VintageMopar wrote:
I always thought the "ground the green" wire to full field the alternator was a good system on the old 2 wire solid state mopar regulator. Easy enough to diagnose also..;)
That ford 4 wire regulator does temperature compensation too i think, one coil was temp, the other alternator regulation inside. Or was one powering fields, and other reg?
Maybe where you are Griff the temp thing might be an improvement over just voltage regulation 13.5-14.1 depending on battery resistance with the Mopar unit
I've only ever had one problem with a Mopar charging system. That was the older mechanical voltage regulator dying in my 1969/70 Explorer motorhome. Found a new OEM equivalent replacement for less than $20. Never had any charging problems in '66 Polara nor any of the other Dodge vehicles I've owned or worked on.
I had planned to convert to electronic regulator but OBE. (Simple plug-n-play swap.)
Yes, Dodge charging systems are simple and reliable. The common 65 amp alternator was just about bombproof. Brushes and bearings would eventually wear out (and could be replaced), especially if you spent a lot of time in an dusty environment. (Southcentral Alaska has a lot of glacial silt in the air, mostly from the many rivers.). The mechanical voltage regulators were durable and the electronic version lasts just about forever.
I used the alternator and mechanical voltage regulator out of a mid-60s A100 (mid-engine) van to make a 12VDC generator in 1996. Worked well enough for recharging the motorhome's deep-cycle house batteries. Biggest problem was the 3-1/2 hp horizontal shaft small engine I used was too small. If the batteries were significantly discharged, the alternator would stall the engine. (I used a toggle switch to manually 'nurse' it until the batteries were recharged enough to let the regulator take over.)
Note: Most older voltage regulators do NOT measure battery resistance. (GMC and Ford in addition to Mopar.) Instead, they sense system voltage level. Exact cut-in/out level varies. In general, they energize the alternator field when system voltage drops to some point below 12.5 volts. In turn, they de-energize the field when system voltage approaches 14 volts. (13.5-13.7 VDC is optimum for recharging lead acid batteries.)
The main drawback of older Dodge charging systems is they are essentially single-stage automatic battery chargers. For maximum battery life, it's a good idea to periodically use an IUoU (multi-stage) battery maintainer or charger.
An IUoU maintainer/charger is also useful for keeping the SLI (engine) battery warm and fully charged in subfreezing temperatures. Battery warming pads and blankets are worthless and sometimes damage the battery. A partially discharged battery is still partially discharged regardless of ambient and battery temperature. Subfreezing temperatures just make things worse.
Note: A well maintained older Dodge
will start at -40 degrees even without an engine heater. A Ford full-size Bronco and E150 Club Wagon wouldn't. (Been there, done that.)
Ambient temperature sensing is useful for fine tuning charging profile. If a Ford voltage regulator includes that capability, it's a point in favor of trying one with a Dodge alternator. I just need to do a bit more research and actually try it.
(One of my local Ford experts retired and left the state ... the other managed to get himself convicted and imprisoned.)
