Constant undercharging of the battery or its absolute discharge at the most inopportune moment is a headache for many car owners. One source of these problems may be the generator. But how to check it? Perhaps it's not his fault at all? Let's figure out together how much the generator must produce for the normal functioning of all car systems and maintaining the battery in a charged state.
Important points
The voltage (U) and capacity of the car battery are the main parameters that need to be paid attention to when choosing and checking a power source.
The main purpose of the battery is to start the engine during the period when the car's generator has not yet been connected to work, and the battery is the only power source.
To eliminate operational problems, the car owner should know the following points:
- What does the battery life depend on?
- What should the voltage be (in normal mode, after starting the engine and under load);
- What causes the decrease in capacity during the cold season and other issues.
Let's consider these questions in detail.
Low voltage on-board network of VAZ 2114: causes and solutions
Every car breakdown is a very unpleasant situation for any driver. A malfunction such as low on-board voltage on a VAZ 2114 can be a serious test for a person who does not have specific knowledge in the field of electrical engineering. This article will help you understand all the causes of this defect and teach you how to fix the problem yourself.
What determines the shelf life of a battery?
Each manufacturer, after manufacturing a battery, sets a warranty period for its operation.
In addition to this parameter, there is an actual period that depends on many factors - timeliness of maintenance, compliance with operating rules, condition of electrical wiring and other points.
Due to the fact that battery maintenance conditions differ, the shelf life of the product also differs.
Car owners who use their car only in the warm season have the longest battery life. It's another matter when you need a car all year round, regardless of the outside temperature.
In such a situation, the battery life is reduced. This is also due to the fact that in the second case the driver can cover more kilometers.
The battery life is also affected by:
- Serviceability and correct operation of the generator and voltage regulator.
- Connecting additional equipment with a large rated current to the vehicle's electrical wiring.
- Operating mode. The batteries that last the least are those in taxis that travel a long distance throughout the year. In addition, such cars operate in frequent engine starting mode, which puts a load on the battery and generator. If the vehicle is actively used, the service life of the power source does not exceed 1.5 years.
Under normal operating conditions, when the car owner regularly checks the battery and carries out maintenance, the battery life is 4-5 years with a total mileage of 60-80 thousand kilometers during this period.
To avoid problems, it is advisable to periodically check the voltage of the generator and battery.
But the mentioned service life is not the highest, because with careful maintenance the battery can last up to eight years.
But you should know that sooner or later the battery will need to be replaced, because from the moment you start using it, the working plates gradually wear out. The more charge and discharge cycles a battery goes through, the faster it breaks down.
Practice shows that the key role is played by the generator, its serviceability and current voltage. That is why this aspect needs to be given key attention.
Reasons for failure
If the symptoms described below appear, carry out diagnostics. You can do it yourself or take the car to a car service. To determine the cause of the failure, special equipment is needed. If you decide to figure it out yourself, master a multimeter tester.
Five possible sources of difficulty are described below:
bearing wedge (lubricant is used up, sometimes the belt breaks - you will need to replace or rebuild the unit);
the winding has burned out (a common cause is the reagents used to treat winter roads);
brush wedge (cause - wear of graphite cores);
the regulator relay is faulty (this element prevents the battery from overcharging and stabilizes the voltage);
The diode bridge is broken.
What generator voltage is considered normal?
To check the generator voltage, you need to start the engine and turn off the entire load. In this case, the multimeter should show 14.3 -15.5 Volts (see video at the end of the article). A deviation of 0.1 Volt in one direction or the other is allowed.
After this, it is necessary to connect consumers one by one and check the generator voltage.
Ideally, it should “drop” by about 0.2 Volts when you turn on each new load. In this case, the total U should not fall below the level of 12.8 Volts. Otherwise, the battery will be discharged.
Low voltage on-board network of VAZ 2114: causes and solutions
Every car breakdown is a very unpleasant situation for any driver. A malfunction such as low on-board voltage on a VAZ 2114 can be a serious test for a person who does not have specific knowledge in the field of electrical engineering. This article will help you understand all the causes of this defect and teach you how to fix the problem yourself.
