I've got my 65 Valiant 170 running pretty good. I had a good mechanic come over and tune it and we actually got it to where we could at least drive around the neighborhood. Got it up to around 50-60mph and it was doing good. It seems to run good now. He says it needed valve stem seals from sitting up too long. But also said the alternator wasn't charging enough. He said it should be charging 13-14 volts like a new car. Is that true on this old of a car? I've got all new wiring harnesses, new NOS ammeter, gauges are redone by Instrument Specialties, points type engine/light harness, dash harness from Year One, new 36 amp alternator from Napa, fairly new voltage regulator, and all new ignition parts. He said it was putting out 12 volts but should be putting out 13-14 and that the ammeter showed it was discharging. He said it will also effect the way the points work if it's not getting proper voltage so it would mess with the performance too. So what's right 12 or 13-14 volts charging?
Should alternator be putting out 13-14 volts?
- Thread starter wh23g3g
- Start date
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A good charging alternator puts out 13.3 - 15 volts when working properly.
Static battery voltage should be above 12.6 volts...
Static battery voltage should be above 12.6 volts...
jaimus
Old School ASE Gold
Anything less than 12.8 while running is usually not good unless your pullin a heavy electrical load, and your mechanic buddy is spot on when he says poor voltage affects ignition power.
I'd suggest getting rid of the factory voltage regulator. I installed a Ron Francis regulator in my '71 Duster with the factory alternator and it stays at 14V at idle. Although I have rewired the entire car . Just a thought.
Bulldozer
free ice cream sandwiches
ideal is 13.8 to 14.2 while running
So what should I suspect? Do I need to swap out the voltage regulator? Should I get one of the OEM like ones from Year One or just warranty out the aftermarket one at the parts store? Where could I hook up my voltmeter so that it shows 13-14 volts? Does it show that when you probe the battery cables while it's running or do I need to check somewhere else? I don't want to get anything that's going to melt my wiring or my gauges since I know the nightmares that can happen with these Ammeters and their wires. That's why I replaced everything.
67Dart273
Well-Known Member
I doubt much that there's any advantage to francis over any other. Last I knew, they sold what amounts to ford style parts store replacements
TO THE OP Don't just start throwing parts at it, find out what's wrong and then fix it. These systems are easy to troubleshoot. You still running the "old style" (up through 69) system? These have one field wire (green) at the alternator and the VR probably looks something like this:
http://vintagemoparts.com/img/p/440-1619-thickbox.jpg
Verify that's what you have and you can do some very very simple tests to determine if it's a bad alternator, a bad regulator, or something in the wiring harness / connections.
BillGrissom
Well-Known Member
Not a problem in your car. In 1963 & 1965, they ran the thick ALT & BAT cables thru special "buss lugs", not the 56 terminals (spades) of the other wires. So, no melting problems. I even put a 1965 firewall connector in my 1964 to get that feature.
You can get an electronic Vreg for your car for ~$11 (rockauto). If still the old "mechanical regulator", you need to periodically open it and clean the contacts and adjust (read manual). Smart to lose your old points ignition and upgrade to electronic. Many conversion kits. I put a later e-distributor in my 64 slant, driving a GM 8-pin HEI module & coil. If a small block, the $40 Chinese distributor on ebay is tempting.
tarvin890
tarvin890
mine beats like a heartbeat,,,, someone said they added a diode... it bounces with a rythum 13-15 as the engine runs...
71Scamper
Mopar runs thru my veins!
GM. I went through the agony of adapting what was suppose to be a mopar specific ron francis kit. Very biased towards gm components.
Well I had the mechanic recheck the voltage after I swapped alternators out again. I also removed the voltage regulator and sanded down to bare metal the mounting bolt areas. I made sure the battery was charged and the cables tightened. It still only put out about 11.80 volts and when the idle was increased to 1200-1500 it only went a little closer to 12 volts. It's got all new wiring harnesses and a new NOS ammeter. Should the voltmeter read 13+ volts when I have the leads touching the + and - while the engine is running? So what's next to check? I have the engine ground that's bolted under one of the blower motor nuts and goes to a bolt through the bellhousing and that's it. I ordered another OEM voltage regulator since I had to order something else for the car. The mechanic says he's having a similar problem with a 68 Chrysler 300 and was able to get that one to charge 13-14 volts by jump wiring something, I don't remember how he said he got it to do it. But what do I need to check next in order to see if my regulator is bad or something else?
