Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

The ELD will do very strange, strange unpredictable things with the Voltage, with & without load. You are noticing it since you have ability to see the Voltages.

Though, none of my Hondas using ELD... have ever exhibited dimming of the headlights while coming to a stop. All previous Japanese models did (including Honda pre ELD.

Certainly do not miss that.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

When I had my VAFC-II hooked up, one meter I had displayed was battery voltage.

That said, depending on engine load, battery voltage would be anywhere between 11.7V and 14.3V.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

I thought that the ELD only dropped the voltage under very light load?

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

Not always, the PCM will control the alternator however it sees fit to do so, many factors can be involved.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

I am fine with it as long as it is normal. It just doesn't seem normal to me for the alternator to not be able to even keep the battery charged when the system is under load. 12 volts means that the battery is discharging. Also, the link pretty much verified what I knew about how the ELD works.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

If the alternator actually quit working, you'd be well below normal battery voltage with all the loads the car needs just to run....Might be near 10 volts or less while driving as the battery becomes drained---that would be discharging.

14+v is charging at full rate.
~12v is just maintaining, or low charging rate


Clicky this link and read it:
http://www.skidmore.edu/~pdwyer/e/fi...lights_eld.pdf

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

My battery is around 12.7 volts with the engine off, but sometimes below 12 with the engine running and the alternator under full load. Am I correct in assuming that the battery voltage should never be lower with the engine running than with the engine off? Thanks.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

The alt is not being commanded to full load. That's the low rate.
When you see 14+ that's full charge rate

No. My own car can dip into the high 11v range when the alt is in low charge mode.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

Shouldn't the alternator be in high output mode when it is under maximum load though?

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

Nope not always. The PCM decides when to run the alt at high rate or low rate.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

So it's normal for the voltage to drop to 12 volts or less when I load the system at idle, but increase if I rev the engine?

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

An alternator can't achieve max output at low RPM.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

So is low voltage at idle when under load normal? I can cause the voltage to go to 11.7 if it idles long enough.

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

I think it should be able to maintain with the load of headlights and defrost on high, but if you start pulling window switches it's gonna drop

What other excessive loads does your car have? The stock alternator is not overkill by any means.

Have your alternator tested?
Is it original? How many miles on it?
Belt tight?

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

I know that the alternator is only 70 amps, but it should be able to handle stock load, let alone LESS THAN stock load, since I have all LED lighting, the radio doesn't work and I don't have A/C for the moment. I don't believe that my car has any "excessive" loads, I think it's actually quite easy on the alternator. It doesn't have a fancy sound system, auxiliary lighting, or anything extra electrically. The LED lighting also has a positive effect on voltage since it draws next to no power. As I already said, the alternator is less than a year old, less than 15K miles on it. And the belt is in good condition and is tight, and it's also about a year old. Any other ideas?

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

are you trolling again?

it's normal. period.

was answered in the 2nd post already.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/a...panic-attacks/

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

Is YOUR alternator actually bad? What are todays test results?

Re: Is my battery voltage too low?
 

So it would do the same thing no matter how big the alternator is?

Re: How strong are our engines built?
 

FYI i lost a rod bearing last week pushing 11lbs of boost.
265,000 miles on a stock engine.
I'd say their built well!!!

Re: How strong are our engines built?
 

Like I've said before, but not necessarily in this thread, as long as you take care of it or mod it right (do your homework, kids), these engines can put up with a lot of crap. My past experience with it, I modded her fairly correctly but took the half assed route some of the times, but she still lasted me a good 15 years/205k miles. Could've gone longer if my dad didn't toss my original engine (could've swapped the block) or if I felt like putting more money into her. I took it as a sign to move on.

Re: Are cheap strut mounts OK?
 

Thanks for your help guys. I decided to just get KYB strut mounts and not worry about it.

Re: How strong are our engines built?
 

I'm well happy with mine.
Phase 3 of my build starts as soon as my parts come in.
shooting for the +325hp mark

Re: Should I let my car warm up?
 

I usually start my car wait a min or two to let all the fluids go through the lines etc then I take off and I don't mash the pedal be easy as the transmission fluid still needs to warm up. Other than that I remember years ago when I would see this guy start is 6mt TL and he would then take off like a bullet right after starting it man I know what he was doing def wasn't good for the car.

Beware of RockAuto!
 

I am posting to warn everyone about RockAuto. Here is why: I ordered struts that were listed as $38 each. I took a screenshot, of the price and order confirmation, because that price seemed really low to me. They ended up charging me $65 each. I figured OK, I'll just call them and they will take care of it. So I call their number, and I get an automated message saying that they don't have phone support anymore. I was pissed, but I figured I'd give them a chance anyway, so I emailed them. I told them about the pricing error, and I sent them the screenshot of the price on their website. They responded, and here is what they said:

"Here is a side-by-side comparison of what you sent me and what the actual order confirmation looks like. Clearly you attempted to falsify this document. RockAuto will do no further business with you, and if you try to dispute the charge, RockAuto will provide this document as evidence that you have already attempted to commit fraud.
Sincerely,
Joe
RockAuto Customer Service"

I am not going to upload the images of the order confirmations since they contain personal information, but they were identical besides for the price difference. I will be contacting my bank about this, since they are the ones committing fraud by falsely listing prices, and then refusing to correct them. Anyways, I am just posting to warn you about RockAuto. They used to be good to deal with, so I am not sure what happened to them, but I wouldn't suggest doing business with them.

Re: Beware of RockAuto!
 

Not sure what to say, hard to tell without seeing the screenshots. Maybe you could edit the personal info out of the pictures.

Rockauto normally sells per piece, and since the front struts are the same regardless of side, they sell them by the unit, so hard to tell...

Edit: wrong information here, see two posts below

Re: Beware of RockAuto!
 

http://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/h...ion,strut,7584

Gabriel, $17.09 for front right
Gabriel, $60.79 for front left

Meh, deal locally.
Dispute the charge with your credit card issuer?

Re: Beware of RockAuto!
 

woups, just realized i was thinking on rears, the fronts are different... scratch my post above...

Re: Beware of RockAuto!
 

Good idea editing out personal information. Here are the pictures:

Re: Beware of RockAuto!
 

Go above Joe's head and ask to speak the customer service director or manager. Is their customer service based in US or offshore (Philipines or elsewhere)? If so, you can ask to speak to a customer service center in USA if there's one available.

If I'm not satisfied I rarely stop with the first line of customer service. In example dealing with bank fees..it's a rarity that I don't get a bank fee waived because it's just a matter of speaking to someone that has the authority to do so.

Re: Beware of RockAuto!
 

I agree, escalate to another person. Don’t take a NO from someone who is not authorized to tell you YES!