I have one but it apparently wasn't installed correctly because when I take off the negative battery terminal the engine sputters and shuts off. I thought if the alternator was done right it would run the engine without a battery once it's on. Not charging the battery is the #1 issue in my gorgeous and awesome Comet. I'll post a picture of what it looks like right now. The red wire goes directly to the positive terminal on the battery.There is an orange and a black cap and a T shaped rubber THING with one wire taped off. I'm sure it's wrongly done. I am soon going to the Taurus fanshroud/no flexfan set up. What alternator is easy to install and pushes enough power to run all my gizmos while actually running the engine and charging the battery? Or How can I rewire the current alternator correctly?
Did you have a charging system problem before "disconnecting" the battery.You may have had a bad voltage regulator originally.Now you most certainly have a bad V/R and possibly a bad alt.Disconnecting the battery W/the car running is a sure way to fry the V/R and the alt.
Paintank that looks like a 1 wire alt to me . there about as simple as they get for wireing. i just dont like having to race them up to make them start charging when the engine is cold. thats what i ran on all my equipment when the alt. went out because you dont have to worry about the wireing just run 1 hot wire to battery.
Check and clean all your connections, even the ones at the regulator, if your using an aftermarket one they can be pretty sensitive, check your grounds too. I've never tried to take the negative terminal off while the motor is running, if you do that arn't you losing your ground? how is the ignition suppose to work?
I have no clue. As an automotive electrician I am sorely lacking. I am more mechanical minded and electricity is still like magic to me. When I took off the old alternator and took it to AutoZone they matched it up(after verifying it was dead) and I bought this one. I tried to understand the directions but they didn't list all the wires I had so I improvised. The VR is also new. As long as the battery is in and the car is running it's fine. Cut it off and the battery is invariably dead. Most distressing. I had a Chiltons manual but it was destroyed by the SON.
Like state before, clean all connections. Also, is your alternator light on? I always thought a generator car would run with the battery taken out, and an alternator car should not run with a cable pulled. Dan
I drove my '72 35 miles with NO battery in it at all a couple of years ago. So yes, it should run without the battery. And yes, it's hard on the voltage regulator if you do that. I had charing problems with my car several weeks ago. I fixed it by installing an internally regulated Chevy alternator.
I removed the bulb for the ALT dash light. Drove me nuts staying on all the time. That light was why I got the new alternator to begin with. I figured if it was off everything was fine!
You should never disconnect a battery from a running engine. It causes a condition called "load dump" that can overwork the diodes in the alternator and burn them up.
The red wire which is marked as field, should have voltage (light a test lite) with the key on. If not check the switched wire on the regulator. (i think its one of the most outside wires). These wires are small and somtimes break internally, Meaning the sheath or cover will still be intact. Hope this helps
Not sure about a Ford, but a GM three wire alt requires that the alt light being wired into the circuit, or it won't charge. GM one wire alts will work without a alt light.
So the "field" is the orange capped wire "grnd" is the black capped and the T shaped rubber block with the other wires goes...? I checked the Tech articles and there is not one on this. makes sense because most everyone can do this easy repair. But when the new Alternator has different places to attach wires than the original...I get confused. The Comet is now our only transportation as the van has decided to demand surgery. So now the new shifter cable is in and the only thing left is the darned charging system woes. Maybe my battery is just a POS?
