Re: ? for speedy jim (or anyone else who can answer faster than him)

OMG did you bother to even read what the question was? the question has NOTHING to do with the fact that the car is watercooled. and the question was NOT directed to you... it was directed to someone who is far more knowledgable and way less cynical than you. I **thought** that maybe some of you may benefit from knowing this information as well... seeing as how nearly everyone I have asked this question to cannot come up with any difference in amperage and voltage (doesn't look like YOU can either since you want to pass it off to another NG who I already posted this to hours ago BTW). Again I do not know why I bother with this NG.... It's full of a bunch of selfish, childish people who don't seem to want to help anyone else out but their own. I've been posting regularly for well over a year now, and lurking for FAR longer... I have seen people come and go and seen many more get bashed every chance they get. There are a few generous people here that are willing to try and help others out and don't expect that they receive something in return.. there are many others such as yourself that don't want to help out unless they are going to receive some sort of instant gratification. It is no wonder that so many have moved over to STF now.

Obviously a question on amperage and voltage is NOT welcome in this NG, so if there is any knowledgable person out there who might be so kind as to help me out in trying to figure this out please send me an email so that we can make Mr. Rogers here happy and not enlighten anyone else but myself. Besides... I think I just made my final post here... It's been fun guys... see ya at STF!

~Lauren

How did you measure the 14V and Zero Amps?? If you measured 14V at the battery posts, then the Alternator is charging exactly the way it's supposed to.

How many Amps the Alt delivers is a complex question. If no accessories are on, the Amps is determined by how badly discharged the battery is. If it's fully charged (~14V), then Zero Amps will flow. (I have over-simplified just a tad...)

If accessories are on, the Alternator will deliver just enough Amps to supply them *AND* keep the battery charged.

When you first start the car, cranking the engine discharges the battery by a lot. As soon as it gets going, the Alternator will deliver Max Amps to pump the battery back up to full, then it trails off to Zero (or nearly).

There *is* a relationship between Volts and Amps but in the case of charging a battery it is not obvious. The voltage in this case is the *difference* between the Alternator output voltage and the battery voltgae. And you can't really measure either of those very well.

But, suppose for argument sake, that the battery has 12V and the alternator had 15V. The difference is 3V. If the battery has a resistance of 1 Ohm and the Alternator has a resistance of 2 Ohms,

1 Amp will flow (3V/3 Ohms). In practice, the resistance is much lower.

OK?

Speedy Jim

OH! Were we all suppose to conform to the world of Lauren? Why didn't someone tell me? Read this post and you just might find it informative.

You could post the question to any auto ng. The answers may vary from group to group. How are you checking for true amperage? Parallel or series? series

To get amperage you need the amp meter wired in series.

Read up on Ohm's law.

Current (I) is measured in amps. Current is charged particles which flow from the voltage source through conductive material to a ground.

Voltage (V) is an electric potential difference between two points on a conducting wire. Voltage is measured in volts.

Resistance (R) is the opposition that a material body offers to the passage of an electric current. Resistance is measured in ohms.

or V/R=I or V/I=R

Depending on which two you know you can find out the other. You can read about it here

There are more formulas here As far as what your problem is? Any accessory could be the problem including wiring. Where to start? Start with the lst elctrical accessory you installed or pull all fuses that are not needed. Did the problem go away? Yes=start replacing the fuses until you find the circuit that is causing the problem. No=check all wiring for chaffing cracks burns melting etc. Still can't find the problem? See a mechanic or try someone elses suggestions.

Next go find a clean rag to wipe up your tears. It's time to grow up and face the real world. There are all different kinds of people in this newsgroup. The good the bad and the ugly.

If you want to know more about automotive circuits try this site

4play (@\|/@)(.\~/.) nearly everyone I have asked this question to cannot come up with any> difference in amperage and voltage (doesn't look like YOU can either since> you want to pass it off to another NG who I already posted this to hoursago

Doh.. If you are not using accessories there would be near 0 amps used. Pulling the fuses would not help.

4play (@\|/@)(.\~/.)

........................I might be two out three.

Hard to say without being there, but it's at least possible that the regulator on this alternator is bad. Or, there is a high resistance connection somewhere which is confusing the regulator.

Jim

On Sun, 6 Jul 2003 17:18:58 -0400, "Tim Rogers" , who was sitting in a corner eating his Xmas pie stuck in his thumb and pulled out a plum and began to run off at the mouth like so:

You might be two out three?

*pretending to look interestingly confused over Tim's statement (while knowing all the while what he meant) for the sole purpose of pointing out his error of ommiting the word 'of' in a sarcastic manner and adjusting halo all at the same time* *plus sipping a beer* :-P

-- Travis (Shaggie) '63 VW Camo Baja...

corrodes the vessel that carries it.

Is the light on all the time or only when it drops below 12v? I would suspect wiring problems, possibly including a poor ground connection could be one cause. Also, are you *sure* this alternator is correct for the vehicle?

Mike Rippe + "George" 1970 Type II

.................I wish that I knew what happens inside my brain when that happens. Sometimes, I have to read what I wrote a third or even fourth time before it (the typo) appears in front of me. Maybe a beer would help..........LOL!

timmy

I couldnt imagine that the regulator was bad on both... I am thinking more along the lines of high resistance somewhere in the circuit, but then do not understand why I did not have this problem with the other alternators....

Yeah and some people seem to like to pick on me more than others... by responding with rec.autos..... was just plain stupid... as I said... and you said as well... i could ask this question to anyone... it was a generic question that you could ask any newsgroup... similar to asking something like what type of wax do I need to use on my paint or something totally irrelevant to the type of vehicle you drive (Okay, so maybe there are different types of paint that require different types of wax, but you get the drift...).

But, thanks for the info, and for making the effort to read past the fact that my question related to a WCVW even though that was irrelevant to the question...

Hi "VWGirl", I have seen poor connections or wires do that. Not charge well...and the fix is usually installing improved connections. Replace the main cable/wire from the battery to the alternator increasing the gauge of the cable (lower number means thicker cable). Replace or add ground wire/cable to the alternator and possibly the engine and body too. check the wire that energizes the alternator for small voltage.

This should be correct for most vehicles with alternators whether it is air cooled or not. :-)

later, dave Reminder........ Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them, and you have their shoes. Frieda Norris

Don't know if this applies, but when I converted my 67 bug to alternator I had to polarize it , I think. It has been 20 years, but I remember having the same thing happen til someone told me about polarizing.

"travis" wrote

Omit one `m' from `ommiting' and add a `t' and you'll have it spelled rite. ;o) M-o-o-n, that spells omit. Glad I ... oh you know the drill.

-- Scott

I was Just Going to suggest she change to a Generator,...............But I know how she feels about alternators.

LOL

( Poking fun lauren,...........only poking fun)

Remove "YOURPANTIES" to reply MUADIB®

Polarizing only applies to generators. The alternators don't rely on residual magnetism.

Speedy Jim

They seem to pick on just about anyone so why blow up when someone says something stupid. Ignore it and move on to the next post. Maybe it will have the answer you are looking for. The only stupid question is the one not asked.

4play (@\|/@)(.\~/.) irrelevant to the type of vehicle you drive (Okay, so maybe there are> different types of paint that require different types of wax, but you get> the drift...).

Omit one `m' from `ommiting' and add a `t' and you'll have it spelled rite.??????

Now if you spell rite right.....

lol just poking fun.