Re: UR voltmeter reading

["Jim Haseltine" <Jim_Haseltine@email.msn.com>]

-----Original Message-----
From: DRoxburgh <DRoxburgh@email.msn.com>


>When I turn the ignition on - before starting no ancillaries on- the car's
>voltmeter reads 8-12, on starting this rises to 12-14. Is this normal?
Just about matches mine. Try this one - engine running, lights on, wipers
on, heater fan on full and rear screen heat on - typical British winter
driving set-up. Voltmeter drops well below 12, sometimes reaches one green
LED above the reds and the oil temp LEDs go out completely.

>the battery kaput, and the voltage only being held up when running by the
>alternator?
Somebody will probably correct me, but I've always thought that the battery
is there to provide power to start the car and after that the alternator
takes over supplying all the electrics and charging up the battery, so the
running (alternator) voltage is normally higher than the static (battery)
voltage. This of course depends on the alternator being man enough for the
job - as they get older they become less efficient - this is why most
base-level european vehicles (esp. Fords) spend the winter months screeching
away from junctions, their cheapo alternators are ok when new but after a
few years they can't cope with the demand.

I got a Christmas present from my parents, a T-shirt & sweatshirt with "My
other car is an Audi quattro" embroidered on them - I _think_ they were
taking the p*ss, but once I restore the 81 it'll be true whichever car I
drive. :-)

Jim Haseltine