Voltage Regulator

[Ponder]

I got a replacement alternator adn external voltage regulator and installed them last weekend. The voltmeter in the car which had been reading about 11 for the old alternator now read about 14. Great. Went out and drove it and when the revs got above 3000-4000 teh voltmeter went up to more than 16. Not knowing exactly what the upper limit would be, I didn't think tooo much of it, but intended to ask around. The next morning, I was going to check with the book (or the 311s.org site) to see if I had the pinouts wrong. AS I picked up the connector first thing in the morning, I noticed the regulator housing was warm. Not I was worried. Disconnected the battery.

Had a VW years ago where I had to polarize the regulator before it was used. I called the vendor I bought it from and they said this regulator didn't require a polarization step. But, a reversed polarity sure sounds like what might be happening.

What else might this be? Or what else should I check? I'm probably going to put in the old regulator to narrow down the source of the problem. Any issues there?

Thanks.
Steve

[S Allen]

I do not have the answer for you but I did find a very informative write-up on charging systems. It may help to shed some light on your problem. Check it out:
http://www.pacificpowerbatteries.com/ab ... rfaq5.html

Good luck!

Steve