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What can kill a voltage regulator?



 
 
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  #1  
Old July 12th 08, 05:43 AM posted to rec.autos.makers.vw.aircooled
Ken H
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Posts: 13
Default What can kill a voltage regulator?

Ok, I got a '67 bug and my generator light came on. Both the generator
and regulator were new (the whole car was restored from the ground
up...just got it out the shop 3-months ago...and although both gen &
reg were built new (not rebuilt) by BOSCH, they were built in Mexico,
so...

Anyway, I checked the generator max voltage (ground the DF, disconnect
the D+ and measure the voltage from that to ground) and got .4V to .
8V, so it looks like the generator is gone. Funny thing is, ever since
I got the car out the shop, the reading on my voltmeter (VDO) has been
up and down -- pegging out at 16V on the highway, but dropping to 11V
at idle...down in the red. Just before it died it was down to 10V at
idle (minumum for this gauge is 8V). So I think the regulator burned
out the generator. I guess I should have paid more attention to it,
but I'm still getting use to the quarks of this bug (I had a '68 for
23-years, but that's another story).

So I ordered a new gen & reg, but I'm wondering if there is anything
that could have caused the regulator to malfunction? I'm thinking this
thing is like a fuse: it shouldn't just blow for no reason, right? But
then again, it is made in Mexico, and it uses solid state parts and
you can't crack this thing open and look for burns like the old ones.

Assuming the new stuff I get is good, should I worry about anything?
Something outside the generator-regulator system that could damage
either?

Ken H
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  #2  
Old July 12th 08, 12:30 PM posted to rec.autos.makers.vw.aircooled
One out of many Daves[_2_]
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Posts: 10
Default What can kill a voltage regulator?

I have tried one of those Bosch solid state volt regs with success on a '71
Bug. Well until a piece of metal fell on it shorting it out. lol I suggest
always having a back seat in place! ;-)
I prefer the one with contacts in it!
Sounds like yours was malfuctioning from the beginning! 16V is too high!
I usually polarize the generator and suggest you do that to your current one
before replacing it. It is a good way to see if it still works too!

JMHO
--
later,
(One out of many daves)

"Ken H" > wrote in message
...
> Ok, I got a '67 bug and my generator light came on. Both the generator
> and regulator were new (the whole car was restored from the ground
> up...just got it out the shop 3-months ago...and although both gen &
> reg were built new (not rebuilt) by BOSCH, they were built in Mexico,
> so...
>
> Anyway, I checked the generator max voltage (ground the DF, disconnect
> the D+ and measure the voltage from that to ground) and got .4V to .
> 8V, so it looks like the generator is gone. Funny thing is, ever since
> I got the car out the shop, the reading on my voltmeter (VDO) has been
> up and down -- pegging out at 16V on the highway, but dropping to 11V
> at idle...down in the red. Just before it died it was down to 10V at
> idle (minumum for this gauge is 8V). So I think the regulator burned
> out the generator. I guess I should have paid more attention to it,
> but I'm still getting use to the quarks of this bug (I had a '68 for
> 23-years, but that's another story).
>
> So I ordered a new gen & reg, but I'm wondering if there is anything
> that could have caused the regulator to malfunction? I'm thinking this
> thing is like a fuse: it shouldn't just blow for no reason, right? But
> then again, it is made in Mexico, and it uses solid state parts and
> you can't crack this thing open and look for burns like the old ones.
>
> Assuming the new stuff I get is good, should I worry about anything?
> Something outside the generator-regulator system that could damage
> either?
>
> Ken H



  #3  
Old July 13th 08, 02:31 AM posted to rec.autos.makers.vw.aircooled
Ken H
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 13
Default What can kill a voltage regulator?

On Jul 12, 4:30*am, "One out of many Daves" >
wrote:
> I have tried one of those Bosch solid state volt regs with success on a '71
> Bug. *Well until a piece of metal fell on it shorting it out. *lol I suggest
> always having a back seat in place! *;-)
> I prefer the one with contacts in it!
> Sounds *like *yours was malfuctioning from the beginning! *16V is too high!
> I usually polarize the generator and suggest you do that to your current one
> before replacing it. *It is a good way to see if it still works too!
>
> JMHO
> --
> later,
> (One out of many daves)
>



Yea, I didn't install the last one, but I'm sure they did it right. I
think you're correct, this thing was never working right from the
start. I have one of the old regulators. It looked like crap on the
outside but I openned it up and it was down right pristine. No burn
marks or broken wires. I think I'll carry it as a spare.

Ken H
  #4  
Old August 10th 08, 05:08 PM posted to rec.autos.makers.vw.aircooled
Jim Adney
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Posts: 12
Default What can kill a voltage regulator?

On Fri, 11 Jul 2008 21:43:42 -0700 (PDT) Ken H >
wrote:

>Ok, I got a '67 bug and my generator light came on. Both the generator
>and regulator were new (the whole car was restored from the ground
>up...just got it out the shop 3-months ago...and although both gen &
>reg were built new (not rebuilt) by BOSCH, they were built in Mexico,
>so...


The late style VRs have the whole upper body hot (either D+ or B+, I
don't remember) so you have to be careful that they can't short to
anything.

The full fielding test you did was a reasonable thing to do, assuming
you also removed the DF wire when you did the test. (If you didn't
remove that wire, then you probably fried the VR during the test.) If
it won't go above 14 V, then there's something wrong with the
generator.

You should also put the battery on a trickle charger for a few days
and verify that it's okay. It should slowly rise to above 13 V,
although this can take quite long if the trickle is small and the
battery is discharged.

The symptoms you started out with COULD also be due to a bad battery,
but it's clear that you have other bad parts by now.

-
-----------------------------------------------
Jim Adney
Madison, WI 53711 USA
-----------------------------------------------
 




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