95 gt charging problems

[Proffitt95gt]

was wondering if anybody would know what the problem could be. ive put 2 new alternators on it and changed batt cables. car will hardly charge, just enough to get it started again once i turn it off, sometimes. when it idles in gear, everything gets dim and cuts radio out. what could it be

 

[Proffitt95gt]

also, my mpg's have went down to about 8 mpg. was at 15-17 mpg. thought it maybe could of been o2 sensors but its not throwing a code. changed plugs and it has fairly new plug wires. cleaned maf sensor and air filter.

 

[quickstang_1994]

ck your wiring on that alt and see if its any good or burnt

 

[Proffitt95gt]

ive checked the alt wiring to man

 

[blackpony]

check to ensure the alternator case is ground very well. I had almost the exact same problem and found out that the bracket being powdercoated was blocking the case from getting a good ground to the cylinder head.

 

[toyman]

Check the battery to engine ground. If there isn't a an engine to chasis ground (braided strap or 2 ga. wire) you should install one as well.

 

[Proffitt95gt]

ok ill check tomorrow. thanks guy

 

[CC'S95GT]

Have you had the battery tested? How many volts is the alternator putting out. Should be around 14.8vdc. check it at the alt and the battery.

 

[Proffitt95gt]

ive had the alternator and battery tested twice. both read good

 

[ttocs]

as they said look on the bottom passenger side of the motor and see if the grounding strap has deteriorated or corroded. You can also just take a piece of wire and ground the motor temporarily and see if the voltage reading goes up. under drive pulleys are also hard on alts/batteries if you are running them...

 

[Proffitt95gt]

ok ill check

 

[Proffitt95gt]

ok, so i unplugged one of my o2 sensors and drove it down road and back and let it sit idling for a few minutes, never did throw a CEL. it should shouldnt it?

 

[toyman]

Maybe or maybe not. If the engine wasn't at operating temps the ECU would likely be in open loop and not looking for a signal. Also another reason to own a code reader ($25) as quite often the ECU will log events for which a CEL was not activated.

 

[Proffitt95gt]

i have the scanner, i plugged it up and it didnt read a code

 

[Proffitt95gt]

you can smell gas from it running rich also. i changed the plugs and cleaned air filter, cleaned maf sensor. thats why i was thinkin o2 sensors but its not throwing a code

 

[Saint]

might be your cluster....the green wire on the alternator goes there....if the volt meter in the cluster fouls up...you get no charge

under the power distribution box there is a connector where the green wire connects to the harness and into the dash...unplug it clean it and plug it back up

also check the voltage regulator that is on the back of the instrument cluster...it's a small circuit board...remove it and clean the contacts


good luck

 

[Proffitt95gt]

ok ill check that to. thanks bro

 

[toyman]

i have the scanner, i plugged it up and it didnt read a code

At the very least you should have a 111 pass code. Are you testing it from the port in the engine bay?

 

[Proffitt95gt]

no, im checkin it from under dash

 

[Venom351R]

Under the dash is the OBDII Port. It will hook up but it wont actually scan anything. You need to check it from the port in the engine bay that is behind the strut tower on the passenger side. It should be on the back side of the tower.

EDIT: I'm not sure if you can plug in an OBDI scanner into an OBDII Port but I do know there is an OBDII Port under the dash. Either way with the scanner plugged in it will not produce any codes. There is an OBDII Port on the 94/95's but you cant get any readings from it.