Help me oppo wan kenobi, you're my only hope

"cletus44 aka Clayton Seams" (cletus44) 10/12/2014 at 11:09 • Filed to: None

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So after two days of cursing with my multimeter in hand, I still haven't been able to fix the charging issue on my Chrysler. I replaced the alternator and ballast resistor with no change in the problem.
The car will start (with a charged battery) and run fine but it's running solely off battery power. When I unplug the battery from the negative terminal, it dies immediately. Something is keeping the alternator from charging the battery.
I also checked my voltage regulator and it registered normal ohm resistance so I don't think it's fried.

Any ideas? I want my Peggy back on the road!

WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams 10/12/2014 at 11:17

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Probably a very dumb question, but does the alternator on yours have a pulley or belt that want replaced when the alternator was?

Zipppy, Mazdurp builder, Probeski owner and former ricerboy > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams 10/12/2014 at 11:17

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If I were in Toronto, I'd be paying you a visit pronto.

I might have to ask, is the alternator connected properly?

Pitchblende > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams 10/12/2014 at 11:38

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I'm going to assume you have ruled out the battery itself or something causing the battery to discharge. what parts of the electrical system have you left untouched?

JGrabowMSt > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams 10/12/2014 at 12:24

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Check all grounds everywhere, go over them with a wire brush and a make sure theyre clean.

McMike > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams 10/12/2014 at 12:48

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Check all connections and make sure all wires are making it to wherever they are supposed to go. Should be a few that go from the alt to the reg, and one that goes from the reg to the batt.

Get a wiring diagram and start testing each end where the wires terminate. (this one is just an example) This might help you if you have a bad wire or connection.

Check your grounds, too.

crowmolly > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams 10/12/2014 at 13:01

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Gun to my head I'd still suspect the voltage regulator.

cletus44 aka Clayton Seams > Zipppy, Mazdurp builder, Probeski owner and former ricerboy 10/12/2014 at 14:40

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Good question. The alternator connections are tight and clean.

cletus44 aka Clayton Seams > JGrabowMSt 10/12/2014 at 14:41

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Would bad grounds cause an instant short like that?

JGrabowMSt > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams 10/12/2014 at 14:50

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Bad grounds can cause all sorts of problems. Biggest thing is that without the ground or negative wire making good contact, the circuit cannot complete. Short on itself, not really, but it depends on the circuit that's bad. In a lot of newer cars, bad grounds can cause tons of weird issues because of the PCM/ECU being so complicated.

deekster_caddy > crowmolly 10/13/2014 at 15:41

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Voltage regulator X2