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Alternator producing volts/amps...okay. I follow you there.
What on earth are you talking about when you say your CAR is consuming volts or amps?
Do not tell me you are connecting an alternator to your electric car's motor so that it produces electricity to recharge the battery as it runs so that it runs forever.
What I mean is, vehicle consumes power through electronics, headlights and such. Alternator produces power. How can you rig up two ammeters to judge the vehicle's consumption vs the alternator's production.
Are there separate wires running from alternator to battery, and battery to everythign else? If not...it could be a problem.
If it's just alternator to everything else (battery included. it could be a problem.
Typically an alternator will put out 13V at near 600 RPM engine idle (but little power) with the alternator speed at 2-3 times the engine RPM (as determined by the pulley size).ok i get it. Thanks for the info guys. Anyone know on averafe what the lowest rpm is to keep the alternator at 13 volts?
ther should be a 'cutout' unit that regulates the voltage...
Perhaps I can help. Older cars had an ampmeter or ammeter which was in the line between the main line(say starter terminal) and the battery. When you first switched on it showed a discharge of power. When you started and the alternator produced current it showed a charge going into the battery...
Minor nit. The cranking current from the battery to the starter motor is never routed through the ammeter. The charge/discharge zero-center ammeter is typically -50A - 0 - +50 full-scale. The 500 to 1000A of cranking current would blow it up. Instead it is wired so that the alternator output feeds the main distribution bus (loads) and the ammeter is inserted in the wire that goes to the positive terminal of the battery (the starter is fed from a separate wire). That way, it reads the NET current in-to/out-of the battery.