67Dart273
Well-Known Member
Get a service manual if you don't have one. Download them from MyMopar
The problems can be sort of divided up into sections
1....Bad output circuit especially on later cars. I don't remember if yours has the separate charging line feed -through outside of the bulkhead connector. That is, broken connections, in the bulkhead connector, or even sometimes at the ammeter
2....Problems in the field circuit. Either not enough voltage from the IGN circuit supplying the VR, or a broken wire
3....Bad OR UNGROUNDED VR. They MUST be grounded
4....Bad alternator.
To get started, assuming you have the original style (up through 69) unit with one field wire, hook a clip wire lead from the alternator field terminal to a battery source, like your starter relay big battery stud. Start the engine and monitor battery voltage. Slowly bring up RPM. voltage should climb, alternator should be putting out "full." Ammeter should be hard over at fast idle. Don't let the voltage get above 16V if you can help it.
If this does not happen, either the alternator is bad, or there is an OPEN in the output circuit, otherwise called the "charging line."
So move your voltmeter from the battery to the big stud on the alternator. Bring up RPM. If V is still not "up" then alternator is not putting out much. If voltage is quite high, maybe 18--20 or more volts, then you have an open / bad connection in the output/ charge line
Now IF this test DID show good increase at battery, Next, hook up green field wire "as normal" to alternator. CHECK the VR is grounded "clean and tight" to firewall. If it will not bring up voltage, disconnect two wires at VR and jumper them together. Repeat test as in first test above. If voltage comes up, replace VR. If it stays low, either the green wire is broke, or the IGN (blue) is not getting voltage, broken somewhere.
The problems can be sort of divided up into sections
1....Bad output circuit especially on later cars. I don't remember if yours has the separate charging line feed -through outside of the bulkhead connector. That is, broken connections, in the bulkhead connector, or even sometimes at the ammeter
2....Problems in the field circuit. Either not enough voltage from the IGN circuit supplying the VR, or a broken wire
3....Bad OR UNGROUNDED VR. They MUST be grounded
4....Bad alternator.
To get started, assuming you have the original style (up through 69) unit with one field wire, hook a clip wire lead from the alternator field terminal to a battery source, like your starter relay big battery stud. Start the engine and monitor battery voltage. Slowly bring up RPM. voltage should climb, alternator should be putting out "full." Ammeter should be hard over at fast idle. Don't let the voltage get above 16V if you can help it.
If this does not happen, either the alternator is bad, or there is an OPEN in the output circuit, otherwise called the "charging line."
So move your voltmeter from the battery to the big stud on the alternator. Bring up RPM. If V is still not "up" then alternator is not putting out much. If voltage is quite high, maybe 18--20 or more volts, then you have an open / bad connection in the output/ charge line
Now IF this test DID show good increase at battery, Next, hook up green field wire "as normal" to alternator. CHECK the VR is grounded "clean and tight" to firewall. If it will not bring up voltage, disconnect two wires at VR and jumper them together. Repeat test as in first test above. If voltage comes up, replace VR. If it stays low, either the green wire is broke, or the IGN (blue) is not getting voltage, broken somewhere.
BillGrissom
Well-Known Member
The charging circuits in these cars are very simple and easy to diagnose. If your mechanic is stumbling, you might take it to an auto electric shop. Of course, you could do all yourself if you read the gazillion posts on this here.
Until then, you might use a charger to keep the battery up for short trips, or jumper wire it for "full field" if you must take a long trip. Monitor w/ a cigarette lighter voltmeter and disconnect the "full field" when it reaches 13.5 V.
Until then, you might use a charger to keep the battery up for short trips, or jumper wire it for "full field" if you must take a long trip. Monitor w/ a cigarette lighter voltmeter and disconnect the "full field" when it reaches 13.5 V.
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