Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.1 This battery has a CCA of 550 A, cranking amperes (CA) of 680 A, and load test amperes of 270 A, as listed on the top label. Not all batteries have this much information.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.2 Corrosion on a battery cable could be an indication that the battery is either being overcharged or is sulfated, creating a lot of gassing of the electrolyte.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.3 A visual inspection on this battery showed that the electrolyte level was below the plates in all cells.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.4 Using a DMM to measure the open-circuit voltage of a battery.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.5a Voltmeter showing the battery voltage after the headlights were on (engine off) for 1 minute.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.5b Headlights were turned off and the battery voltage quickly recovered to indicate 12.6 volts.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.6 A Chrysler DRB III being used to check battery voltage on a Chrysler vehicle.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.7 A Bear Automotive starting and charging tester. This tester automatically loads the battery for 15 seconds to remove the surface charge, waits 30 seconds to allow the battery to recover, and then loads the battery again. The LCD indicates the status of the battery.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.8 A Sun Electric VAT-40 (voltage amp tester, model 40) connected to a battery for load testing. The technician turns the load knob until the ammeter registers an amperage reading equal to one-half the battery’s CCA rating. The load is maintained for 15 seconds, and the voltage of the battery should be higher than 9.6 volts at the end of the time period with the load still applied.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.9 This shows a typical battery load tester hookup.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.10 An electronic battery tester. This particular model can also check the charging and the cranking system by following the instructions displayed on the face of the tool.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.11 Jumper cable usage guide.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.12 This battery charger is charging the battery at a 10-A rate. This slow rate is easier on the battery than a fast charge, which may overheat the battery and cause warpage of the plates inside the battery.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.13 Cleaning a corroded battery terminal using a baking soda and water paste. For best results, the cable should be removed from the battery terminal before cleaning.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.14 This battery cable was found corroded underneath. The corrosion had eaten through the insulation yet was not noticeable without careful inspection. This cable should be replaced.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.15 All battery connections should be thoroughly inspected, especially the ground where they attach to the body of the vehicle. Be especially aware of any body work or previous repair that may have resulted in a poor connection between the body and the negative terminal of the battery.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.16a Memory saver. The part numbers represent components from Radio Shack ®.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.16b A schematic drawing of the same memory saver.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.17 Measuring battery electrical drain using a multimeter set to read DC amperes.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.18 This mini clamp-on DMM is being used to measure the amount of battery electrical drain that is present. In this case, a reading of 20 mA (displayed on the meter as A) is within the normal range of 20 to 30 mA. Be sure to clamp around all of the positive battery cable or all of the negative battery cable, whichever is easiest to clamp.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.19 After connecting the shutoff tool, start the engine and operate all accessories. Stop the engine and turn off everything. Connect the ammeter across the shutoff switch in parallel. Wait 20 minutes. This time allows all electronic circuits to “time out” or shut down. Open the switch—all current now will flow through the ammeter. A reading greater than specified, usually greater than 50 mA (0.05 A), indicates a problem that should be corrected.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.20 The battery was replaced in this Acura and the radio displayed “code” when the replacement battery was installed. Thankfully, the owner had the five-digit code required to unlock the radio.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.21 Here is a clever tool that can be easily built. It combines a memory saver and a battery electrical drain tester in one. By connecting the alligator clips, the lighter plug can be inserted into the lighter receptacle to keep the computer and radio memory alive. To measure battery electrical drain without having to disconnect electrical power, simply connect the alligator clip to the leads of a digital multimeter set on the ampere setting with the leads correctly inserted in the meter as shown. Disconnect the negative battery cable and read the battery electrical drain directly on the meter face. When testing is complete, simply reattach the battery cable and disconnect the lighter plug.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.22 A voltmeter can be used to measure amperes because the voltage drop across a 1-ohm resistor is the same as the current flowing through the resistor (E = I  R; E = 0.02 A  1 ohm  0.02 volt). In this case, 0.02 A is flowing through the 1-ohm resistor.According to Ohm’s law, this amount of current creates a voltage drop of 0.02 volt; therefore, this tool is sometimes called an amp-to-volt converter.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.23 A typical ignition switch showing all of the electrical terminals after the connector has been removed.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.24 Some column-mounted ignition switches act directly on the contact points, whereas others use a link from the lock cylinder to the ignition switch.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.25 A typical solenoid-operated starter.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.26 Carefully inspect all battery terminals for corrosion. This vehicle uses two positive battery cables connected at the battery using a long bolt. This is a common source of corrosion that can cause a starting (cranking) problem.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.27 A simple, low-cost handheld inductive ammeter can be used to measure starter amperage draw. While not necessarily accurate, it does give the service technician an indication of the amount of current flowing through either the positive or the negative cable while the engine is being cranked.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.28 When connecting a starter tester such as a Sun VAT-40 to the vehicle, make certain that the inductive probe is placed over all of the cables or wires from either the positive or the negative post of the cable. Remember, the same amount of current (amperes) has to return to the battery negative (–) terminal as left the positive (+) terminal of the battery.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.29 Low battery voltage as indicated here on a Fluke Scopemeter will cause the inaccurate starter motor testing results. For best results, the battery should be at least 75% charged (12.4 volts or higher).

