For those who have a voltage guauge what voltage are you guys reading during idle and cruising along with cold start. During cold start mines would show around 14.6V and then go down to around 14V after the engine warms up.

This weekend I was crusing and suddenly my voltage guage was showing 14.6V around there. NOrmally it would be around 14V once the engine warms up. With the higher voltage I can hear the walboro whine loudly and the car was not running good. It was as if the car was running rich and the car was very laggy. I've never experience this until now.

I suspect it could be my fuel pump or my alternator going bad (over charging). Maybe I have a boost leak also. Anyone else experience this?

Thanks.

 

So no one knows??

 

noticed spikes whenever there's loading on the alternator .. so think your alternator is good .. something is loading it ..

 

Anything between 13.4-15.5 is normal output. Once you start going over 16 volts you start frying stuff. In that case a higher voltage would indicate a voltage regulator problem. Your voltage is normal though, it does vary according to load and power demand.

 

Ah ok i was wondering the same thing...i just installed the Apex TT and I read the voltage off it and it noticed it bounced between 14.6 and about 14 so i was like huh? Thanks

 

On average I see on my Blitz TT 14.3V, but sometimes is a little higher sometimes a little lower but usually in 14.3 range

 

i see 14V - 14.5 V on my safc, never seen anything different for a year.

 

ok, does anyone have drops steadily for cruising? Just about 2 months ago, my cruising voltage was 14.4, then last month 14.2 and now its 14.1. When I cold start, its between 14.6-.8. It this typical to vary like this?

 

the 14.6 is typical once the voltage regulator steps up to recharge the battery for the energy used during start-up. shortly after that it stabilizes down at 14.2-14.4.

Battery efficiency goes down with temperature, so the capacity of the battery is less when it's cold. The amount of output from the alternator will vary depending on the load on the engine (electrical accessory load, not engine RPM). In the winter you typically use more electrical devices, defroster etc causing your alternator to have to put out more juice.

 

The battery produces 12.5 - 12.6 volts (2.1 volt per cell for a lead acid battery). Any votalge over 12.6 means the voltage regulator is functioning to control the alternator output to supply the system with enough power to keep the battery charged. You are perfectly normal with your voltage readings. The ecu, lights, the electric cooling fans for the engine going on and off as needed, plus other accessories (particularly hi power amps) load the system causing the regulator to perform its switching fucntions that in turn produce the volatge fluctuations you describe.