[Diy_efi] CS Failure
Tom Visel
five10man
Tue Nov 29 16:55:43 UTC 2005
Wide vs. Narrow angle: look at your housings again, and try to judge by
the reflectors what would work best. It helps to turn on the lights,
press the brake, and remove all bulbs but the one for which you're
choosing, so you can get an idea what would serve you best in that hole.
Oh yeah, I forgot for a while - on some cars, the lamp outage indicator
will come on when using LED taillamps, due to their reduced current
consumption. Since they last forever, you can ignore it and just check
your lights once a year like a prole.
TomV
Daniel R. Nicoson wrote:
> Tom,
>
> I was just taking a look at the web site with the LED bulbs. What do
> you recommend for stop lights versus tail lights. 19 LED for stop, 12
> LED for tail? Wide angle or narrow angle?
>
> Looks like some choices, just wanted to hear what you've found to work
> best.
>
> Thanks,
>
>
> Dan Nicoson
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> *From:* diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org
> [mailto:diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org]*On Behalf Of *Daniel R. Nicoson
> *Sent:* Tuesday, November 29, 2005 10:34 AM
> *To:* diy_efi at diy-efi.org
> *Subject:* RE: [Diy_efi] CS Failure
>
> Tom,
>
> That's the best help I've had on this issue. The E-39 discussion
> group I listen in on doesn't have any solutions when I ask on this
> one.
>
> I'll take a look at those two solutions.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Dan Nicoson
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> *From:* diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org
> [mailto:diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org]*On Behalf Of *Tom Visel
> *Sent:* Monday, November 28, 2005 11:07 PM
> *To:* diy_efi at diy-efi.org
> *Subject:* Re: [Diy_efi] CS Failure
>
> Most likely you have a bad Lamp Control Module. It's located
> in the forward power distribution box under the hood, and it's
> about the size of a box of cigarettes, with a 32-pin
> connector. It controls current flow to all of the exterior
> lights that aren't headlamps, so if you're smoking bulbs, it's
> probably the culprit. If you have non-stock HID headlamps or
> high-wattage bulbs in your headlamps, it tends to kill this
> idiot box, which gets its power from the headlamp system.
>
> Bad news: The modules cost mega bucks, and there are many
> different part numbers to make JY hunting harder. Good news:
> You can install LED replacements for your taillamps, for less
> money than the module. The LED lamps will have a current
> limiting resistor in them so they won't accept extra current
> and die if the module is getting stupid. You have an
> electronic flasher (hope it never dies, it's spendy too!) so
> your bulb flash rate shouldn't vary; however, if it does, you
> can get a 6 ohm, 50W resistor and place it in parallel with
> the LED turn signal bulb and restore your previous flash
> rate. I buy LED lamps from
> http://www.superbrightleds.com/1157.htm Good service, good
> product, good selection, haven't had one die yet.
> .
> Hope this helps!
> TomV
>
>
> Daniel R. Nicoson wrote:
>
>> Tom,
>>
>> I have a 1998 BMW 540 that eats one or two rear taillights
>> each month. I've never seen anything like it in over 20
>> years of car ownership and 19 cars. The battery is in the
>> trunk, I assume all power goes forward to the engine before
>> coming back to the taillight assemblies.
>>
>> I did put my oscilloscope on the car once to see if there
>> were any weird spikes, didn't see anything.
>>
>> I've cleaned all the bulb sockets, cleaned the multipin
>> connectors, even tried conducting grease at the contact
>> points. Still loose one or two bulbs each month. Any ideas
>> here?
>>
>> I'd drive it into your shop and pay for a proper diagnosis if
>> you're anywhere close to western Pennsylvania!
