I have my Passport Radar Detector setup , so it can give me a readout of my voltage.

When im idling at a light and my subs are pounding, I go as low as 11.4 ...

If im on the highway and going over 70 mph, everyting is ok.... Is this normal ?

I have a couple of huge amps....a cap.....look at my homepage.....

Is this NORMAL ?

If not...got any advice ?

 

Im not sure what the output of the altenator at idle is, but i doubt its much more than 55 amps. If you subs are "pounding" those amps are putting big load on the charging system. I dont think you have anything to worry about unless you leave the car idling for extended periods of time. All other power equip ( heater / ac / headlights ) will also effect you output. 11.4 volts is not that bad if you have a lot of stuff running plus the amps. I would think you should see the voltage go to about 14.5 volts above 1k to 1.5k rpm.

 

What's up Kloogy, The reason why your voltage is going so low when your idling is because you are not suppling enough the power to the amps at idle. That would be normal for a person without a yellow top but since you have one you shouldn't be going that low especially since your not using that much power. By the looks of your wiring it looks like your using 4 guage I would recommend you go down to like 0 guage. I would check and see if the alternator is still in top shape, but your main reason for getting 11.4 in your voltage is not enough power fast enough.

 

i have the same radar detector how do i check my voltage??

-J

 

Is this NORMAL ?

yes and no. the no parts you wll power sag and you music will not sound as nice. and little wear and tear on the car.
yes part is even your at home will not provide constant 120V all the time it more like 114-119.when using hi amp or power stuff.
Also, is do you constantly stay at 11.4V or does it go back forth every few sec.

 

How accurate is the readout on your radar detector? I would compare the reading on it with a good digital multimeter. An alternator does not put out effectively at idle when there are high loads on the electrical system. Just make sure that the voltage increases as you raise your rpms. It seems like a supply and demand isssue from what you describe.

 

Yeah, with a big system having low voltage at idle is probably normal... but 11.4V is REALLY REALLY LOW
Verify with a digital multimeter... verify the battery voltage with engine off, the battery voltage with engine running (both at idle and at 2000 RPM or so), and the battery voltage with engine running and system on, at both idle and 2000 RPM

Battery voltage should never drop as low as 11.4V... that battery might be dieing, or might be HEAVILY drained and in need of a full recharge (drive your car for a while without the system on, or use an external 12V car battery charger)
From my experiences, roughly 12-12.5V is typical of a battery over 1 year old, and a BRAND new battery that has been well-maintained (never discharged too low) can sit as high as 13.5V.

 

I've actually heard some people say that the battery voltage will vary between 11.4-14V. I think that is normal. Don't quote me though.

 

Replace the power and ground to ZERO gauge as recommended already. That will bring some of the resistance down and allow a bit more current to your components. You still might run low at idle, especially with all your accessories running. Thats to be expected. As soon as you come off idle, you should be back up to around 14 volts. If thats what happens to you, your fine. Consider a better or a dule battery setup. Thats easy to configure. Run your ZERO gauge positive and negative from your car's battery to another battery in your trunk. Wire your subs back there off that battery. That will bring up your current available from your battery source so your voltage stays slightly higher. There's less strain on the alternator as well.

 

If your running big amps, it's normal!!

I've see that you've got a capacitor!

How many farad are he listed?? (0,5 or 1)

If 0,5 maybe upgrade to a 1 farad sould help!!

 

What he said

 

Anyone try swapping out the grounds(such as hyperground) and swap the hot lead coming off the alternator to a thicker gauge wire? I've got dimming even at highway speeds but I just purchased a 1 farad monster cap. Hoping that will help the problem but have been contemplating swapping wires.

 

this is off topic of this post, but my 2000 SE auto flickers at idle, the gauge cluster, headlights, dome light all flicker really fast simultaneously, hit the gas to accelerate and it goes away for the most part. Also at idle when this is happening at its worst I can feel a buzzing in the steering wheel, same as when I first put it in gear when it's cold out and car isn't warmed up, only that buzz goes away after few seconds. any ideas? could it be my batter or alternator starting to sh*t the bed? You can really see my headlights flickering against my garage wall at night when I pull in.

 

i had my alternator rebuilt for high voltage, so its putting out 14 volts at a 140 amps

 

Does it put out that voltage and amperage at all times? It would seem that you would eventually cook the electrolyte out of your battery if you constantly charge it at a high rate.

 

Well, I have a 1 farad cap. I dont get any dimming ,. When Im rolling, I can bump my subs to the max and I dip to about 12.4-9 at the lowest. At normal driving and with normal noise levels, Im over 13.... I just dont know why Im dipping to 11's at idle.... with a yellowtop. I was told 4 guage was enough for my setup......I will inquire again with Streetnoyz...

Thx for the input guys...

 

IT READS 14 WHEN IM NOT THUMPING MY 3 12'S BESIDES IF I FRY THE YELLOW TOP ILL JUST BUY ANOTHER ONE FOR 80 BUCKS

 

i have 2 big amps (around 2000 watts) (2) 1 farad caps and seperate 4 gauge and a yellow top... ill check mine tomorrow with my radar dect. and also my readouts on my caps...
plus i have a UDP!

 

i got the 8500 as well, when i turn mine up, at about 70/80% peak my detector reads 11.4 and stays there constantly... i'd say it's normal, but i know for a fact beefing up the elec system will give me (and parhaps you) more output... i got my amp bridged at 2.666 ohms so that makes a huge differance as well, pushin about 1500 rms...

 

kloogy-
checked mine today... with subs bangin hard.. at idle i dip as low as 11.5 but thats only like once every ten second..
while driving i stay in the upper 13s even 14s some...
but the 11.5 was the lowest mine went and that was rare for it to get that low...

 

i also think its something with the wiring...
when i was installing the guages on kloogy's car i left the keyds in the ignition but no music was playing, the amps were one.

The battery died within 30 minutes. THe amps werent pushing anything...
I dont know what the prob is, but something is sucking juice

 

does he have an alarm? or soemthing could be shorting, and just have an open source of power 24/7

 

For simple numbers let's round the voltage of to an avg of 12 v

then Q (coulombs) = C(farads) * V (voltage)

Q= 1F * 12v = 12 Coulomb = 12 Ampere Secs

Roughly this means your cap will provide a 12A buffer for 1 sec.

Hence if your amps are pulling north of 60A (approximating amp current rail), u have a reserve for

12/60 = 0.2 secs

Those huge dips you see is your amp exhausting the current capabilites. Time for another 1F cap in parallel and possibly a higher rated alternator.

It's possible your alternator is partially burn't. You can test this with a decent multimeter.

 

nice system what kinda headunit r u running and front stage ??