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86 2.3 Electrical/Charging system questions



 
 
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  #1  
Old December 24th 04, 01:14 AM
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Default 86 2.3 Electrical/Charging system questions



Hi;

My 97 cobra is parked and my 86 2.3 LX winter beater is out!

Background;

With headlights, turn signal and heater/rear defrost on, the rate at
which the turn signal flashes goes down significantly than when there
are no accessories running. My assumption is that the electrical system
is not producing enough juice at idle to power everything properly.

With the car off, I am reading 12.1 volts at the battery with my Fluke
multimeter. With the car at idle, and no accessories turned on, my
multimeter reads 14.09 volts at the battery. HOWEVER, with all
accessories on, and the car in drive (yes Jim W, parking brake on and
someone in car with foot on brake ), my multimeter only shows around
12.5 volts at the battery.

Question:

Is 12.5 volts at the battery a normal voltage reading given all
accesories running and the car in drive? The car seems to run fine
enough, but I want to make sure I dont have electrical/charging problems
over the winter.

TIA,

Chris

  #2  
Old December 24th 04, 02:24 AM
RaOuL
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I'd be curious what the voltage is with all accessories on and the engine at
say 2k RPM. All accessories on at idle in drive might not give the best
indication of the charging system performance. If, with all accessories on
at a crusing RPM the voltage doesn't hang at around 13.5-ish V I'd suspect
the alternator or V-reg might be tired...

Ciao!
-=RaOuL


> wrote in message news:TbJyd.573074$%k.417262@pd7tw2no...
>
>
> Hi;
>
> My 97 cobra is parked and my 86 2.3 LX winter beater is out!
>
> Background;
>
> With headlights, turn signal and heater/rear defrost on, the rate at
> which the turn signal flashes goes down significantly than when there
> are no accessories running. My assumption is that the electrical system
> is not producing enough juice at idle to power everything properly.
>
> With the car off, I am reading 12.1 volts at the battery with my Fluke
> multimeter. With the car at idle, and no accessories turned on, my
> multimeter reads 14.09 volts at the battery. HOWEVER, with all
> accessories on, and the car in drive (yes Jim W, parking brake on and
> someone in car with foot on brake ), my multimeter only shows around
> 12.5 volts at the battery.
>
> Question:
>
> Is 12.5 volts at the battery a normal voltage reading given all
> accesories running and the car in drive? The car seems to run fine
> enough, but I want to make sure I dont have electrical/charging problems
> over the winter.
>
> TIA,
>
> Chris
>



  #3  
Old December 24th 04, 02:29 AM
Big Al
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Default

> Question:
>
> Is 12.5 volts at the battery a normal voltage reading given all accesories
> running and the car in drive? The car seems to run fine enough, but I want
> to make sure I dont have electrical/charging problems over the winter.
>
> TIA,
>
> Chris


At 2,000 RPM with everything off you should read 13.6 or more. At 2,000 RPM
the voltage should not change much as you turn on the lights, and heater.
Check for a slipping belt first. Oil or coolant can make it slip and not
screech.

Al


  #4  
Old December 24th 04, 07:34 AM
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Big Al wrote:
>>Question:
>>
>>Is 12.5 volts at the battery a normal voltage reading given all accesories
>>running and the car in drive? The car seems to run fine enough, but I want
>>to make sure I dont have electrical/charging problems over the winter.
>>
>>TIA,
>>
>>Chris

>
>
> At 2,000 RPM with everything off you should read 13.6 or more. At 2,000 RPM
> the voltage should not change much as you turn on the lights, and heater.
> Check for a slipping belt first. Oil or coolant can make it slip and not
> screech.
>


At 2,000 RPM, I am seeing ~14.7 at the battery with no accesories
running (the output does fluctuate slightly but not by much, say maybe
+-.2). There is definitely no belt slippage; new belts, proper tension
and no lubrication or glazing on the belts. The engine + compartment is
very, very clean on this car - I would notice fluids immediately.
  #5  
Old December 24th 04, 03:52 AM
Jim Warman
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I'll agree with RaOul and Big Al in so far as your voltage measurement with
all the accessories on at idle..... Unfortunately, I have seen many cases
where faulty diodies can show us a high charge voltage but leave us with
insufficient current to properly charge the battery. What we really need to
measure is alternator current output along with the voltage to determine if
the charging system is operating at full capacity. This should certainly be
enough to keep the battery charged unless we have added high current
acessories..... remembering that the factory built the vehicle with an
alternator sized for the vehicle in it's normal "dress".

