Alternator Voltage

[lufkin]

Hi I was reading in my manual about my alternator and came across this

Earth Polarity Negative
Nominal Voltage 12 V
Nominal Output 100 Amps
Stator Phases 3
Stator Winding Connections Star
Number Of Rotor Poles 12
Resistance of Rotor Winding ohms @ 20°C 2.47 - 2.73 W
Resistance of Stator Winding ohms @ 20°C 0.058 - 0.063 W
Voltage Regulator Setting 14.2 - 14.6 V
Brush Length (measured in brush holder) 12 mm (new), 3.8 mm (min)


so I thought I would go out to my car and pressed mode + up and started to see what the voltage says, well with no lights or anything on its sitting on 13.6v just curious is that a little lower then normal, considering my stereo says it runs at max power at 14 and stuff, is there anyway to up it?

[edals]

I was going to Say 13.5 is pretty normal so if your getting 13.6 sounds fine to me, I believe you can get a alternator that that was built for the cop cars to allow them to run all there police equipment that can give me more current to run more.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Commodore-VT-...ht_1307wt_1139

[BlackVXGTS]

I think that claiming a maximum rating at 14 volts when they know that car electrical systems won't achieve that level is just a manufacturer wank. A more powerful alternator will give you more capacity (amps) but you will still have the same voltage.

[lufkin]

well i just cleaned up the terminals on the alternator today and battery, also added a thicker earth cable and getting a steady 14.1volts now

[wrx884]

u might find if u do a reading straight from the battery or back of the alternator u'll get a more accurate reading also. mine sits on 14.4V with no accessories on which is wat it should b on.

[Trayner]

well i just cleaned up the terminals on the alternator today and battery, also added a thicker earth cable and getting a steady 14.1volts now

where did you run the earth cable from?

[lufkin]

where did you run the earth cable from?

just used some 0 guage cable i had laying around on the battery, noticed the stock earth cable was a little thin