So i am at the wal mart yesterday. Buying some bread and Milk



Before i went in i noticed that my lights were real dim.. and my volt guage was reading low



Mind you: the Battery and Altenator are only about 1 year old on my car.



So i go shopping. come back out and vrap.... vrap.... vrap...



Battery is dead. So ****. I said **** it I bought a new one. 40 bucks for a everlast battery. and made sure i got plenty of cranking amps.





My point for this thread is. How can i be sure it wasnt the altenator. Isnt there a way to test it or something



Like disconnect the batt while the car is running right? is that the correct altenator test. I'm pissed, cause this charging system has been giving me problems. THanks guys.

 

Disconnect the + battery terminal while the car is running. If it stays running the altenator is probably ok.. also do a voltage check across the - batt terminal and the altenator power terminal while the car is running... the Voltage should be around 13-13.8 volts or so... If it's higher then the voltage regulator in the altenator isn't working correctly, if it's down around 11 volts, then the brushes are probably going bad.. Also clean all the grounds in the engine compartment and the terminals on the battery.. If there is a bad ground the altenator won't charge the battery correctly..

 

If its your alternator I can rebuild it and have it polished for $135

 

There's an easier way...



With the car off check the battery voltage at the + and - battery terminals. Fully charged should be around 13.6 volts. With the car running it should be 14.4 volts.

 

Well, i did what you guys said. I removed the + Plug on the batt while the car was running. and she didnt stall. But i am still getting flickering in my dash lights and radio lights.



The engine did not even flutter when i removed the + plug. She has a brand new battery and the alt. is about 1 year old. Whats strange is...



When i get up around 4000 (right when secondary injectors come on) I feel the dreaded 'slight' hesitation. Than my battery guage flickers. and at night when i step on the brakes sometimes my radio will turn off. and my dash lights and headlights will get extreamly dim. I am not leaving anything on after i shut her off. My E-fan is wired to my ignition so it can't come on without the key in.



WTF is wrong with my charging system. I know FC's have bad electrical problems. But mine take the cake.

 

you can ease the load on your charging system by installing a 8 + gauge wire from batt to alt

 

Ok, Ok. from the battery to the altenator? Negitive or positive on the battery.



I was thinking of that last night. But i am not good at electronics. So Neg... or pos.. And than to the outlet on the altenator. Thanks.

 

there is a black boot that covers a black wire with an eyelet conector. Add a wire from that terminal to the positive on the batt. BTW my shiznit also flickers but only slightly.

 

I would check all the connections on the battery cables as well as the connections on the alternator. Clean all the connections as well.

 

When i got the new batt i got gold Connectors for the batt terminals. I also checked the connection on the Alt. Everything looks fine. I am going to run a THICK Wire from the alt strait to the positive side of the batt. This should help a little right?



I am also going to run an extra ground strait from the batt to the chassis. My hole electrical charging system needs to be redone. But doing what i said should help right?



Thanks guys.