Minimum battery input voltage parameter
When checking the parameters of the generator, it is worth taking into account the characteristics of the battery itself.
Many car owners are interested in what the voltage at the battery output should be for normal engine starting.
There is no exact answer here, but the average parameter should be 12.6-12.7 V. Depending on operating conditions, this indicator can be adjusted.
Some manufacturers claim that their product has a voltage of 13-13.2 Volts. This parameter is real, but you should not measure the voltage immediately after recharging with a generator or charger.
It is advisable to wait 1-2 hours before carrying out work. In this case, U should drop to a level of 12.7-13 V.
If this parameter begins to “float” or drops below 12 V, this indicates a 50% battery discharge or a generator malfunction.
It is recommended to check the charging circuit or use an external charger.
If you continue to operate the battery in this condition, sulfation of the lead plates occurs, which reduces the performance of the battery and reduces its service life.
In practice, such a decrease in voltage is not critical, because the battery can still be started, and then the generator recharges to the required level.
The main thing is to make sure that the charging circuit is working properly and that the voltage at the battery terminals is increasing.
If U at the output drops below 11.6 V, we can talk about the complete discharge of the power source.
In this case, further use of the battery is impossible - it must be removed, checked for serviceability, and charged from an external device.
Taking into account the above, we can conclude that the voltage on the battery with a working generator should be (with the engine off) 12.6-13.2 V. In practice, this parameter is slightly lower and amounts to 12.3-12.5 V.
This voltage indicates a slight undercharging of the battery. There's nothing wrong with that. The main thing is not to allow U to decrease below 12 V.
Troubleshooting yourself
It’s wise to start car repairs by looking for the simplest faults, in our case mechanical damage. You should inspect the drive belt, adjust its tension, and rule out a malfunction of its brush mechanism. You can tighten the fastenings of the power wires. If this work does not bring results and the on-board network voltage on the VAZ 2114 is still low, then you can begin to disassemble the entire assembly and carry out a full diagnosis of it.
The stages of work, as in the first case, should preferably be carried out from simple to complex:
Generator voltage at idle
To check the functionality of the generator, you need to start the engine and measure the voltage at the battery terminals. Normal U is 13.5-14 V.
If this parameter increases above 14.2 V, we can conclude that the battery charge is decreasing and the generator is switching to an enhanced charging mode.
This situation occurs in rare cases when the battery is discharged due to prolonged standstill in the cold or a connected load.
Situations are possible when the car’s electronics do not allow the generator voltage to increase, based on the ambient temperature.
The increase in U level, which is supplied to the battery from the generator, is not critical. If the electrical equipment of the machine is working properly, after 5-10 minutes the charge voltage will drop to the required level of 13.5-14.0 Volts.
If U does not decrease, it is necessary to begin repairing the power circuit or generator. Otherwise, it will end with boiled-off electrolyte.
If, when the engine is running at XX, the generator produces a voltage of 13.0-13.4 V, this indicates problems with the battery (the latter does not take part of the charge).
In such a situation, it is worth checking the generator when all consumers are turned on - headlights, music, air conditioning and others. We'll talk about this below.
Troubleshooting yourself
It’s wise to start car repairs by looking for the simplest faults, in our case mechanical damage. You should inspect the drive belt, adjust its tension, and rule out a malfunction of its brush mechanism. You can tighten the fastenings of the power wires. If this work does not bring results and the on-board network voltage on the VAZ 2114 is still low, then you can begin to disassemble the entire assembly and carry out a full diagnosis of it.
The stages of work, as in the first case, should preferably be carried out from simple to complex:
Generator voltage under load
To ensure the functionality of the power supply, it is recommended to perform a load test.
To begin with, remember that there are three types of voltage:
- Nominal - indicated in the operating instructions. It is 12 Volts. This figure is far from the actual U value.
- Actual . Here we are talking about the voltage parameter after installing, connecting and starting to use the car battery. On average, this parameter is 12.6-13.2 V (this was mentioned above).
