Darthomas
Well-Known Member
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- May 19, 2016
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- Chicago, Illinois
With all the recent discussion about voltage regulators and my own tuning of my mechanical regulator, I was intrigued by how I had been driving all day, and after getting stuck in slow traffic, when the temp gauge was "up", the ammeter went into the discharge zone, even with no lights, etc, ignition only.
I had wondered why the VR even HAD a discharge contact, now I know.
When the battery is baking hot, the increased temp raises the battery voltage, and the VR responds by making contact on the lower contact, thus not charging during this time. As soon as the traffic cleared, the temp gauge went back to the left end of "normal", and the battery cooled, the ammeter returned to center or only slight maintenance charging as we normally see. It's great to see proper engineering working the way it's supposed to.
Now I wonder if electronic voltage regulators are that smart, I don't think I've ever witnessed this in a car with an electronic regulator.
Anyone know if they can bleed off voltage to prevent battery damage this way?
I had wondered why the VR even HAD a discharge contact, now I know.
When the battery is baking hot, the increased temp raises the battery voltage, and the VR responds by making contact on the lower contact, thus not charging during this time. As soon as the traffic cleared, the temp gauge went back to the left end of "normal", and the battery cooled, the ammeter returned to center or only slight maintenance charging as we normally see. It's great to see proper engineering working the way it's supposed to.
Now I wonder if electronic voltage regulators are that smart, I don't think I've ever witnessed this in a car with an electronic regulator.
Anyone know if they can bleed off voltage to prevent battery damage this way?