If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
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 |
Ads |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
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
|
|||
|
|||
> 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
|
|||
|
|||
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 > |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
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. |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
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
|
|||
|
|||
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 |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
2002 L300 Wagon 37000 miles | Ed | Saturn | 9 | January 6th 05 01:16 PM |
C5 problems (98 in particular) | radar | Corvette | 12 | January 3rd 05 10:04 PM |
Where to get Official Speed Limit Info | [email protected] | Driving | 40 | January 3rd 05 07:10 AM |
'01 Stratus heater issues | [email protected] | Chrysler | 10 | December 17th 04 12:14 AM |
Help with after-market security system identification and uninstall | No1 | General | 0 | February 6th 04 05:00 AM |