Alternator issue!!

[TRICKSIXPA]

So my alternator is currently not working. When it is hooked up I get not Volt light on the dash. No charge other than the battery. I got to put a spare alternator on and Volt light is on and unit is charging. My question is am I looking at replacing the voltage regulator inside the unit or is there something else. The only thing I fixed so far was threw a new set of brushes on. When you open them up there is not many parts to take a crap but the regulator seems like a likely culprit!!


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[Dennis Kirban]

So my alternator is currently not working. When it is hooked up I get not Volt light on the dash. No charge other than the battery. I got to put a spare alternator on and Volt light is on and unit is charging. My question is am I looking at replacing the voltage regulator inside the unit or is there something else. The only thing I fixed so far was threw a new set of brushes on. When you open them up there is not many parts to take a crap but the regulator seems like a likely culprit!!


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Here is an option you may want to consider our laternators are fairly unique. They are 120 plus have a specialsize pulley on them that I had to have made because sometimes my builder can't find the correct pulley for them.

We have them built using all new parts look like factory new....with warranty case you want to give up fixing yours. we sell quite a few of them even sell a 200 amp unit.
]
denniskirban@yahoo.com

I deal with a source near my house man operation that builds them for me. Known him for 30 plus years.

 

[GNX026]

if your not getting a volt/battery light at key on engine off, you need to check that first, these cars have a weak connector at the rear of the cluster. I have repaired many charging gremlins with this repair.the ribbon at the rear of cluster can make poor contact, causing a loss of 12 volts to the lamp which is needed to close the regulator.if you need a schematic let me know and ill get one to you. Fred

 

[GNX026]

if your not getting a volt/battery light at key on engine off, you need to check that first, these cars have a weak connector at the rear of the cluster. I have repaired many charging gremlins with this repair.the ribbon at the rear of cluster can make poor contact, causing a loss of 12 volts to the lamp which is needed to close the regulator.if you need a schematic let me know and ill get one to you. Fred

you can take your alternator to just about any reputable parts store and have it tested for free,

 

[TRICKSIXPA]

Yes I know about the back of the cluster and the resistor that the charge circuit runs on. What I'm saying is when I switch to a good alternator the Volt light comes on when I put the key in. This bad alternator no volt light!! I don't need a part store to tell me my alternator is not working I know this. Just looking for some things I can do to diagnose the problem. There only a hand ful of parts inside one of these CS144 alternators. Since I have a good alternator on the car I want to play with this one to find out how to fix it!


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[GNX026]

Yes I know about the back of the cluster and the resistor that the charge circuit runs on. What I'm saying is when I switch to a good alternator the Volt light comes on when I put the key in. This bad alternator no volt light!! I don't need a part store to tell me my alternator is not working I know this. Just looking for some things I can do to diagnose the problem. There only a hand ful of parts inside one of these CS144 alternators. Since I have a good alternator on the car I want to play with this one to find out how to fix it!


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ok there are several tests to try, first, disassemble and remove the stator measure the windings for continuity, second test the rotor rings should have resistance between the rings none on the rotor, then you can test the rectifier by testing the diodes individually, then test the trio for continuity.if all tests good, the only thing left is the regulator. hope this helps. Fred

 

[dank GN]

Put 12 volts to the single wire plug and then measure the output stud

 

[dank GN]

And then go to AZ and get the 140 amp with a lifetime warranty and never have to buy another alt again lol

 

[GNVenom]

If you put 12 volts to that brown wire, you'll burn out the regulator.
That brown wire is supposed to get its voltage thru a dash lamp, not directly from the source.

 

[Grunk]

If you put 12 volts to that brown wire, you'll burn out the regulator.
That brown wire is supposed to get its voltage thru a dash lamp, not directly from the source.

if you put some resistors inline to a 12 volt source and then put that to the brown wire would that work?

 

[fbody4me]

I am in the same boat as you are TRICKSIXPA. I didnt want to spend $100 plus on an alternator from a parts store(or close to $200 from a vendor on here) if it was just a cheap part inside the alternator that I could replace myself. I did find a great site for alternator parts, www.aspwholesale.com ,they also have some good info at the left bottom of their home page.

I am not sure how you test the regulator but I can tell you how to test the diodes in the rectifier very easily. That was my problem and from what I've found it is a common one. With a volt meter select the ohm setting and place one lead to the battery post on the back of the alternator and the other lead to the aluminium housing. Then switch your leads (+ -). You should have a stable reading one way and infinity(reading keeps climbing) or no reading the other way. If it doesn't then you need a rectifier. Hope that makes sense. This is how I found my problem with my alternator. Hope this helps

 

[GNVenom]

Resistor inline to that brown wire will work. It has to be around 470 ohms and has to attach to switched 12v on one end.

 

[Grunk]

would this work IC - Resistors 470-OHM 1/4W 100-PK . Do the Watts matter?

 

[TRICKSIXPA]

would this work IC - Resistors 470-OHM 1/4W 100-PK . Do the Watts matter?

These are what I have!

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[GNVenom]

1/2 watt is desirable, but 1/4 watt will work fine.

 

[TRICKSIXPA]

So with my multimeter in Diode mode I placed the black wire on the battery terminal on the back. Then hit the copper bridge on the bridge rectifier I got 531 on the first terminal closest to the battery terminal then 538, then 564 on the third terminal. Don't know about the numbers but there was no fluctuation. With the black wire on the battery terminal and red on the aluminum fins the meter went to zero. Here is a picture of what I'm working with!

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[fbody4me]

This is basically what I did when I took my alternator off my car,before I even took it apart.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgikeXt91vM

Its a different alternator in the video but works just the same.

Now you have it apart just check both sides of the three diodes,dont need to mess with the battery post on the back of the the alternator.

 

[dank GN]

Okay I've have mine wired directly from the rear mounted battery . If I didn't the kill switch that I have mounted on the rear bumper wouldn't kill the car like it's supposed to . Anyway I've not had any issues with the alternator not charging and get a steady 13.9-14.0 volts . Maybe I just got lucky and my alt regulator is okay ??

 

[TRICKSIXPA]

Well looks like I dodged a bullet! While I was replacing the brushes I pulled the regulator off an noticed one of the bolts were loose to the rectifier. Tightened it back up and installed the new brushes. Just plugged the wires back on to the car Alternator battery wire and harness wire and my Volt light returned. I got power!!!

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[TRICKSIXPA]

While I was testing with the multimeter in Diode mode. I put the black connector on the battery terminal. The red probe on the rectifier. When I was testing the rectifier block I got the readings of 500 or more on top of the bridge on all three sections. When I tested the bottom it when back down to one. If you look at the picture above you will see the top half and bottom half of the bridge rectifier. The fins are the area that I tested with the red probe on the multimeter.


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