Battery Gauge goes into the red zone.

[Nesto1000 10+ year member]

Hey guys,

So this weekend I had a new system installed in my 03' Dodge Ram 1500. It was all fine and dandy till this morning. While I was driving to school jamming, I noticed that my Battery Gauge was on the red side or all the way to the H. It only does that when ever I raise the volume quite a bit, but if I don't raise it too high, it stays right in the middle. I've heard different opinions from diffrent people saying that I need a new amp, I need a new alternator, I need capacitor and some other thing that limits the power output i think... and I don't know what to do...

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[UnderFire 10+ year member]

The first thing you should do is put a good battery under the hood, if you already have a good one, do the Big 3, and then the alternator would be the next step.

 

[sacsking916 5,000+ posts]

Going to high?

 

[RAM_Designs 5,000+ posts]

Check your grounds. What exactly does your new system consist of?

 

[Nesto1000 10+ year member]

Well I have a duralast battery under the hood... idk if that's enough info, and doing the big 3 is worth a shot, it's not too expensive to do so I'll give it a try.

And yea... I think that that's what the "H" stands for in the battery gauge in the dash.

My "new" system consists of an old 1000w Sony Xplod SON9-XM1652Z amp... I'm pretty sure that it's not that good of an amp, but I'm I didn't have enough money for a new one at the time, and two 12" Kenwood KFCW3013PS. Again, I'm on a low budget.

I would post some links, but since I am new I am apparently not allowed to...

 

[99CherokeeSport 10+ year member]

yea sounds like you need a new alternator, had a similar issue with my jeep.was hauling *** down the highway when my bat. guage dropped to 9v and my check guages light came on.

 

[ColterDC 10+ year member]

I need capacitor

That's the last thing you need. Capacitor = band-aid and won't fix your problem.

Who installed this system for you? Sounds like they did something wrong. Your battery gauge should never jump up to the highest level of voltage (I'm assuming the "H" you referred to meaning +17 volts or so? Couldn't find a picture of your battery indicator and I'm not a Dodge guy).

By any chance did you get a new deck installed or did whoever installed the amp mess something up behind the deck that is effecting the gauge.

If your gauge is really jumping up and showing a higher voltage, then I'd guess it's one of a few things;

-The gauge is f-ed up.

- Whoever installed it messed with the wiring behind the dash and screwed up the gauge.

- Voltage regulator on alt is shot and needs to be replaced (probably internal regulator in Alt)

P.S. If your stock Alt and Battery are in good working order you should have no problems whatever running the amp/subs you listed along with all the other stock electrical devices. So don't listen to some tard who tells you to buy a new battery or Alt without first testing your old ones to make sure they're working correctly.

 

[Nesto1000 10+ year member]

I just remembered what one guy at a car audio shop told me... I need a capacitor AND a voltage regulator... but any ideas if that will help it out?

 

[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

Half the people at shops don't know what they are talking about. There is plenty of info on why a cap isn't good on this site that you can read up on. You shouldn't need a new regulator unless your stock alt wasn't charging correctly, at which I would consider just buying a new high output alt if that's starting to go bad anyways.

 

[Vossy 10+ year member]

No, don't need a new amp or cap.

If it stays low with your system off, it sounds like your alt is shot.

 

[i2ain2thunder 10+ year member]

You poor soul. Sell everything, give us a budget and what you want in a sound system. 2-3 months from now you will be 1000% happier.

 

[ColterDC 10+ year member]

If it stays low with your system off, it sounds like your alt is shot.

Unless I'm misunderstanding what he's saying, it sounds like he's having the opposite problem that 99% of the people report on this site. Which is his battery gauge reading a very high voltage level instead of the usual low voltage problems normally reported.

Which IMO means the gauge is jacked up since I really doubt his Alt is pumping out 17+ volts during times when he turns his stereo up.

As usual it's hard to diagnose a problem over the internet, especially when he doesn't give us much detail.

 

[ColterDC 10+ year member]

I just remembered what one guy at a car audio shop told me... I need a capacitor AND a voltage regulator... but any ideas if that will help it out?

Already answered that question.

1. A cap is worthless and unless you like to throw money down the drain, don't buy one. No matter what that tool at the stereo shop told you.

2. Are you referring to the voltage regulator in your alternator? If so it's possible, but since it's internal you would be better off buying a new alternator. But before you buy a new one, go to a good mechanic shop and have your current one tested.

 

[6thpinned]

The PCM is what controls the voltage regulation on these trucks. I'm thinkin he might have a frayed or nicked ground wire for the field coil on the alt. The vibration from the subs may be the cause of the alt going full field and pegging his VM. I have also seen internal shorts in the alt itself, however I doubt this is the problem, since it will go full field and keep the VM pegged... Very possible the PCM could be faulty in it's VR circuitry. I have seen it personally many times.

 

[Nesto1000 10+ year member]

So I went to get the alternator checked out at pepboys, and everything turned out fine...

Another guy there said that I needed another battery because the subs are pulling too much power or something... and he also suggested a capacitor...

I'm thinking about going to frys now and ask for their opinion as well...

Also I think that first I should buy some new door speakers because even if I wanted to go higher an not worry bout my battery, my door speakers start distorting... So should I create a new thread somewhere else to ask for some good cheap door speakers?