Another useful measurement is alternator ripple - this can indicate bad
diodes. Turn your DVOM or DMM to AC volts..... connect the black lead to the
battery negative and the red lead to battery positive. Your reading should
be < 90mV.


> wrote in message news:TbJyd.573074$%k.417262@pd7tw2no...
>
>
> Hi;
>
> My 97 cobra is parked and my 86 2.3 LX winter beater is out!
>
> Background;
>
> With headlights, turn signal and heater/rear defrost on, the rate at which
> the turn signal flashes goes down significantly than when there are no
> accessories running. My assumption is that the electrical system is not
> producing enough juice at idle to power everything properly.
>
> With the car off, I am reading 12.1 volts at the battery with my Fluke
> multimeter. With the car at idle, and no accessories turned on, my
> multimeter reads 14.09 volts at the battery. HOWEVER, with all
> accessories on, and the car in drive (yes Jim W, parking brake on and
> someone in car with foot on brake ), my multimeter only shows around
> 12.5 volts at the battery.
>
> Question:
>
> Is 12.5 volts at the battery a normal voltage reading given all accesories
> running and the car in drive? The car seems to run fine enough, but I want
> to make sure I dont have electrical/charging problems over the winter.
>
> TIA,
>
> Chris
>



  #6  
Old December 25th 04, 06:34 PM
Rein
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Have it checked (for free) at a aplace like autozone. They can measure
it while it's in your car.
Usually it's the alternator.


On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 00:14:43 GMT, " >
wrote:

>
>
> Hi;
>
> My 97 cobra is parked and my 86 2.3 LX winter beater is out!
>
> Background;
>
> With headlights, turn signal and heater/rear defrost on, the rate at
>which the turn signal flashes goes down significantly than when there
>are no accessories running. My assumption is that the electrical system
>is not producing enough juice at idle to power everything properly.
>
> With the car off, I am reading 12.1 volts at the battery with my Fluke
>multimeter. With the car at idle, and no accessories turned on, my
>multimeter reads 14.09 volts at the battery. HOWEVER, with all
>accessories on, and the car in drive (yes Jim W, parking brake on and
>someone in car with foot on brake ), my multimeter only shows around
>12.5 volts at the battery.
>
> Question:
>
> Is 12.5 volts at the battery a normal voltage reading given all
>accesories running and the car in drive? The car seems to run fine
>enough, but I want to make sure I dont have electrical/charging problems
>over the winter.
>
> TIA,
>
> Chris


Remove NO-SPAM from email address when replying
  #7  
Old December 26th 04, 01:48 AM
Rein
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Posts: n/a
Default

thickened.
Brown the meat quickly in very hot oil, remove and set aside.
Brown the onions, celery, pepper and garlic.
De-glaze with wine, return meat to the pan and season well.
Stew on low fire adding small amounts of water and
seasoning as necessary.
After at least half an hour, add the carrots and potatoes,
and simmer till root vegetables break with a fork.
Cook a fresh pot of long grained white rice.



Pre-mie Pot Pie

When working with prematurely delivered newborns (or chicken) use sherry;
red wine with beef (buy steak or roast, do not pre-boil).

Pie crust (see index)
Whole fresh pre-mie; eviscerated, head, hands and feet removed
Onions, bell pepper, celery
½ cup wine
Root vegetables of choice (turnips, carrots, potatoes, etc) cubed

Make a crust from scratch - or go shamefully to the frozen food section
of your favorite grocery and select 2 high quality pie crusts (you
will need one for the top also).
Boil the prepared delicacy until the meat starts to come off the bones.
Remove, de-bone and cube; continue to reduce the broth.
Brown the onions, peppers and celery.
Add the meat then season, continue browning.
De-glaze with sherry, add the reduced broth.
Finally, put in the root vegetables and simmer for 15 minutes.
Allow to cool slightly.
Place the pie pan in 375 degree oven for a few minutes so bottom crust is not soggy,
reduce oven to 325.
Fill the pie with stew, place top crust and with a fork, seal the crusts together
then poke holes in top.
Return to oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until pie crust is golden brown.



Sudden Infant Death Soup

SIDS: delicious in winter, comparable to old fashioned Beef and Vegetable Soup.
Its free, you can sell the crib, baby clothes, toys, stroller... and so easy to
procure if such a lucky find is at hand (just pick him up from the crib and


 




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