Alternator wiring questions.
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 4,282
Likes: 172
From: Lake Wylie, South Carolina
Alternator wiring questions.
In order to clearence for the alternator to tall VC's I had to grind the nipple down where the black wire screw into the back of the alternator. This looks like an ordinary ground wire. Can I move it anywhere on the case and have it ground ok? I can still hook it to the regular hole but it will be tight and I will have to remove the VC to disconnect and connect it when needed.
Also, I have 4 separat connections coming out of the cars alternator harness. One hooks into the slot on top of the alt, The red hooks to the stud on the back of the alt, the black hooks to the back of the casing as mentioned above. I also have a dark green wire that I don't see on my diagram. Is this an amp guage hook up or a 12v switched connection? If not what is it used for?
Also, I have 4 separat connections coming out of the cars alternator harness. One hooks into the slot on top of the alt, The red hooks to the stud on the back of the alt, the black hooks to the back of the casing as mentioned above. I also have a dark green wire that I don't see on my diagram. Is this an amp guage hook up or a 12v switched connection? If not what is it used for?
Team Owner
Joined: Jul 1999
Posts: 65,492
Likes: 230
From: Orange Park Florida
The ground is obvious, to the case anywhere, or to the engine...the heavy red wire to the output stud, should go to the horn relay/power dist point on the driver's inner fender liner....the MOST CLOCKWISE of the pair of terminals, flat layed inline plug for the INTERNAL electronic regulator...is to a wire that is allways hot, the other wire blk/grn/grn whatever (goes through a resistance OR a dash light saying 'alt/bat/gen...'...whatever....this wire will become alive when the key is ON but engine still, goes through that light....this is also important as it kicks the regulator ON, when engine is at idle...OH< edit...this were goes to the LEAST clockwise of the two reg terminals....when viewed from BACKSIDE of alternator.....
some folks don't use that 4th wire, and they suffer dead battery from too much creepy city traffic, with little to no freeway use,
same affect as if using a famous 'one wire' alternator....
GENE
some folks don't use that 4th wire, and they suffer dead battery from too much creepy city traffic, with little to no freeway use,
same affect as if using a famous 'one wire' alternator....
GENE
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 4,282
Likes: 172
From: Lake Wylie, South Carolina
Thanks Norval, Gene.
Where is this 4th Grn wire connected at though? It has a female connector on it but I have no empty male connectors on the alt. The internal reg connector has 2 wires running into it and snaps in the top of the alt, red goes to back stud and like you guys said the single black is just a common ground. That still leaves the Green wire. I want to hook it up if it is needed or use it for connecting my under hood amp guage. I just don't see an empty connector where it would\should go.
Thanks
Wade
Where is this 4th Grn wire connected at though? It has a female connector on it but I have no empty male connectors on the alt. The internal reg connector has 2 wires running into it and snaps in the top of the alt, red goes to back stud and like you guys said the single black is just a common ground. That still leaves the Green wire. I want to hook it up if it is needed or use it for connecting my under hood amp guage. I just don't see an empty connector where it would\should go.
Thanks
Wade
Advanced
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 54
Likes: 0
From: Middlefield CT
I have a wiring dilema. I thought my vette had an externally regulated alternator... Boy was I wrong needless to say during my new engine break-in I heard somethin hissing and began to smell something smoking, it was my new $150 optima battery. 
Guess what (everybody knows this and now I do too) my vette has an internally regulated alternator. Or in my case no regulator. Oh by the way this is how I came to the conclusion of buying a externally regulated alternator: I thought the horn relay looked like a regulator... It does a terriable job at regulating.
So this brings me to my question, the only shiny alternators at summit are the one wire type. How do I wire it? Someone please answer before I wire it up to the fiber optics or some even stupider.:o
Guess what (everybody knows this and now I do too) my vette has an internally regulated alternator. Or in my case no regulator. Oh by the way this is how I came to the conclusion of buying a externally regulated alternator: I thought the horn relay looked like a regulator... It does a terriable job at regulating.So this brings me to my question, the only shiny alternators at summit are the one wire type. How do I wire it? Someone please answer before I wire it up to the fiber optics or some even stupider.:o
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski