"ImmoralMinority" (araimondo)
08/21/2018 at 09:15 • Filed to: None
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"ImmoralMinority" (araimondo)
08/21/2018 at 09:15 • Filed to: None | 0
| 18 |
I am like a new mother fretting over a baby with a cold with this car.
As one of you warned me, my boiled over battery could have been due to a voltage issue with my alternator. I tried to take the car in yesterday, but I had to wait until after cardiac rehab, and by the time the tow truck got here (he insisted on jumping the car and wrapping the ends of the battery cables (a process I was not excited about) so I could drive it to the shop. I did, and arrived 10 minutes after I closed. The truck driver suggested that the battery problem was that it is too damn hot here. He said (as one of you observed) that a gel battery would do better here.
This is the kind of thing I don’t take chances with in with this car. What worries me is that the voltage gauge in the dash seems to be twitching more than I remember. It twitches to the rhythm of the turn signals, and goes up with RPM.
Should I just buy and install a gel battery, then drive it in to the shop? Or tow? (Free from AAA) I welcome not only opinions, but gentle m ocking of how much of a baby I am about this car.
crowmolly
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:24 |
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This is the kind of thing I don’t take chances with in with this car. What worries me is that the voltage gauge in the dash seems to be twitching more than I remember. It twitches to the rhythm of the turn signals, and goes up with RPM.
I would not drive it with a new battery and an untested alternator at this point. The voltage gauge behavior and RPM tie-in almost scream charging problem.
Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:25 |
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No one’s going to mock you for treating that bad boy like royalty.
RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:26 |
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the voltage gauge in the dash seems to be twitching more than I
remember. It twitches to the rhythm of the turn signals, and goes up
with RPM.
Definitely sounds like a regulator problem.
/Guy who cooked a battery with a bad regulator.
LOREM IPSUM
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:32 |
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Any advice I could give would be a semi-educated guess at best, but it does seem like a potential voltage regulation issue could be the root cause.
On one hand, I suspect a 10 minute drive with a fresh battery would be quick enough to get away unscathed.
On the other hand, an exploding battery could conceivably burn the car down.
A third option, no battery. Lights and accessories off. Jump it, let the alternator output keep it running, and have a family member follow closely behind in the event it stalls and you need another jump. If you go this route, be sure to isolate the positive battery cable so it doesn’t ground out.
Or that free tow.
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crowmolly
> RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
08/21/2018 at 09:33 |
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Regulators. We regulate any flowin’ of his volts and we’re damn good, too. But you can’t be any geek off the street. Gotta be handy with the pixies if you know what I mean, earn your keep.
MoCamino
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:36 |
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Could be a bad flasher module, a bad ground, the alternator heading south, a weak battery, or a combination of some/all of the above. Gel batteries do deal with extreme temperatures better, so getting one of those couldn’t hurt.
As far as tow vs drive, if it will start and behave once started, I’d drive it. I don’t trust tow truck drivers to always know how to treat our babies. When I’m
dealing with a car whose age can be measured in significant fractions of a century, I get picky. :)
diplodicus
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:36 |
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Bummer after a quick google sounds like the regulator is internal on these so you’ll have to put a rebuilt/new alternator in. Instead of just swapping regulators out.
Stapleface
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:38 |
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You’re trying to keep your stress level as low as possible because of the ticker. I say use your free tow and let the shop worry about it versus the potential for something much worse.
You may end up needing to go the gel battery route anyway. But I wouldn’t risk burning the car to a crisp just for the sake of saving a free tow.
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Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
> crowmolly
08/21/2018 at 09:38 |
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The next stop is the Eastsiiiide
Mo-teh-eh-heh-heh-eh-heh-ellllllllllllllllll
pip bip - choose Corrour
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:41 |
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given how rare the car is, i see no issue with fretting over it
as for the problem though, no idea other than get the tow to the shop.
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LOREM IPSUM
> Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
08/21/2018 at 09:53 |
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Never mock an attorney. If there is anyone who has the ability to immediately cut you off at the knee with a snappy retort, it’s a lawyer. Even the ones with no sense of humour.
Had Michael Richards gone to law school, he'd still be working today.
itschrome
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 09:54 |
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pretty sure the only way to fix this voltage issue is a 1GZ-FE swap so you can run a larger alternator.. Yup, only possible fix...
You can trust me, my neighbor played a lawyer on tv that represented a mechanic in fake court once..
I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 10:04 |
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It twitches to the rhythm of the turn signals, and goes up with RPM.
Are you sure it’s not supposed to do that? Those sound like things that should be happening. You don’t see small, frequent movements on gauges in newer cars because they’re generally not mechanical anymore.
random001
> I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
08/21/2018 at 10:14 |
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I laughed at a mechanical gauge displaying electrical voltage. I know what you mean, but it stuck me funny at this very moment.
Censored
> ImmoralMinority
08/21/2018 at 10:15 |
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If you were running the car without a battery, the Volt Gauge would certainly
have a tendency
to act funny. When the battery is installed and working properly, it will “level” out what your gauge would read. Don’t let that part worry you until you have a good batt
ery under the hood. However, it isn’t a great idea to drive a car with the battery cables just “wrapped up”, you love this car and this would be asking for a problem. 99% of the time, it would likely be fine, but please don’t take the chance. If your voltage regulator is bad in the alt, it is very easy to check. H
ook up a new battery, get a multimeter, put on DCV, black to black - red to red (meter to battery)
, start engine, rev to about 2500ish rpm, check voltage on the multimeter, should be less than 14.4v. If your voltage is ever over that, the alt is likely bad. Don’t always trust the voltage gauge on the dash, sometimes they can read low because of resistance through connections or simply wire size. It is a good place
to monitor voltage
, but less about the number and more of it is higher/lower than where it normally is.
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random001
> itschrome
08/21/2018 at 10:15 |
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pretty sure the only way to fix this voltage issue is an LS9 swap so you can run a larger everything.. Yup, only possible fix...
FTFY
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I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
> random001
08/21/2018 at 13:43 |
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? Oldschool voltmeters are definitely a mechanical device. They use magnet ic induction to move the needle, which is completely mechanical.
But yeah, I meant analog.
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random001
> I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
08/21/2018 at 13:52 |
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No, I know. I know this is a mechanical device. It was funny to me about mechanical devices measuring electrical current just then. I have no reason why.