Voltmeter Indication Looks Squirrelly
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Road Master
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 832
Likes: 6
From: Vermont
Voltmeter Indication Looks Squirrelly
2007 FLHTC original battery and connections checked tight. Maintained on a battery tender when parked at home. No engine or trouble lights when running. When I got it out of storage in April, the battery tested at 12.95 volts and 443 CCA. Charging output at 2000 rpm was 38 vac.
When I first start it, the voltmeter indicates 16 v for the first 8 to ten miles and then eventually drops to around 14.5. I stopped for gas. It was reading 14.5 or so before I gassed but stayed around 16 after I started it back up and stayed there for the remaining ten miles home. At home I shut it down to check the oil level (and smell) and both were normal. Start it up to move it to its parking location and the volts came up and steadied out at around 14.5 v.
I don't recall the voltage fluctuating this much before. No idiot lights but I'm worried about frying the battery or worse.
My most recent previous experience is 18 years on an '89 EVO. On a good day, the volt meter would read as high as maybe 13.5 v. On a bad day it would fail downscale but would recover when I agitated it with a roadside rock!
Is my voltage regulator failing high or is it trying to charge a weak battery? (Bike turns over good and 443CCA sounds good to me.)
When I first start it, the voltmeter indicates 16 v for the first 8 to ten miles and then eventually drops to around 14.5. I stopped for gas. It was reading 14.5 or so before I gassed but stayed around 16 after I started it back up and stayed there for the remaining ten miles home. At home I shut it down to check the oil level (and smell) and both were normal. Start it up to move it to its parking location and the volts came up and steadied out at around 14.5 v.
I don't recall the voltage fluctuating this much before. No idiot lights but I'm worried about frying the battery or worse.
My most recent previous experience is 18 years on an '89 EVO. On a good day, the volt meter would read as high as maybe 13.5 v. On a bad day it would fail downscale but would recover when I agitated it with a roadside rock!
Is my voltage regulator failing high or is it trying to charge a weak battery? (Bike turns over good and 443CCA sounds good to me.)
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 6,478
Likes: 12
From: Nashville, TN
Pay no attention to the HD gauges. They are just decorative. My bike rarely sits for more than a day, and the voltage regulator is almost always at 16. Even after riding for several hundred miles.
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Road Master
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 832
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From: Vermont
Thanks for the replies.
It didn't look right and it seems it read between 14.5 and 15 in the past. I know the gas and temp gauges are "only decorative" but I thought the voltmeter was pretty accurate.
My experience with voltage regulators is they regulate fine until they suddenly fail downscale without warning.
It didn't look right and it seems it read between 14.5 and 15 in the past. I know the gas and temp gauges are "only decorative" but I thought the voltmeter was pretty accurate.
My experience with voltage regulators is they regulate fine until they suddenly fail downscale without warning.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 2,488
Likes: 30
From: Maryland near DC
I wouldn't worry about the numbers so much as the fact that it took 10 miles to charge back up after starting it each time....I would take the battery out to the battery store and have it checked out with a real battery tester...
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