[whisperer]

Lost my alternator tonight coming home and about ten miles out. First my radio died, then my lights started going dim. I was looking for UFO's, it's a pretty lonely streach of highway this time of night. I figured out I was having a charging problem and turned everything off except the lights on low beam. I fell in behind a semi and just cruised. By the time I got home the lights were so dim I was driving by moonlight. By the time I pulled into my driveway the lights were totaly dead, I just turned them off and drove out to the house. I grabbed my VOM and it has 4 volts in the batt. The thing that I learned was that at 4 volts the FI, the computer and EECIV was still working fine and the engine never missed a beat. Lucky for me because it's snowing at the moment.

I wonder how low the voltage can get before the electronics quit? Hmmmmmmm............ *G*.

Hal
Love hard, drive fast, wear your seat belt.

PS, that's my 'bird...... My Mustang is too ugly to take pictures of yet........*G*.

http://www.teleport.com/~cosa/bird2.jpg

 

[Guest]

That's odd. Most fuel injection systems and computer controls run off of a 5V reference. My guess is that you barely made it before it was going to totally die.

-Brian

 

[camachinist]

Thanks Hal...glad you made it OK...

When we went to Apple Valley in '99 to pick up our camper, the camper battery was toast and fried up our alternator on the truck somewhere out in the desert....I didn't notice until the guages started reading a bit low....I stopped at a rest stop and disconnected the camper 12V electrical from the truck and crossed our fingers and just barely beat the sunset into Mojave...
We camped out (our first camping trip *G*) in a grocery store parking lot next to an Autozone and I replaced one of the truck batteries and the alternator the next morning. Uneventful, if delayed, trip home...

That was one time I was glad I had a diesel powered vehicle.....I think by the time we got to Mojave, my flashlight had more power than the truck batteries...*G*

Pat
http://www.jps.net/binay/webdocs/strtmstng002_sml.JPG

 

[Torquewrench]

That reminds me of a similar thing that happened to me. My only problem was it was 5 degrees and the old alternator belt was too loose and hard to keep charging the battery. I was on a 300 mile trip back to where I worked on Christmas day. Stopped to take a wizz and the car wouldn't start again. SInce it was Christmas and the world was in a friendly mood I got someone to stop by flashing my flashlight. They gave me a jump and some good advice that my belt needed tightening, which I of course ignored. I traveled the next 75 miles at 60 mph with only the running lights on. There was a full moon and not a cloud in the sky and visibility was actually quite good, although I had a naggin feeling that I'd run through a herd of deer any minute. I sure enjoy the memory much more than the event at the time.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1575122&a=11977248&p=43129085.jpg
66 C-code convertible
66 C-code coupe
65 GTO hardtop
76 Nova hatchback