Electrical gremlins...

[SSpdDmon]

Ok - so my car's been freaking out on me a little lately. It's almost 10 years old now, but only has 54K on the clock.



The problem is - I'm getting significant voltage swings, which are visible in my logs, any and all lights that are on (they pulse/strobe), and even looking at the needle on the dash. Not to mention...the voltage itself has been rather high. It's not uncommon to see 15V now, whereas I use to see 13.5~14.2 tops.



My guess: Assuming there's some sort of voltage regulator inside the alternator, I think that's taking a big, fat dump. So, I'm about to invest the time and money to replace the alternator (which unfortunately means removing the Procharger). That'll be a fun 8 hours or so on my back.



Any other ideas as to what it could be???

 

[avbcon12]

id say its gotta be the regulator...

 

[StangNut86]

regulator's first thing in my mind there... does the voltage change with rpm or stay steady? does it change with electrical load (lights, horn, AC, stereo)?

 

[dave89iroc]

regulator(inside the alternator)

 

[steve581581]

are all regulators in the alternator... i have a 94 buick regal im going to be fixing up to sell and the volt gage has been up around 15v since i changed the alternator 9 years ago when my grandma owned it

 

[1BADAIR]

probably the alt but I have seen some battery issues cause high/low volt readings.
Load test the batt

 

[AutoRoc]

I just had this happen and have not figured it out yet...It was swinging high and low and then just LOW...replaced Alt.+ Charged battery...still reads low and does not charge...New battery+New Alt...Still reads low(9-10v) on the dash and the wideband readout... Time to test all wires.

 

[2004boss]

are all regulators in the alternator... i have a 94 buick regal im going to be fixing up to sell and the volt gage has been up around 15v since i changed the alternator 9 years ago when my grandma owned it

that car it should be in the alt, some older vehicals will have a box on the firewall

 

[1BADAIR]

some dodges have the regulator in the pcm

 

[dave89iroc]

some dodges have the regulator in the pcm

pretty much all of them in the 80s and 90s

 

[uwntsumrtII]

some dodges have the regulator in the pcm

mine is externally regulated.

 

[2004boss]

mine is externally regulated.

is it fast?

 

[GeosRide]

What about the ground point on the passenger side wheel well, and the one going to the block? I'd check them out. How old is the battery?

 

[1BADAIR]

my car rarely goes over 13.2. I never noticed it until I was scrolling through the scanmaster one day

 

[uwntsumrtII]

is it fast?

fast enough :icon_mrgr

 

[2004boss]

fast enough :icon_mrgr

you take off that external regulator you'll get about an extra 40horse :lo:

 

[uwntsumrtII]

you take off that external regulator you'll get about an extra 40horse :lo:

:lau: keep Tim AWAY from my truck

 

[SSpdDmon]

What about the ground point on the passenger side wheel well, and the one going to the block? I'd check them out. How old is the battery?

Grounds have been checked multiple times. I'm losing my mind over this. Just ordered an alt and plan to change it this weekend. We'll see.

The battery is a red top optima. I don't think it's more than 3 years old - should be fine.

 

[2004boss]

Grounds have been checked multiple times. I'm losing my mind over this. Just ordered an alt and plan to change it this weekend. We'll see.

The battery is a red top optima. I don't think it's more than 3 years old - should be fine.

optima's dont seem to last to long, when I worked at autozone poeple would generally have them for a year and then bring em back bad. I would say its your alt tho.

 

[uwntsumrtII]

Grounds have been checked multiple times. I'm losing my mind over this. Just ordered an alt and plan to change it this weekend. We'll see.

The battery is a red top optima. I don't think it's more than 3 years old - should be fine.

you never know with those RedTops. i'd have it checked out to be safe.