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Battery Light On, Yet Alternator is Charging?

ill attempt this, i think my wiring is bootlegged. although bout a year ago it went to a shop and they said the injector wires were shorted out. im not too sure how to diagnose problems with the injectors though. my drive belt seems ok too.
 



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ohwell. accidently broke starter relay while bolting B+ back on. and also replaced my negative battery clamp. already charging much better at 13.84V. my voltage still drops a little at redlights and goes really low in reverse. should i be concerned?
 






All the battery is really for, is for starting, and regulating the volt to the rest of the vehicle while your driving. Thats why on some older vehicles you can run without a battery.
While it's true you can run a lot of vehicles from the alternator alone, it's not really advisable to do so for a long period of time.
Yes, the battery provides the power to start a vehicle, but it also performs another function a lot of people don't realize. The battery also provides a constant source of power since it is also a storage device of electricity. It works much the same on power as your vacuum reservoir canister does for your vacuum system.
So, while the vehicle is running and the battery is connected it provides a constant source of power irregardless of what switches on or off during driving.AND it relieves the alternator from these spikes that occur when accessories go on and off.
The BATTERY actually runs the vehicle when connected and the ALTERNATOR leisurely keeps adding juice to the battery when it's turning.
The alternator has to work much harder without the battery.
 






Just a quick followup to my original problem... the light has still not turned on once since the day I cleaned up the connections on the solenoid post that branches out to everything else. So my problem is solved as far as I'm concerned!
 






Just a quick followup to my original problem... the light has still not turned on once since the day I cleaned up the connections on the solenoid post that branches out to everything else. So my problem is solved as far as I'm concerned!
That's what it's all about...getting the problem solved. Thanks for letting us know the outcome. Solutions are just as important as advice...Ray S.
 






Also check to make 100% sure your belts are good. Thats what it sounds like to me, expecially since I fixed a truck today that had the same issues.

As to the battery alternator thing.. We're both correct. Before the days of computer crap, a vehicle could run with out a battery.. (85 f150). Most things run by power from the alternator, through the battery and is regulated and sent out from there. thats why where ever you check for straight voltage, you get 12 volts not the 13-15 volts normally associated with the alernator
 






battery light on an off

well today my truck started up fine but while i was on my way to wrk i notice rite way the battey light cam on now i made it too wrk but the werid thing was as im driving wheni trun the heat on the bttery gauge gose low battery then if u shut if off it gose to normal which is cuz the heater motor draws power but other times when i turn it on today it didnt drop in power now when im driver the guge gose up an other times it drops if im driing i relly think it can be the altornator any suggestion im driven a 94 ford explorer limted
 












this is an old post but i figured i would post what i found

go to this link, this is what was wrong with mine.. truck charged fine but battery light stayed on, come to find out the separate white with black wire is for the idiot light..


new connector and all is good
http://www.automotiveforums.com/t500784-discuss93_ranger_battery_light_question.html

Good info!

Yeah it's been 3 years now since I posted about this problem... I last posted that the problem disappeared but that only remained true for about a year, maybe year and a half. Since then it's been mostly on again, occasionally staying off some days or flashing back and forth at random as I'm driving.

Since I know everything is working as it should I've mostly been ignoring it, figuring I need to pick my battles when it comes to driving 20 year old truck with 200K+ miles on it, but I'll look in to that wire if I have some free time (and after the weather warms up) and see if I can solve the problem once and for all!
 






... Yes, the battery provides the power to start a vehicle, but it also performs another function a lot of people don't realize. The battery also provides a constant source of power since it is also a storage device of electricity....
... The BATTERY actually runs the vehicle when connected and the ALTERNATOR leisurely keeps adding juice to the battery when it's turning.
The alternator has to work much harder without the battery.
I know my comment is about an older post, but I don't think it is accurate.
I always thought the alternator supplies all the power to run the vehicle when it is working, except when the load exceeds its output. When the battery is "pushing" at 12.6v the current will flow out, but if the alternator is "pushing" back at 13.6v the current will flow into the battery to charge it. If the battery is moderately depleted the alternator voltage will be increased by the regulator, usually to around 14.6-14.8v. This allows for faster battery charging (more current). Alternators can output over 16v unregulated which can "cook" the battery (and LCD monitors).
At idle the system voltage may drop because the alternator is spinning slower and its output drops. On older cars with mechanical regulators the system may actually be running on the battery until the alternator RPM increases. Newer electronic regulators are more efficient and can get output from the alternator at lower RPMs.
 






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