The Dodge Challenger Message Board

I'm sure I'm not the first and won't be the last, to have this problem. It will not charge the battery. I rebuilt, then replaced the alternator. I've changed the volt reg twice. I read 12.3 volts across the battery, even at 2000 rpm. My ammeter registers the draws( foot on brake, lights on, etc.), but not any charging. The alternator reads 14.7-15.1 on the big wire, 1 volt on the field wire closest to the big wire, and 10 volts on the other field wire at idle. The volt reg ground checks good. Any ideas what could be wrong? Does the ballast play any part in the charging circuit? Feel free to offer ideas. Thanks in advance. Thor

I would go ahead and replace the ballast, Thor, just to eliminate it from the list of culprites. The best way to solve most problems is the process of elimination.

NO!

The idiots way to solve a problem is to keep replacing parts in the vain hope you might strike lucky.

The correct way is to use your head and a volt/ohm meter. This subject has been covered in depth in another thread or two. Have a read of those threads first Mark. The answer is most likely a bad connection at some point between the alt and the battery. Maybe at the bulkhead. Easily traced with a meter by following the wires. First check you have 14-15 volts from the alt ouput to ground. If not then you may not have 12 volts on the alt field.

I had an intermitant charging problem with mine that was caused by an overheated plug body at the firewall. From what I've heard, this is quite common in E Bodies with original dash harnesses and you can change parts out forever and not fix it. Check the large plug in the middle of the cluster of four plugs that has the wires to the starter relay coming to it and make sure that all eight wires are making good connections.

I found the problem! I ran a wire directly from the alternator output to the battery, bypassing the ammeter and all the under dash wiring. It started to charge. So I pulled out the dash and found a broken wire between the ammeter and ignition switch. All is well now. Thanks for the input. A lesson learned. Use the cheapest fix first!!! Now I have a spare alternator and volt reg, plus valuable experience.

Oops, foot in mouth!