Battery connections melted.

[Dan64]

Why still ppl insist on this with all the threads talked and explaining the truth on this! This false, and is just right the opposite! A high output alt will get the ammeter life still safer than the stock alt!

The high output alt will keep the batt out of the power sourcing game, and this mean won't ever get discharged. If the batt never get discharged, the ammeter won't get load running throught ever, neither for charge or discharge reading!

The lack of power coming out from underrated stock alts, specially at low RPMs is what made the battery constantly getting discharged and increasing the charge-discharge process. Loads coming and going where is no need for that with a propper alt and some wiring touchs.

Ammeter is a batt status gauge, not alternator status gauge.

Sure I'd like a stronger ammeter able to handle 60 or 80 amps, but while getting everything correct and in normal conditions, a regular 40 amps ammeter is quite enough. We can't speed up the battery recharge process just because we get 500 amps alt ( if that was possible ) and you won't find a battery sucking more than 30-40 amps to be recharged still with it and that will be just on the initial recharging process, maybe for 5-8 minutes. Then will decrease to 15-25 amps for half an hour and maybe 5-10 amps for the next hour. Depending on the battery load capacity.

And still on a completely death batt iS not correct to recharge the batt on car, except if you are on the road and you really know how to proceed with it.

14 years battling with this myth and the war still goes on!

Ok, thanks for the info, never heard it explained this way. Amp meters have been blamed for a lot of fires since higher amp alternator have become more popular, whats could be the cause of this ?, or let me put it this way, what would cause a amp meter to start a fire.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

Sure I'm not saying you are aware of that, but just a victim of the all around myth.

Sure "ammeter" will fail sooner or later but before that, there is a way to save it from a catastrophic result. And understand its readings is one way to prevent it. just like a brakes system failure which usually gives you warning calls before a total fail. But everybody takes care of brakes warning calls and nobody about the charging system warning calls

The problem with the ammeters is the lack of power coming from stock alt which makes to keep continuous loads and high peaks back and forth. This continuous request of load from the batt due the poor alt capacity makes overheat and melts everything when the load is going back to the batt when giving engine throttle

this is the first thread I talk about this... sorry my poor english back in 2007 on that thread LOL ( I guess is coming better nowdays ) but is the basic of how the charging system works. Many other threads has been started about this latelly ( on this board on the electrcal section ) with more details and better explanations... and new learnts and ways to explain it

http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,33574.0/all.html

 

[HALIFAXHOPS]

Updated... I replaced all of the connectors with high quality battery terminals and tightened all of the ground connections. Thank you for the help!!

^^^Next question, should my fuel filter carry more fuel than this normally? Seems like it should ?

View attachment 1089390

So it is fixed now? What was it?

 

[Nacho-RT74]

and more here with more and new info

https://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparforum/threads/poll-about-ammeter-reading.198930/

https://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparforum/threads/dissection-and-study-of-a-mopar-ammeter.199179/

There are more threads about with similar posts and some other opinions LOL.

There is a lot of maths and science about this, but I go to the basics, what it means every stage to understand what is happening on the practice.

 

[Dan64]

Sure I'm not saying you are aware of that, but just a victim of the all around myth.

Sure "ammeter" will fail sooner or later but before that, there is a way to save it from a catastrophic result. And understand its readings is one way to prevent it. just like a brakes system failure which usually gives you warning calls before a total fail

The problem with the ammeters is the lack of power coming from stock alt which makes to keep continuous loads and high peaks back and forth. This continuous request of load from the batt due the poor alt makes overheat and melts everything when the load is going back to the batt giving engine throttle

this is the first thread I talk about this... sorry my poor english back in 2007 on that thread LOL ( I guess is coming better nowdays ) but is the basic of how the charing system works. Many other threads has been started about this latelly ( on this board on the electrcal section ) with more details and better explanations... and new learnts and ways to explain it

http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,33574.0/all.html

Thanks for the info. So maybe it's not really the higher amp alt. that are the problem but maybe it's all of the extras people start to add on like dual fans, stereos,ect , that are still to much for their new alt. and making the battery drain, recharge which is making the ammeter over work?.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

Thanks for the info. So maybe it's not really the higher amp alt. that are the problem but maybe it's all of the extras people start to add on like dual fans, stereos,ect , that are still to much for their new alt. and making the battery drain, recharge which is making the ammeter over work?.

Yes, you got it, more less. Add to your post:

Extra accesories added to the wrong place of the system... batt post. NOTHING must be sourced from batt side when you have an ammeter in line. And before upgrade a batt you NEED to upgrade the alternator, and feed everything from there, not from batt.

If you add accesories on batt post the ammeter, still with a high ouput alt the ammeter will read that as a Charge process when actually is sourcing those accesories. No need for that. With an alt able to source everything and a wiring according to that, the ammeter should show zero reading and still will be able to handle that because it will care JUST the load what runs in/out to/from the batt... while engine is running of course. If engine is off the batt will be the only power source and the ammeter will sense that.

 

[Slap Stick]

Look at it this way. If you have a 100 amp alternator it doesn't produce 100 amps all the time. It only produces current according to demand.
If there is increased resistance which caused an increased voltage drop the alternator reaponds by producing more current. If the alternator is undersized to begin with it can't keep up with demand and runs at 100% all the time.
Remember resistance equals heat. The more resistance the higher current draw. With the higher output alternater you have a higher current, more heat and something melts. It's not the alternater causing the problem. Its the added resistance such as a poor connection which causes the problem.

 

[HALIFAXHOPS]

That is true you need a HD VR to handle that load.

 

[threewood]

Ok, thanks for the info, never heard it explained this way. Amp meters have been blamed for a lot of fires since higher amp alternator have become more popular, whats could be the cause of this ?, or let me put it this way, what would cause a amp meter to start a fire.

The only way I can think of one failing is if the non conductive material under the connections fail (gets crushed, disintegrated, etc.) It just doesn't fail as it is a solid strap of metal.

 

[4mulas]

Change it to a tin can filter and it'll look just fine! (Filters never get rid of the air lock)...

Hahahaha. Truth

 

[Nacho-RT74]

That is true you need a HD VR to handle that load.

Althought I understand a better regulator will handle everything better, while the load demand of the car remains the same or barelly changing with some accesories added the higher load capacity alt will supply is in fact less load on average conditions because battery won't claim recharge, so if you ask me, in my opinion stock regulator will have less job with a higher output alt!...

The deal here is keep the alt sourcing at lower speed, what stock is not able to keep. So if the car requires 30-35 amps to work, the higher load alt will feed that at ANY speed. For a while a stock alt keeps jumping out from 20-25 amps at low speed ( ammeter reading 10-15 amps discharge ) up to 50-60 amps at high speed ( 20-25 amps back to the batt, what ammeter reads as charge ). So the stock regulator is having more job with stock alt. AND ALL THE 60 AMPS going through the black wire at bulkhead conector.... hence why burns, when packard terminals barrelly are able to handle 30-35 amps for just some time and maybe 40 amps peaks.

So even the packard terminals will have better life with a higher output alt... as far car loads remains stock or close to stock

just my two cents! not being an "expert" here but based on my observations.