voltage light

[Lawrence Leong <leongccl@domain.elided>]

Robert W. Murphy asks:

>Whenever I start my 90 SPider in the morning or afternoon (after sitting
>for several hours) the voltage light remains lit until I after I drive
>about 100 feet or so or until I rev the engine some.  Is this normal or
>is this indicative of a bad connection, bad ground or a short somewhere?
>The car never has a problem cranking and the battery is always strong.
>What could be causing this?

They all do that :-).  In simple terms, elow a certain rpm, the 
alternator output is insuficient to charge the battery and run the car.  
Once the revs run up, output goes up, a "latch" engages and the light 
goes out.  Alternator output is rev dependent (of course, above a 
certain output, the regulator "clamps" it).

Try revving the engine before moving off.  The light should go off.

Cheers
Lawrence
86 33 1.5 QV (for sale)
92 164 2.0 TS

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