Possible power loss

[Intmdtr]

ok so i sit here and ponder all about the new things i can do to my car...its endless i know.

I have a question in regards to actual electrical power. as far as i know i have the stock pullies and a stock alternator on the car. I have a brand new battery and everything is nice and tidy under the hood. whenever i leave the car to idle or come to a stop light what not the volts seem to really drop off on the guage and it is also noticeable in the sound of the car, the lights, and the fuel pump. the alternator seems to put out the proper voltage when i check it with a volt meter. what could the problem be? i am sure this is affecting my performance in one way or another.


Also has anyone converted over to the MSD coil packs on an N/A motor and noticed any difference?

[already7]

Sounds like the alternator could be getting weak. It may still charge good when the RPM's are up, but not quite enough when it is at idle.

If you just slightly raise the RPM's will it bring the volts back up?

The only other thing I can think of is a bad cable, or bad cable connection.


My truck's alternator is a little bit weak, and sometimes it will do the same thing that you mentioned. I thought about just slapping another one on it UNTIL I found out how much they were!!! Holy Shit they are proud of them >>> at Auto Zone.
So I decided to go ahead and run it until I got some more money in the bank account!

[Intmdtr]

ya i give it some fuel and it comes back up. but this isn't a recently new prob....this has been on going for almost 2 years now, if it was going to take a shit i wish it would do it soon.

[91stang308]

when i fucked up my brand new alternator (long story dont ask lol), i had a 4cyl alternator laying around so i slapped that on and havent had any problems with the car not charging, but it does what your describing it just dims the lights and rpms until i give it some gas and it comes right back up. But if your alternators checking in at the right volts not sure whats happening

[jpmcclos]

My pile of shit is the same way...4 banger alt...dimming lights.

[Intmdtr]

well i'll pull the stock # and check it out to make sure its the right one.

[dvofordman]

Also, check all your grounds, especially your main from battery to block/frame. I know it sounds basic, but I had one that looked good until I pulled on it - came right out of the crimp on fitting at the end. Maybe worth a look...

[Beernut]

I run a 130 amp alt and have the same issue but I have UD pullies.. I dont have the stock pully laying around or I would swap it out,

they do have a OverDrive alt pully for like $20 at summit I was thinking about picking up you guys might want to look into.