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.30 Use a digital multimeter and an optional amp probe to measure starter current draw.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.31 A typical Ford solenoid on the left; a typical GM solenoid on the right.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.32 Voltmeter hookups for voltage-drop testing of a GM-type cranking circuit

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.33 Voltmeter hookups for voltage-drop testing of a Ford-type cranking circuit.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.34 Voltmeter hookups for voltage-drop testing of a Chrysler-type cranking circuit.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.35 Using the voltmeter leads from a starting and charging test unit to measure the voltage drop between the battery terminal (red lead) and the cable end (black lead).The engine must be cranked to cause current to flow through this connection.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.36 To measure voltage drop, the engine has to be cranking so that current flows—111 mV is equal to 0.111V. Vehicle manufacturers would allow between 200 and 400 mV voltage drop in the battery cables.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.37 Using the “touch hold” feature of the meter allows a service technician to test circuits without having to use an assistant to help. (Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.38 Starter diagnosis chart.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.39 A shim (or half shim) may be needed to provide the proper clearance between the flywheel teeth of the engine and the pinion teeth of the starter.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.40 Rotor assembly of a typical AC generator (alternator). Current through the slip rings causes the “fingers” of the rotor to become alternating north and south magnetic poles. As the rotor revolves, these magnetic lines of force induce a current in the stator windings.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.41 Magnetic lines of force cutting across a conductor induce a voltage and current in the conductor.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.42 Sine wave voltage curve created by one revolution of a winding that is rotating in a magnetic field.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.43 When three windings (A,B,and C) are present in a stator, the resulting current generation is represented by the three sine waves. The voltages are 120 degrees out of phase. The connection of the individual phases produces a three-phase alternating voltage.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.44 Wye-connected stator winding.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.45 Delta-connected stator winding.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.46 Cutaway view of a typical AC generator (alternator).

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.47 The digital multimeter should be set to read DC volts and the red lead connected to the battery positive (+) terminal and the black meter lead connected to the negative (–) battery terminal.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.48a A simple and easy-to-use tester can be made from a lighter plug and double banana plug that fits the “COM” and “V” terminals of most digital meters.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.48b By plugging the lighter plug into the lighter, the charging circuit voltage can be easily measured.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.49 AC ripple at the output terminal of the battery is more accurate than testing at the battery due to the resistance of the wiring between the generator and the battery.The reading shown on the meter is only 78mV (0.078 V), far below what the reading would be if a diode were defective. (Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.50 Generator ripple is a small amount of AC riding on the DC output. AC level above 500 mV indicates diode trouble. This illustration shows a normal waveform. To capture this waveform a low pass filter was used to reduce noise.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.51 To test for a possible defective diode, disconnect the generator output cable from the generator and test using the procedure shown.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.52 A mini clamp-on digital multimeter can be used to measure generator output. This meter was set on the 200-A DC scale. With the engine running and all lights and accessories on, the generator was able to produce almost exactly its specified rating of 105 A.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.53 Any digital multimeter can be turned into a highamperage measuring instrument by attaching an AC/DC current clamp adapter to the meter and reading the amperage on the DC millivolt scale.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.54 Voltmeter hookup to test the voltage drop of the charging circuit.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.55 A diagram showing the location of the charging system wiring of a typical vehicle. The best location to use to check for the generator (alternator) output is at the output wire from the B + (BAT) terminal. Notice that the generator supplies all electrical needs of the vehicle first, then charges the battery if needed.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.56 Typical hookup of a starting and charging tester.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.57 The amperage rating of most GM generators is stamped on the drive-end housing either facing the front (pulley side) or on top behind the small threaded mounting lug.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.58 The fusible link (or fuse) rating for the charging circuit should be greater than the generator output by 20%.Therefore, the maximum generator output should be 80% of the fuse rating or 64 A.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.59 When connecting an inductive ammeter probe, be certain that the pickup is over all wires.The probe will work equally well over either all positive or all negative cables, because all current leaving a battery must return.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.60 The inductive pickup displays the actual charging system amperage output on the digital meter face set to read millivolts (mV).The reading of “062.0 mV”on the display means the generator is charging 62 A.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.61 Normal generator scope pattern. This AC ripple is on top of a DC voltage line.The ripple should be less than 0.50 V high.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.62 Generator pattern indicating a shorted diode.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.63 Generator pattern indicating an open diode.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.64 Generator ripple displayed on a digital storage oscilloscope.(Courtesy of Fluke Corporation)

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.65 Warning sticker on a Honda hybrid vehicle warning of the dangers of high voltage.

Advanced Engine Performance Diagnosis, Fourth Edition James D. Halderman Copyright ©2009 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. Figure 7.66 The high-voltage switch on a Ford Escape hybrid vehicle.