low voltage!!!

[audioarsonal 10+ year member]

i have a grand chereokee with stock alt. and I am only at 13.8 what do I need to get to at least 14.4? please help I have upgraded the big 3 but its still below what to do????

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[regal8r 5,000+ posts]

HO alt is only way to get the voltage up if youve done big 3 and everything

 

[donpisto 5,000+ posts]

You're still fine with 13.8. When the bass hits, you will get a voltage drop. If you want you can upgrade your battery under the hood if you haven't done so.

 

[spin dB 10+ year member]

I also have a Jeep Cherokee. I would suggest running a larger battery under the hood (Xstatic Batcap 2000 ) approx 2000 amps or so will help to stabalize voltage. I would make sure your used 1/0 awg or larger for the big 3. Increase the wire size to the amps, and add second battery. If you don't want to go with a HO alt this is all you can do.

As for a HO alt they can increase your voltage up to 21 volts in some cases though I don't recommend that. However the only real way this is done is if you have it built with a external voltage regulator that allows you to adjust the output voltage until you get 14.4 or even 15.5 volts across the amps, however that will mean in most cases you have to turn up the voltage at the alt to approx 16 volts which can cause electrical damage and fry your computer. Afterall your car's electrical system is designed on a 12 volt system and the alt puts out 14+ to charge the battery

 

[dvrmstrng 5,000+ posts]

thats funny that your brining up a Grand Cherokee having weird electrical issues...a few months ago my GC would idle at 14.4 no matter what....no it idles at 14.2 never higher, if this trend continues i dk what to do

 

[dvrmstrng 5,000+ posts]

thats funny that your brining up a Grand Cherokee having weird electrical issues...a few months ago my GC would idle at 14.4 no matter what....now it idles at 14.2 never higher, if this trend continues i dk what to do

 

[audioarsonal 10+ year member]

i ran 1/0 from my bat to ground, bat to block, bat to alt. what about the starter wire does that have to be upgraded?if i go with a ho alt whose a good company?how many amps is good for say a hk4000d?i'd llike to get as high as possible without frying my electrical and i heard 16 is the highest with out doing damage is this true? is the upgrade worth the cost db wise??

 

[spin dB 10+ year member]

I would suggest going with Ohio Generator for the company and I would not turn up the output voltage beyond 16 volts at the alt, this will translate to about a 15 - 15.5 volt amperage across the amplifiers. You don't need to upgrade the starter wire for the stereo but I would increase it for better starter power. Anything over 16 volts can cause damage to y0ur computer in the earlier models and I would not expect to have as much of a problem in vehicles newer than 2003 or 04, but you really need to do some research on your own to find out the computer. The alt upgrade will help tremendously in db and in stabalizing your voltage. The higher your alt is in amps the higher current you can draw from it and with a HK4000d you are looking at drawing 300+ amps of current and I would suggest going with a 200+ amp alt. 250 amp would be better. More current translates into more power, more power = higher db. This is not a 1:1 type statement but this is the normal. If you have 1/0 awg for both power and ground, on the front battery and 1/0 awg from the front battery to the back battery and both batteries are upgraded to a good high output deep cycle gell cell then you should be able to get away with a 200 amp alternator from Ohio Generator and have them build it with a adjustable voltage regulator. Wire the voltage regulator to a display or check it with a DMM, so that you don't exceed 16Vrms, this should both stablize your voltage dip and support your HK4000D with all the power you need to run your stereo at 3/4th volume for daily driving.