Alternator Wiring

[jamess92 0]

Being new to the forum, I just have a search through and usually find what my problem is.. but can't find an answer to this one..

 

Sunday, battery light comes on. Keep driving, and not til last night does the battery give up on me.. (in the space of 2 miles from a good powerful start to refusing to start)

 

Whipped the alternator off, and got it tested by a local specialist. Not charging, get a re-con'd one (and I know re-con'd is all oh dear and it could come back to that..) Just got it all back together, and its charging at 11.6 volts.

 

Unless I was half asleep taking the old alternator off, there are only two wires going to it. One 13mm nut, and a spade connection. The alternator that I have to replace it, has 2 nuts and a spade connection. Could this be the problem? Just putting the two back on and missing the third? What are the two that are there in the first place, and what should the third be, if there is one..

 

The battery light is on when running even still.

 

Cheers,

James

[Anthony 1,003]

There's often unused terminals on alternators, so don't worry too much about that.

 

You only need the stud for the positive feed (usually marked B+) and the spade terminal for the exciter wire - earth is through the alternator body

 

Could well be a dead alternator - certainly I've had them dead in the box before now, such is the shoddy standard of "reconditioning" on some

[jamess92 0]

There's often unused terminals on alternators, so don't worry too much about that.

 

You only need the stud for the positive feed (usually marked B+) and the spade terminal for the exciter wire - earth is through the alternator body

 

Could well be a dead alternator - certainly I've had them dead in the box before now, such is the shoddy standard of "reconditioning" on some

Thats a piece of mind, knowing you dont always need 3, cheers.

 

Just been playing about, multimeter permanantly on the battery, twice ive had the battery light go out, and the reading jump from low 11's to high 13's which indicates something is happening.. but only when it feels like it.. Been fiddling with the connections on the gearbox bell housing but no such luck.. Its beyond me this one!

 

James

[smithy 1]

If you rev engine above 3k does the alternator charge then?