh well, good thing this is a hobby, lol.

 

 

It is kind of a live and learn thing. Always start with the simple stuff, as so often it is that!
Congrats on working it out and getting it fixed!
Now go out and drive it like you stole it!