[T3] A Tale Of Two Regulators

[Chad]

You have a short somewhere. Something is drawing power from your battery
when it's not supposed to be.

When you are at idle the generator isn't spinning fast enough to produce a
full charge to the battery so when you turn your lights on you're not
getting the full voltage there.

It's not a fun job to chase a short but it has to be done, especially if
your car sits for any extended period of time. You can pull the ground off
while it's sitting to prevent it being drained.

You could also look at doing an alternator conversion. I believe there are
some pretty good bolt on brackets available from a guy on the samba.

I'm not sure how this group looks at conversion stuff. An alternator is
really only a patch for the problem as you'll still be draining the battery
when it sits.

Best bet is to get your meter, laminate a copy of your wiring diagram from
the Bentley and spend a day checking wires.
On Apr 24, 2014 11:24 AM, "Chris Sheridan" <cscsheridan at gmail.com> wrote:

> My Daily Driver is again experiencing electrical issues. You may remember I
> replaced the battery, regulator, belt, generator brushes about a year ago,
> and the generator itself about 2 years ago.
>
> Over the last month or so I noticed the lights dimming at idle. When I rev
> the motor or begin driving the headlight brightness increases, when I stop
> at a stop sign the lights get very dim.
>
> Also the battery began to no longer hold a charge. - slowly became
> difficult to start over a few weeks.
>
> I brought the battery in for testing and was told it was shot. I had it
> replaced last week and it began to start brightly again, but then I noticed
> it started to start harder again after a few days, and the light dimming
> was still there.
>
> I then ordered a new regulator from my FLAPS - it was an aftermarket exact
> replica of a 1970 bus regulator - more square and boxy than the typical
> bosch t3 regulator. - the computer insisted this was the right part for the
> 1970 t3 even though I questioned the Type 2 part number (211) - I replaced
> it into my car and began driving it and started smelling burnt wiring after
> about a block, so I parked it again.
>
> What gives. Can I use the older style regulator on a FI T3? What is causing
> my lights to change intensity based on my engine rpm?
>
> Thanks,
> Chris
> 1970 Fastback FI
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