Jules wrote:
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 21:40:30 +0000, Ron Lowe wrote:
Am I seeing a fault ( voltage regulator on the alternator ), or is this just
within normal tollerances with these vehicles?

Is it reasonable for the thing to run at 15.5v, and chew up headlamps?

I wonder if something's nuked itself and you're actually getting a level
out of the alternator/regulator that's fluctuating wildly; putting a
meter on it might be showing it as an almost-stable 15-odd volts, whilst
nasty spikes are quite happily killing various bits attached to your
vehicle...

I'm looking for some opinions before I need to argue with Mr. Land Rover
for a warranty claim.

The DC level you're getting definitely sounds too high - I'd expect
somewhere betwen 13V and 14V (probably toward the 14 end) for a vehicle
system.


14.4v is genreally regarded as maximum, but 13,5 or so is 'rated'

More MAY represent a poor joint in the charging circuit

Or an our of spec regulator.


It might be worth checking that the alternator has a good ground
connection - if that's bad due to dirt / corrosion / something working
loose then it could really mess your charging system up.

cheers

Jules