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Old 09-05-2012, 04:43 PM   #20
Marco Tahtaras
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Default Re: Is There An Electrician In The House?

There is a common misconception that a "bad or loose connection" means total failure. That is NOT necessarily the case. It can lead it intermittent failure (temporary loss of continuity) during vibrations, etc. Additionally, a bad or loose connection can have perfect continuity but cause resistance and not be able to deliver the required load. The best way I can describe it is like having your garden hose wide open and delivering 10 gallons per minute. If someone steps on the hose and partially flattens it the delivery is dramatically reduced.

It's worth mentioning that excessive resistance also creates heat at and near the point of the cause. While I've never tried it, I suspect if you drove the car for awhile (daytime, lights off) with the generator showing a charge, you would probably have a warm ammeter or wires at the terminal box.

I'll be VERY surprised if it isn't one of the three places I suggested.
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