The Camaro Club (UK)

I have a 5.0 ltr camaro an i believe the batt gauge shud read around half way, prob is mine died the other night their got it jump started, tightened alt.belt as was loose an changed batt as think it was dud now its readn 3/4 of the way up around 16v maybe???? wen idlin an wen heaters r full wack its normal)(half way 13 v) IS IT SAFE 2 DRIVE???? an duz any one rekon its the alternator many thanks, amy xxx

Where abouts are you? I can always have a look if local. The gauge should read around 14v when running and only dip slightly with everything on.

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Amy,
If you suspect the alternator going awry and your unsure of the gauge, use a digital voltmeter at the
battery terminals.
with the car not running it should be at about 12 volts .
starting the car and idling with no accesories on should be 14.5 volts.(approx)
turn on :headlights,heater,rear defog,wipers and the reading should be above 13.5 volts
this simulates night driving in the rain with defrosters on.
15 volts or higher you are cooking the acid from your battery and slowly deteriorating
the batterys internal condition.
less than 13.0 volts with everything on and engine running is slow charging death voltage regulator
needs replacing.
hope this helps
Dave

Agreed, sounds like a voltage regulator problem to me too. I "think" they may be attached some how to the alternator but not sure if you can bolt off and bolt on a new one.

Well worth replacing though, don't leave it long because you'll find that when you fill up at a petrol station miles from home and your battery has drained, you might end up being towed home on a truck.

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1993 Chevrolet Camaro - Buck

voltage regulators are internally mounted inside the rear of the alternator housing.
one should consider changing the brushes at the same time as the regulator and brush holder are next to each other.these alternator failures usually occur with mileages in excess of 95,000 miles.
it also helps to know the year make and model we are dealing with!
hope all goes well !!!
dave

Guys ive jus seen all your replys, thank you very much, evry thing seems 2 b goin ok now, sumtimes runs a little high when its started but comes down, its a iroc-z 1986 i also have another wee prob, my service engine soon light came on a few times in the space of a few weeks then one night drivin home i thot it was knacked! no power at all and misfiring bad, ended up replacing all sparkplugs + it been runnin perfect for a week, jus ad er out a spin just now an the light came on again does this necessarily mean it has a fault in the computer command control system or cud it b a general service prob? x

my old 3rd gen used to put that engine light on now and again, ran sweet i guessed that it was faulty, if it runs ok dont worry.

amy,
check engine lights come on as a result of an active fault in the computer components or the computer itself.
some times an unusual set of rare circumstances are present and it will go on and off. when and how it comes on
can assist one in diagnosing the problem.
so lets get the basics out of the way!
does the light come on and stay on ?
does it flash ? Flashing on and off is code and one must study the flashing in order to read the code.
when the light goes on,look at the volt gauge, is the volts sufficent for running ? (minimum of 13.5 volts)
when the light is on, engine run for more than 15 minutes is temperature more than 180 degrees ?
is there sufficent oil pressure ?
if all these are good, I would start with disconnecting the battery and erasing the memory of any previous codes and
seeing if the light comes back on. (this will tell you that there is a fault in the system that is not inconjunction with previous occurances that logged a fault) try disconnecting the negative cable for 5 minutes reconnect and run to see if you get a light again.
hope this helps !
Dave

You have to put the car in service mode to read the codes, if you PM me i will telll you how its done, then you can read the codes in order of their appearence. It sounds like a maf sensor or fuel pump on its way out though. When it starts running bad does it smoke alot and smell like its running rich.

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I've got 2 Firebirds that both suffer from the Service light coming on. However, both run fine and because I've been told that it could be a faulty switch, ECU or other component I've not bothered to sort it yet.

However, on my 3rd gen I've been told that the exhaust oxygen sensor is faulty so I've bought a new one and will hopefully fit it myself tomorrow (if it doesn't snow again).

So, just to add another possiblility it could be your O2 sensor needs replacing. With a ring spanner (not a monkey wrench) and a bit of WD40 it's a 10 minute job I reckon.

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1993 Chevrolet Camaro - Buck