06 Charging System

[SHaugen]

What makes my Check Gauges light come on and my alternator quit working when my batterys get low? I noticed if I've run the batterys down to a certain point, the truck will start fine but then the above will happen. After I put a charger on them everything goes back to normal. It seems like there is a load protection cicuit or something going on with this system, but how are you supposed to charge your batterys with the engine if the alternator doesn't work?



06 Diesel

 

[steved]

What makes my Check Gauges light come on and my alternator quit working when my batterys get low? I noticed if I've run the batterys down to a certain point, the truck will start fine but then the above will happen. After I put a charger on them everything goes back to normal. It seems like there is a load protection cicuit or something going on with this system, but how are you supposed to charge your batterys with the engine if the alternator doesn't work?



06 Diesel

It prevents you from burning the alternator up... a failsafe design... IIRC, it is incase a battery goes bad...



steved

 

[SHaugen]

Thanks man, I thought it would be something like that I'm just not used to there being enough amps to start the truck easily but not enough to use the alternator? Thanks for the response! Shawn

 

[steved]

I don't think it has anything to do with amps, the alternators in most newer cars are controlled by the computer so that if the voltage drops below a set point, the alternator doesn't fry itself trying to charge the battery... I think it is the computers way of protecting the charging system in case there is any problem...



steved