Speedy Jim helped me with my most recent dim-witted alternator question. It works now, Jim. All is well. Thank you!
But the point that was interesting was that with my setup, the alternator will not charge if the alternator bulb burns out. Is this true with a vanilla ACVW, or is there a backup circuit?
(I now keep spare bulbs stored under the dash.)
This is true for vanilla and most all automotive alternators. The iron in the (rotating) Field doesn't retain much residual magnetism at all (unlike the lowly Generator), so the Alternator has no way of getting going (Excited, as we say). So, it's up to the little bulb to supply a tiny bit of Excitation current initially.
HTH
Jim
I understand that most modern cars use a resistor to provide this bootstrap current. The LEDs used for modern dashes don't draw enough current, and resistors don't usually burn out.
------------------------------------------------ Jim Adney snipped-for-privacy@vwtype3.org Madison, WI 53711 USA
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