battery light

[69oiler]

ok first the battery light came on when i turned off the truck. no key in the ignition and the batt light was on. after talking to Nick i checked the ignition switch and the plug on the alternator. ignition switch had no effect but the light went off when i jiggled the plug on the alt. plus, cold engine, warm plug. upon closer inspection the insulation was worn through on both wires going to the plug. i taped the wires up and the light went out until i started the truck. now the batt light stays on with the engine running.

could the alt have fried from having the plug wires shorted for even a short time?

i get 11 volts at the battery terminals with the engine running. i have a battery charger on it for the night because i need the truck tomorrow but i'm guessing i need an alternator. batteries are less than one year old.

is the voltage regulator internal or external on a SD?

 

[69oiler]

new alternator fixed it.

 

[poolguy]

Those diodes are delicate!

 

[Agnem]

I find it inexcusable that a vehicle that relies so much on electrical power to run is not equipped with a voltmeter! When I get around to putting an A pilliar on mine, that's the first gauge going in.

 

[Double-S-Diesel]

glad its all ok now.

 

[69oiler]

I find it inexcusable that a vehicle that relies so much on electrical power to run is not equipped with a voltmeter! When I get around to putting an A pilliar on mine, that's the first gauge going in.

i find it silly that Ford couldn't add an inch of wire to the harness for the alternator plug. that thing has so much tension on it it's kinking the wires and obviously wore thru the insulation.

just another item to add to the growing list of why my next truck will not be a SD.