[T3] charging issue still-SOLVED

[Jim Adney]

On 22 Jan 2011 at 9:17, Tim Keohane wrote:

> The new electronic V R arrived and I went through the paces again,  
> with the old V R then swapped and installed and tested the new V R.  
> The same decline in voltage at the battery with the old VR occurred.  
> Wasn't expecting a change. 

That was all with the old VR, right? I wouldn't expect a change, 
either.

> Swapped the V R and let the car sit  overnight. Fired up and watched
> the battery voltage go to 13.9 at fast  idle. Made the same tests and
> the voltage stayed constant at 14.0  volts while driving with only
> engine and clock as a load. When  additional loads were applied the
> lowest voltage was 13.4 volts. That  would be with roughly 75-80% of
> max load. 

Because it's been a long time since your battery has been getting a 
full charge, I suspect it would benefit from few overnight slow 
charges. If you're not driving the car, just leave the charger on it, 
but set the charger at its lowest setting. You can check the voltage 
occasionally and remove the charger if it ever looks like the voltage 
is going to exceed 14.4 V.

Once the battery is back to normal, I think you'll find that you see 
above 14 V any time you're driving. It should really be 14.1 - 14.4 
V, so if you always see just 14.0, try borrowing a different 
voltmeter as a check.

> I looked at the VR and noted the top is electrically isolated from the  
> battery/fuse panel connections. It would be a simple screw-up to short  
> across them so I fashioned an insulator from a chunk of garden hose.

Our cars all came with an orange/brown cardboard cover to keep stuff 
from falling down there. Most of those covers have long been lost, so 
it's a very good idea to provide some alternative.

Glad to hear that this new VR seems to have fixed your problem. You 
should expect your car to both start and run better now, AND get 
better gas mileage if it is still FI.   ;-)

-- 
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Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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