Scirocco Register

Something weird has happened to my car.

The voltmeter is indicating that there are more volts in the system than there should be - ranging up to 16v!

But the lights were dimming as if a drop in current. Never had a disco car before!

Also suffering from a lack of power when this happens.

My other half has pin pointed it down to the regulator - he put the multimeter on the car & got the same reading as the voltmeter.

So looking for a regulator tomorrow, as really need the car for Monday. Breakers here we come as no-one local has these. VW say still available but £20.26 + old unit as exchange item! Can get on the net for @ £8!

May just say stuff it and get a new alternator - mine's a 55amp - no reason why I can't get a Bosch 65 or 90amp is there?

NOT AT ALL GET THE 90AMP THERE BETTER THATS WHAT I HAVE ON MINE PASSAT I THINK

Found a 90amp alternator at the scrappy today. Fitted but unsure if working correctly as unsure if charging battery correctly. Will keep an eye on it & overhaul the old 55amp alternator as a backup! Volts seem to be low - presume that I do not need a higher capacity battery? (Have checked battery, it's charging fine & holding volts - first thing we checked.)

Thanks Leep!

Update - 90amp alternator seems to be working ok today. Drove to work with voltmeter sitting nicely @ 13v. Slight dip when indicating which I would expect. Fil checked battery with the multimeter tonight - was @ 12.9v before switching engine on. If alternator wasn't working, then after 20 miles of driving, would have expected dip in the battery voltage.

Gotta do a night test drive before the nights close in..... (I like the light nights, hateful when the clocks go back, other than you get an extra hour in bed. )

Shouldn't you get 14.2 volts when the engine's running?

You should get a light loom upgrade either way - massive difference. £12 on ebay for normal dipped headlight loom only. It's just a relay and some wires with fitting instructions.

Junglist wrote:Shouldn't you get 14.2 volts when the engine's running?

i think it's generally accepter that somewhere between 13v and 14.5v is acceptable. less than 13 and your battery won't recharge, over 14.5 and you start risking toasting stuff

With everthing on you should get more than 13v. My 65 amp alt has worn bearings but a brand new regulator and with everthing on including 6 * 100w bulbs up front its pushing 13.04v - just enough. At idle its pushing 13.54v. Ideally it should be above 14v at idle. Just

My significant other half believes that the feed to the fusebox needs uprating, this is where the power loss is occurring. As he is an electronics engineer, I have faith in what he tells me. Plus the car's voltmeter has always read this, over the last 12 years, before the alti packed up.

Thanks for comments!