electrical probs

[STR8 2.8]

i have some electrical issues
the ammeter in my car always reads negative (discharging)
so i was poking around for the culprit

i found that ign is grounded unless the ke is in ign. is that right?
doesnt sound right to me
im not an electrician so maybe im off track, but could this be a short thats creating my problem?

[sideshow]

ign is always grounded when ign is off cause u get feedback thru all the lights solenoids this and that thru to ground

like a light globe when u check the power side u get a ground cause there is resistance thru the globe

i guess yr not an electrician hehehehe

only way to check a shirt is with an ammeter

put it between the pos terminal and pos wire and start unplugging shit

takes awhile but not hard

but if you dont know much then take it to a pro or you could fuk yr multimeter

[STR8 2.8]

that had actually just occured to me, i was checking on the batt side of the ign switch, so i guess there are somethings wired in on that side or whatever.
im still awaiting delivery of my ammeter, my multimeter only goes to 10 amps so i didnt want to use that as i wanted to check the alternator too.

p.s. i believe you actually wired this car

[sideshow]

once u connect the ammeter it will read say 2 to 10 amps with ign off if its goin flat

leave it connected then start unplugging stuff untill the ammeter drops to zero

make sure you dont have any alarms or the interior light on as this makes the ammeter not read zero

unplug the ecu loom from the body harness and if its still reading some amperage then the prob is in the body loom

[thechuckster]

as long as you dont try to run/start the engine or turn on the headlights - you can use a cheap 10A ammeter between the battery and everything else.

[bansheebuzz]

the ampmeter in the car might read discharge, but have you had any problems with battery going flat? The ampmeter in the dash could be out of wack.

I hate ampmeter in cars anyway, there a good source for voltage drop problems related to charging the battery, if it where my car, i would disconnect it and run a new wire for the alternator dirrectly to the battery with a fuse link.

[STR8 2.8]

well i wanted to check teh alternator under load too, as i said so i dont want to use my multimeter.

yeh i've looked at it and i cant for the life of me see how the gauge could be hooked up correctly, so its reading something, just not what it should be.
ive checked the voltage and the alternator seems fine, and i havnt had any flat battery problems so i guess its fine.
lol if my car dies in teh middle of nowhere i guess ill know it wasn't fine.

[sideshow]

ammeter gauges in cars suk ass

old ammeters tend to get very hot and burn out and sometimes start fires

these days a voltmeter gauge is much more friendly gauge