Posted by Sherman in Idaho [24.32.202.166] on Thursday, July 18, 2013 at 18:45:08 :
In Reply to: Changed the ballast resistor yet? posted by Chris Case [75.36.45.130] on Thursday, July 18, 2013 at 17:20:53 :
Not this year. Changed it a couple years ago. Caught it while it was acting up today and checked the voltages on all the terminals of the ballast resistor with a voltmeter while cranking, but since I didn't have a wiring diagram, it wasn't obvious what I was supposed to see. There were no "zeroes", though. The drivers say that sometimes it does that "bad ballast resistor" symptom of cranking without firing, and then firing the moment they let off the starter. It hasn't done that when I've been able to check it though. It also seems to be running rich, or at least the exhaust smells of gas even though the choke is wide open. Most of the trouble seems to be when it's hot. It's possible the ballast resistor is intermittent or something. Another problem is the battery isn't charging as much as it should. There's some very long wire between the 1-wire alternator and the battery, via the ammeter on the dash that nobody looks at, and I'm tempted to just bypass it all. I have 14.2 volts at the alternator and maybe 12.5 at best at the battery. They drive with the lights on.
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