- Under load . Here the voltage parameter supplied by the generator can change.
The presence of a load allows you to verify the health of the battery and generator.
A seemingly serviceable battery with an output of 12 V can drop significantly after switching on the consumers. During the testing process, an additional device is used - a load fork, which allows for an increased load on the battery.
Let's give an example.
If your battery capacity is 60 mAh, the load value should be 120 A. The connection duration is 3-5 seconds.
We can say that the power supply is working properly if the voltage does not drop below 9 Volts. If the parameter drops to 5-6 V, this indicates a complete discharge of the battery. After testing under load, the voltage should return to 12.2-12.4 V.
If a strong drawdown is detected, it is necessary to check the battery, and then repeat the experiment with the plug again. If there is no drawdown, we can talk about the health of the battery.
To check the generator, you can do the following: start the car, turn on as many consumers as possible, and then take a measurement. The voltage should be 13.5-14 V.
If it is lower, this indicates a failure of the generator. The lower critical limit is 13.0 V.
If the voltage of the car's generator is very low, do not rush to draw conclusions - make sure that the contacts on the battery are not oxidized. If so, rub them with sandpaper.
#24. Fighting voltage sag...
A common problem on VAZ cars is low voltage and large drawdowns when consumers are turned on (especially in winter) - I decided to somehow deal with this... This article by user Max147 helped a lot. I did almost the same thing with some changes...
It was decided to change all the supply wires - on rubber ones and with a much more powerful cross-section (KG cable) and terminals (more for convenience) and make additional mass from the generator housing to the body.
It was necessary to replace the ground wires:
-Cable KG-16 - 20cm -PVC pipe 15mm - 20cm -Tip TML-16-8 - 1 piece
Weight per engine:
-Cable KG-25 - 85cm -PVC pipe 25mm - 85cm -TML tip 25-8 90 degrees - 1 piece
Additional weight from generator housing to body:
-Cable KG-25 - 30cm -PVC pipe - 30cm -TML 25-6 tip - 1pc -TML 25-8 tip - 1pc
To replace the + cable on the starter and alternator:
Power cable to starter:
-Cable KG-25 - 50cm -PVC pipe 25mm - 50cm -Tip 25-8 90 degrees - 1 piece
Power cable to generator:
-Cable KG-16 - 130cm -PVC pipe 15mm - 130cm -Tip TML 16-6 - 1 piece
Heat shrink, electrical tape - always in stock
I lifted the lid up and the terminal loosened, lowered it down and it tightened...
The following diagram is standard for all wires
Same with the rest of the wires...
On one side there is a terminal and on the other there are lugs for fastening... This “set” will replace the standard “snots”
On one side there is a tip with a 6mm hole, on the other - 8mm. They say installing such a wire helps to raise the voltage a little - we’ll see...
I did more to calm my soul - the benefit is probably minimal... But who knows...
Then we measure the voltage, replace the wires with new ones and measure the voltage again... I didn’t take a photo of the replacement - so everything is clear, we remove the old ones and install new ones...
The terminals snap in place very well and don’t come off even if you pull hard... I liked it...
Well, the results of the measurements: I didn’t even look at the tidy - it was lying... The readings were taken by a bluetooth scanner and the OpenDiag program Bortovik staff showing the same data...
On a warm engine - without load (everything is off) and with load (heater mode 3, low beam, PTF, heated seats, mirrors and rear window are on)
After replacing the wires and installing additional ground from the generator housing to the body:
On a warm engine - without load (everything is off) and with load (heater mode 3, low beam, PTF, heated seats, mirrors and rear window are on)
As you can see, there is a sense - the tension has increased, but I expected more...
I also purchased the much-praised and many-criticized Three-Level Voltage Regulator 67.3702-02 for 285 rubles.
I’ve read a lot of reviews and now I don’t know whether to install it or not... Some write that it’s an excellent thing, others write that it ruins the gene... I’d like to ask anyone who has had experience with it - is it a useful thing or not?
Ready to answer questions and welcome comments
