Question: Collapsed battery cell will take out the alternator?

[86-ZZ3]

My partner drove the 'vette home from work the other day. <8 miles. Complained that the idle was high. I went and checked it. Wouldn't crank and noticed the voltage was <9. Thought something had discharged so I put the battery on charge only to notice the ammeter was pegged (needle banging itself on the upper limit) so decided something was wrong. Decided it was a dead cell.

Replaced the battery only to find the alternator was dead. Thankfully I had the receipt (2 year warranty on a Bosch rebuild) and got the new alternator next morning. Will a collapsed battery cell kill the alternator?

 

[Ugolino]

This is a common problem on early c4s, because an alternator will work overtime trying to charge a dead battery, accelerating its eventual failure. This is why jumping a car should only be used as a last resort, to get your car home or wherever you need to go, because the alternator isn't designed to recharge a dead battery. The cs130 c4 alternator is notoriously finicky, it was a continuous problem on all the c4s I owned. I have heard of some people using the later and much more reliable cs144 alternator, which requires some slight modifications.