No charge issue

[392hemix]

I have a 1968 Plymouth Road runner, new voltage regulator, alternator, I have a new 30over 440 with msd ignition, and an electric fan, Other than that everything is stock and oem. I was driving the other day to work, its a 15 min ride. There was no issues, but after i sighned into work i had to move the car, it did not start. so i jumped it and started right up, Later that night i drove home, no issues when i got there i tested the voltage on the battery and it was low so i replaced it. Then i did a voltage check to see if it was chargeing. It was but only @ 13.6 volts, i figured that was ok, but low, so i went for a drive, and about 20 min into my lights went dim and the car was not charging, Thte gauge in the dash was working tho, i tested the alternator, and i put a known good voltage regulator, still the battery was not charging. so im thinking this is a wiering issue, that i don't have the time to trace. So My question. What 1 wire alternator should i get? I have not had alot of time to research them, i want one that i can bolt up with not alto of hassel and will last a long time. What have you guys used that work well?

 

[Deleted member 214]

Before you buy a new alternator, make sure the ground from the engine to the chassis is solid. My alternator checked out great, my battery was fine, but the output couldn't make the loop to recharge the battery because the engine wasn't grounded well. I used a lawn tractor cable to ground it, took care of the problem.

 

[392hemix]

i will, just for sure, but i have 2 engine grounds, and i have the battery ground to the engine, so it should be grounded, or my ignitoin would not be getting power, i will tripple check it.

 

[Deleted member 214]

Just a suggestion. My ignition ran fine with the battery grounded to the motor but no motor ground to chassis. Drove 75 miles that way, city trafficl, some with the headlights on, and still made it home. Barely!

 

[68ChargerAG]

i will, just for sure, but i have 2 engine grounds, and i have the battery ground to the engine, so it should be grounded, or my ignitoin would not be getting power, i will tripple check it.

Did you find anything on this problem yet? It makes sense that the ground strap could be the problem. The battery is grounded to the engine, so the starter motor will work fine and the engine will run fine, but the voltage regulator etc is on the firewall, so if the firewall is not grounded to the engine/battery sufficiently the charging system will not function properly... right?

Let us know what you find... I am curious because it sounds like you have already replaced so much other stuff.

With the ignition turned off does the battery terminal spark when you hook it up? With everything turned off, if it sparks (even just a little) it means that there is something shorting out. Just another thing to check for.

 

[Hemi Time]

Your not on your own, I went through 3 brand new basket mopar alternators before I got one to work,a lot of them are junk.
I ended up getting a one wire alternator it works fine, a bit crude but it works I will see how it goes long term.

But on my other car a 68 charger I have a later 90,s model chev alternator and it works great better voltage at lower rpm a lot better value.

Question?...How many amps is your alternator putting out I had a brand new 70 amp mopar alt and got it checked at the shop. And at 3500 rpm it put out 50 amps at idle about 25 amps.Not even enough to run a msd and a elec fan at idle (might be your problem)a few traffic lights and your stuffed.

msd+elec fan + lights =? amps have you got enough

 

[Hemi Time]

I think you should go with the big one wire alternator and run a 10mm cable to battery from alt, so you dont get voltage drop and you will be fine.Then you will have amps left over for more accessories..

After I done that I never had any issues.

As soon as I put mine on the msd loved it and car ran better.

 

[69 Runner]

Many moons ago when Hector was a pup I had a 58 Rambler. I rebuilt the motor and installed it with a new clutch and new motor mounts and trans mount as well. And when I tried to start the car, nothing happened.

After a bit of head scratching I figured out there was so much rubber "flash" on the mounts, they effectively isolated the motor from chassis ground. Yes that's right. There was also NO ground cable from the motor to the body.

Fixed the ground. No more problem

 

[Elvad]

New Style Alternator

The old one wire charging system gives you dim lights at idle, poor charging with a lot of stuff on (like a cold night in the rain) I would upgrade to a newer style alt, harness and regulator. I thought Year One sold this as a kit but after looking at 35 pages of date coded spark plug wires I'm not so sure. but it is out there, look around.

 

[69 Runner]

One reason the one wire alts let the lights dim at idle is because (in original form) the "high performance" applications had a large (read underdriven) pulley to slow them down when the motors were getting thrashed. A replacement alt with a smaller pulley will usually make some difference.

 

[Bobs69]

I think you should go with the big one wire alternator and run a 10mm cable to battery from alt, so you dont get voltage drop and you will be fine.Then you will have amps left over for more accessories..

After I done that I never had any issues.

As soon as I put mine on the msd loved it and car ran better.

I realize this is an old thread, but if you see this I'd love to know more about hooking up a chev alternator to my 440. I have a couple at home, from a 95 chevy v6.