Everytime i start up the car it stays around 11-11.6, when it should be around 13 right? Well i started to notice that every time i keep starting it to go somewhere, it drops more. The lowest ive seen it go is 10.9, is my alternator slowly giving out? This isn't the stock one either, it's been replaced once about a year ago. Any ideas?

 

Assuming that you still have stock (non-underdrive) pulleys, the voltmeter should read about 13.5 V with the car idling. A reading of a little under 12 V is normal when the key is on and the car isn't running.

If you are seeing anything under 12 V when the car is running, it's highly likely that there's something wrong with your alternator.

 

A volt meter is a stupid guage.
If your battery is fully charged your volt meter will read low.
Say you run your battery down like playing the radio , then drive the car you should notice 14 volts approx.
If your not having any problems its proably just a guage disfunction.
ust guessing good luck.
Ps are you haveing a problem?

 

At 11 volts your red battery symbol light should be lit because your alternator is not charging! A car battery is considered discharged at 12.0 volts or lower! and should be charged up with a battery charger (NEVER the alternator). Engine idling, measure the voltage on the output terminal on the alternator, it should be the same as the voltage across the battery terminals (and you can compare your voltmeter reading to the dash voltmeter which may be out of calibration). If the alternator ouput is 13-14 volts and the battery is significantly (more than 0.5 volts) lower, then you may have a damaged or blown fusible link on the alternator output wire. If so, replace the fusible link. If the link is ok, then remove the alternator and have it tested at an auto parts store. AND, charge up your battery with a battery charger!

 

sounds like alt is dead and your running off the battery reserves

 

Mine reads the highest right after starting the car when it's cold. 14.1v or so. When it's all warmed up it drops to around 13.5 - 13.6v. If yours reads under 12v with the engine running then your altenator is toast or your guage is bad.

 

Sounds like a bad Alt. I would take the car to a NEARBY (in case the baterry dies) autoparts store such as AutoZone, Oreillys, etc. and have them do a "Charging System" test. They will test the alternator while car is running to determine if it is charging properly and ouputting the proper voltage and amperage. This test will also indicate if the battery is toast - sometimes a bad battery can kill an alt and vice versa.

 

I am having a similar problem with mine although it is intermittent. Sometimes it will work for a week or so, then all of a sudden it will start draining. I thought it was some radio wires shorting out as the guys who installed my new stereo did a shoddy job (took it back three times but that’s another story). I pulled the Bose radio relay and the radio fuse. The car drove fine for about 4 days. Then I had to drive home today, about a 180mi trip. About 10mi into it the red battery light came on. I pulled over and pulled all non-essential fuses, blower, A/C, ect.... The entire trip the battery gauge got lower and lower. I finally got home and put it on the charger. I think because I pulled the fuses there wasn't much draining on it so it lasted a while. Usually when the battery light comes on it will only run another 5 min or so and then sputter out.

I have been having this problem for a while and have already replaced the battery and the alternator. AutoZone tested the new alt in the car and said it was fine, but when I follow the procedure in my "Electrical Diagnostics service manual supplement" It tells me that the alt is bad.

I am starting to wonder if it is the fusible link because while the overall voltage is dropping over time, the voltage does go up when I rev the motor.

Thoughts?

 

8835',
can you get,
a DVM,
jumper cables,
another car - that's working,
for some tests?

Test 1, put batt from good car in 'vette, what happens?
test 2, with vette off, jump vette batt to a running
--- good car, what happens?
.
when you get this fixed, you should consider buying
a battery tender
.
FYI, when I start my vette, the voltage
instantly goes to 14..8 or so when the engine is running, it should never be below 13.8 volts when
the car is running.