Alternator wiring

[Blygy]

well I'm scrapping most of the stock wiring.. I'm installing an Autometer Volt meter instead of the stock ampmeter.. (the stock guages are all going going gone)

so now I need to know .. the Large red wire that comes into the cab needs to be mounted onto the battery connection of the starter relay????

I'm hoping this is correct..

Thanx

Blygy

[ttraut@unlockit]

Actually, I think for voltmeters, you need to connect the red wire to a switched hot wire (one that's hot when your car's running). The negative wire gets grounded and the voltmeter simply reads the volts running through the system.

This is different than the ammeter that you're not using anymore which stands in the middle of your primary electrical circuit and connects to the starter relay.

I'm not an expert in these things but just replaced my bad ammeter with a voltmeter .....

Terry

[dewme5]

if you disconnect the ammeter wires, your charging system wont' work. From experience, I prefer to get that wire out of the cab anyway, and run a larger guage wire from the alt straight to the battery. A volt meter only needs an electrical connection (12v, and ground) The ammeter measures the amps (load vs. supply) So, that wire will see very large currents.

I did a stupid thing a long time ago.. I pulled the ammeter wires off, connected them, and then covered the wires. well, after about 2 years, the covering wore out, and I had a direct short in my cab. No fuses or fuseable links went out. But I had bulbs blowing up in my face, guages exploding, wiring melting, and everything else happen all at once. (I should also mention that I was in the military, making a road trip out of a 3 day weekend, and to far from home to have a cheap tow bill!!) so, if you are losing the ammeter, lose that wire in the cab!

[bwlizard]

I agree with the other replies. I don't feel comfortable with the kind of power needed to run an ammeter inside the car. I know that they were wired this way from the factory but I don't like it with older wiring and aftermarket gauges.

[jelsr]

No, you need the large (8-10 ga) wire to go from the relay to the output term of the alt. It's the same as hooking it to the battery (working end of pos cable) but without the corrosion problems. The voltmeter does not require large wires, it carries no current, but should be wired 12V only when switch is on.