charging woes partII

[Claude]

Q1:The system runs at 14.2V at idle when cold with nothing on.
.... >13.4V at idle when cold with everything* on.
.... <12.0V at idle when warm with everything* on.


Q2: So I guess there is a definite >315mA drain somewhere. But if it's just an accessory could it be enough of a load to kill the system voltage like it does?
And why oh why does it only do it when the engine is warm???

Q3: Can a faulty alternator drain a battery like that just sitting there?

Q4: I have removed the main terminal from the alternator and will test the battery voltage tomorrow morning (will suck in the dark) , will that tell me anything(?) or should I do something useful, like start pulling fuses.

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E1: 12 v at idle warm or cold not normal (should stay 13.5 v and a up) bad battery or bad alternator. But you say battery load test passed OK, so suspect the alternator.

E2: 315 ma drain is not very high, should'nt be the cause of voltage drop you report, but such a drain is not normal (should be lower) otherwise if the car stay unused 2-3 days that drain is enough to drain the battery flat

E3: Yes a bad alternator (shot inside diodes in the regulator) may drain a battery

E4: Very good idea to isolate the alternator from the battery to night to see if it's the alternator itself that drain the battery... can't wait to see the result.

[tim eh?]

thanks++++ guys

E4: Very good idea to isolate the alternator from the battery to night to see if it's the alternator itself that drain the battery... can't wait to see the result.

kinda dumb i only disconnected the main terminal should i disconnect also the small alt terminal also (i didn't ) or does it matter?

Start pulling fuses Tim. It's not the alternator, two in a row?

that's what i thought but it's weird i was pretty sure i had my wiring figured out. everything i mean everything electrical works perfectly except the a/c and the fog light cluster light (it's not the bulb and the foglights work... weird)

Wait a while to watch the draw, it takes time for everything to go sleepy.

I don't understand... you mean disconnect battery->wait->test or wait->disconnect battery->test.

i would get split second readings for a draw but then the fuse would blow.

with alternator connected 70mA
with alternator main terminal disconnected 20mA ...
i dunno if it was just the wire melting or what...

yeah... fuses are next... starting with IHKR i think - what a pain one test/night!