Evan Frucht
Well-Known Member
I've been having issues with my electrical system since I bought the car. I didn't really suspect it was electrical until now but now I'm thinking various symptoms might be connected.
Main problem is a rough idle. Sometimes sort of coughing or stumbling, hesitating, erratic. It stays running most of the time so it is tolerable to drive but every once in a while it will stall while sitting in traffic, but will start up again. Every few times I drive it this happens. Especially once the car gets really warm or on a very hot day. It accelerates fine and drives well, has plenty of power and engine is smooth... its only at a stop light/sign, when idling in DRIVE that this happens. If I put it into NEUTRAL then it smooths out. Once I accelerate it smooths out. The idle is set to about 700rpm, I tried turning it up a bit but that didn't help.
Another symptom is that the headlights+all other lights dim significantly at idle. It's enough that I cant really make out what the gauges say because the instrument cluster lights dim so much.
With car off voltage reads 12.5v
The voltage at idle in drive with headlights on was at 10.5v
In neutral it was at about 11.5v-12v
When I revved the engine up it would go to about 13.5v-14.5v
I brought it into auto zone to have them do a free charging system check on my car and the guy told me the result of the test was that my voltage regulator was bad
...so I ordered a voltage regulator and installed it today but the problem is not any better. if anything it is worse. the headlights dim badly still and to make matters worse now when I rev the car the voltage reads 16v-17v (doesn't that mean my NEW voltage is bad) when before it topped out at 14.5 volts. also my ammeter moves more radically now.
I'm lost. I'm thinking of trying a new alternator (maybe its going bad?) and/or a new coil but at the same time I don't want to just throw parts at it.
any ideas?
any tests I can do with a multimeter to test the my new and old voltage regulator to see if the new one is defective or if the old one worked fine?
any tests I can do on the alternator or coil?
1964 Plymouth Fury w 318/727
Main problem is a rough idle. Sometimes sort of coughing or stumbling, hesitating, erratic. It stays running most of the time so it is tolerable to drive but every once in a while it will stall while sitting in traffic, but will start up again. Every few times I drive it this happens. Especially once the car gets really warm or on a very hot day. It accelerates fine and drives well, has plenty of power and engine is smooth... its only at a stop light/sign, when idling in DRIVE that this happens. If I put it into NEUTRAL then it smooths out. Once I accelerate it smooths out. The idle is set to about 700rpm, I tried turning it up a bit but that didn't help.
Another symptom is that the headlights+all other lights dim significantly at idle. It's enough that I cant really make out what the gauges say because the instrument cluster lights dim so much.
With car off voltage reads 12.5v
The voltage at idle in drive with headlights on was at 10.5v
In neutral it was at about 11.5v-12v
When I revved the engine up it would go to about 13.5v-14.5v
I brought it into auto zone to have them do a free charging system check on my car and the guy told me the result of the test was that my voltage regulator was bad
...so I ordered a voltage regulator and installed it today but the problem is not any better. if anything it is worse. the headlights dim badly still and to make matters worse now when I rev the car the voltage reads 16v-17v (doesn't that mean my NEW voltage is bad) when before it topped out at 14.5 volts. also my ammeter moves more radically now.
I'm lost. I'm thinking of trying a new alternator (maybe its going bad?) and/or a new coil but at the same time I don't want to just throw parts at it.
any ideas?
any tests I can do with a multimeter to test the my new and old voltage regulator to see if the new one is defective or if the old one worked fine?
any tests I can do on the alternator or coil?
1964 Plymouth Fury w 318/727