Subject: Re: The Penny Drops

[John Larson]

Trust me, 30 years in the business, the alternator is likely to self
destruct in a matter of seconds.  Seen it many times!  John
----- Original Message -----
From: "Huw Powell" <human747 at attbi.com>
To: "John Larson" <j.d.larson at verizon.net>
Cc: "Mark L. Chang" <mchang at ee.washington.edu>; <quattro at audifans.com>
Sent: Friday, September 13, 2002 7:27 PM
Subject: Re: Subject: Re: The Penny Drops


>
> > Basically, what you'll get if you remove the battery from the charging
> > circuit  is a quickly and seriously toasted alternator.  Period.  With
no
> > load to control the output, the alternator tries to charge the whole
> > universe, something beyond its puny little capacity.
>
> there will always be a load, to keep the engine running the fuel pump
> and engine management alone will draw 10-15 amps.
>
> there just won't be any (or much) filtering, and the higher spikes could
> be nasty to the alt as well as the other things in the car.
>
> the alt certainly won't try to "charge the whole universe," the
> impedance is too high to draw any appreciable current...
>
> --
> Huw Powell
>
> http://www.humanspeakers.com/
>
> http://www.humanthoughts.org/
>