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Dan Nicoson
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> *From:* diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org
>> [mailto:diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org]*On Behalf Of *Tom Visel
>> *Sent:* Monday, November 28, 2005 12:38 PM
>> *To:* diy_efi at diy-efi.org
>> *Subject:* Re: [Diy_efi] CS Failure
>>
>> I own a repair shop specializing in electrical and
>> driveability diagnosis and repair. If my shop had no
>> overhead, I could probably retire on the income I make
>> from alternators which other shops (or customers)
>> installed and had die on them due to high resistance in
>> the output circuit. Intermittent or poor lamp circuit
>> (L terminal) connections will cause intermittent
>> no-charge problems. Poor or no connection at the sense
>> (S terminal, the big one in the regulator connector) may
>> cause the alternator to undercharge, but rarely to
>> overcharge or burn out. What burns out CS-series (and
>> indeed, all) alternators is heat. Internal heat, cause
>> by overwork because the alt can't charge the battery
>> properly and/or can't monitor the battery's state of
>> charge. To diagnose your vehicle:
>>
>> With a fresh known good alternator and a fully charged
>> battery (12.66 V or better) installed, check the voltage
>> drop on the positive and negative sides of the charging
>> circuit. To do this, get the alternator under a good
>> load: engine running, lights on, heater blower and A/C
>> running, cooling fans going if you have them. If you
>> have an ammeter, clamp type or no, measure the current
>> flow through the system. Positive or negative side will
>> be the same, and be sure to include all of the wires at
>> the battery in your measurement if using a clamp-type
>> probe. Note the reading.
>>
>> While the engine is still running, using your DVOM,
>> measure the voltage between the alternator case (the case
>> thru-screws are good candidates) and the battery negative
>> terminals. Note the reading. Now measure the voltage
>> between the battery positive terminal and the alternator
>> output stud. Note the reading. If you got negative
>> readings, ignore the sign. It's the number that counts.
>>
>> Total your two voltage readings. This is the "voltage
>> drop" in the charging circuit. It is a reflection of the
>> resistance in the circuit - resistance which will put a
>> long-term strain on your alternator's diodes and overheat
>> and kill them. If you get a total of greater than 0.1
>> Volt per 10 Amps of alternator output, that is too much
>> voltage drop and the connections and/or wires and cables
>> will need to be improved. For a standard 105 amp CS130,
>> 10 gauge wire straight to the battery, with a 14 gauge
>> fusible link, is sufficient. For a "high output"
>> alternator, 8 gauge with a 12 gauge fusible link is
>> recommended. Also, you can't have too many grounds.
>> Besides keeping your alternator alive, quality grounds
>> (less than .050 volts drop) will help stave off computer
>> stupidity. You would be astonished at the number of
>> vehicles that leave my shop with a sub-$150 repair
>> (diagnosis, labor, parts, tax) when other shops told the
>> customer that s/he needed a new ECM or a stack of new
>> sensors.
>>
>> TomV
>>
>> Clayton Martiniuk wrote:
>>
>>> Hello, I have an 1994 Chevy 350 that Keeps eating
>>> alternators for some reason. They seem to work for about
>>> two days and then shit out. I have a cs series
>>> alternator powered with one exciter/indicator wire at
>>> the F terminal. Looking at the indicator bulb, I'll
>>> start the truck, the light will go off for a while but
>>> turn back on intermittently. I heard that these years of
>>> trucks seem to have a problem. Some say to ground the
>>> back of the case to the batt but I dont see how on mine.
>>> I am probably close to duty cycle but no major power
>>> drains. It gets very cold here around -20 to -50. I am
>>> running an electric fuel pump. I am running an red top
>>> optima with 800 cca. Does this Battery require special
>>> needs? Is the answer an larger amperage generator or am
>>> I doing something wrong?
>>> I am sick of buying alternators and no one can seem to
>>> figure out whats happening.
>>> Thank
>>> you for your time
>>> Clayton Martiniuk
>>>
>>>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>
>>>_______________________________________________
>>>Diy_efi mailing list
>>>Diy_efi at diy-efi.org
>>>http://lists.diy-efi.org/mailman/listinfo/diy_efi
>>>
>>>
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