Another install (volt blaster), Pics...

[96SilverRam]

I had about 30 minutes tonight so I decided to install a small mod that has been in a box for almost 5 years (LOL). My understanding of the V-plus volt blaster, as you approach 70% throttle or > the volt blaster adds additional voltage to up the fuel-pump and other items that can benefit from a little kick in pants. After installing the item I took the car around the block and set the aeroforce gauge to monitor voltage and immediately I noticed the increase. When I depress the accelorator more than 50% the voltage would rise to 14.1 to 14.2. Never seen the car get above 13.8/9 ish, mind you the car has underdrive pulleys. It does seem like the car feels slightly more healthy in the upper rpms (5,000 to 6200 rpm), but this could just be me thinking it makes a difference. Either way, finally insalled one more part from the pile of stuff http://www.ws6zxr.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y194/96SilverRam/V-plusvoltbooster1.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y194/96SilverRam/V-plusvoltbooster3.jpg

[McCauleyWB]

I bought one of these used and haven't really had a chance to figure it all out. It did not come with any instructions other than what the previous owner passed along. Is it pretty easy to hook up?

[96SilverRam]

Yes, you should be able to walk yourself through the process. If you want instructions; I believe Casper Electronics has a .pdf file you can download. I think I downloaded the .pdf for my setup from summit.

[Fire67]

I've been having charging issues with my relocated battery and underdrive ATI balancer... So i've been lookin into this a good amount. Just need to confirm my issues are from the total amp draw I have rather than some 'other' issue.

My car doesn't seem to go over 13.8ish as well at idle. When I go out for a drive the voltage starts dropping at cruise speeds and gets worse the more throttle I give it.

[Z28pr0jekt]

I've been having charging issues with my relocated battery and underdrive ATI balancer... So i've been lookin into this a good amount. Just need to confirm my issues are from the total amp draw I have rather than some 'other' issue.

My car doesn't seem to go over 13.8ish as well at idle. When I go out for a drive the voltage starts dropping at cruise speeds and gets worse the more throttle I give it.

do you have 0 gauge wire for the relocation kit?

[chevy42083]

...or atleast 1. I have 1 and have had no problems. I hear 2 "works"... but not very well.

[96SilverRam]

Sounds like you have a couple things going on, 1. check all of your grounds in the charging system, 2. 1 gauge should work, but 0 gauge would be better, 3. alternator could be bad.

[Fire67]

Here's the details:
From battery to front distribution block = 0 gauge
From Altenator back to the kill switch = 4 gauge
From battery to ground = 0 gauge

If I leave the battery on a 2amp charge all night, the altenator seems to do 'ok' with charging for a few miles of driving.

Just out of curiosity, I put another optima battery in the trunk area with jumper cables joining it to the existing battery. If I charge that setup thoroughly, I can hold good voltage for almost twice as long.

The altenator is as new as the engine, and has a lifetime warranty. So if that's my issue, I'll gladly change it out. But my balancer is underdriven and the altenator is not overdriven.

Another good point I feel should be mentioned is that I had zero charging issues before the battery relocation. Though I did swap ignition systems and engine management since then. I didn't drive the thing much before swapping the ignition and management systems, but I dont recall having issues then.

I had a audiophile buddy of mine suggest that my charging wire is too small. He stated that with 150 amps (stock altenator output)I should have 2 gauge wire. So I'm thinking of testing this theory by bypassing the existing charge wire and jumping the feed from the altenator directly to the junction block. Just gotta get a terminal for my scrap piece of 0 gauge wire. Would that work to either rule out or identify my charge wire as the issue.

[Fire67]

Sounds like you have a couple things going on, 1. check all of your grounds in the charging system, 2. 1 gauge should work, but 0 gauge would be better, 3. alternator could be bad.

As far as charging system grounds go... There's the battery to chassis ground (zero gauge, to a welded stud) and that's it right. With the exception of the ground strap from the engine to the chassis, I cant think of any other?

[96SilverRam]

Well, it sounds like you have a large enough gauge for all your wiring including 4 gauge for the alternator (you can try a 2, 0 G), but I don't think that will make much difference. The second item that concerns me, Optima battery (I had nothing but bad luck) may be part of your issue. I ran 3 of these batteries before I gave up on the Optima (all 3 of the Optima's would eventually die). I'm betting you want to use an Optima because it's sealed, legally (NHRA) it can be in the car's trunk area, per say ? Maybe you should start with the something easier to diagnose, you said "alternator has a lifetime warranty" assuming this alternator comes from autozone, etc. why don't you just swap it out for a new one to see if the unit is bad. It takes like 5 minutes to remove an alternator from these cars :D You also stated a crank underdriven pulley, it might not be possible to run an underdrive crank with your current setup ? I would change out the alternator first and put a traditional battery in your setup ( just for testing purposes ) to see if your charging issues are solved by something as simple as a battery and alternator swap. I'm only suggeting the traditional battery as a test ( you don't want a regular battery inside the car for everyday use ) :cool: If you find that the battery solves some of your issues, there are other sealed battery that work much better than an optima ( IMO ).

PS: The volt blaster is not going to do anything for you until you figure out the charging issue, FYI. :(

[Fire67]

Your exactly right on the optima and it being sealed as the reason I'm running it.

The altenator takes a little longer to change on my car, mainly because I have it relocated down low with no other accessories. But that will be my next step, along with swapping the battery out of my DD for some testing.

If the battery is the culprit (I wouldn't doubt it, this things 3 years old), I would need to find another that is the same size. As I custom made my battery tray for the optima. It's really similar to the BMR one.

If the issue is just my altenator not being overdriven, does anyone know where to get just an overdrive pulley without having to buy an entire set?

[96SilverRam]

I do have a concern about why you think you need an underdrive pulley on a D1SC car, hopefully it has nothing to do with trying to get an extra 5hp from a crank UD pulley ? :cool: I would consider just removing the crank UD and putting a stock balancer or a ASP crank pulley on the car. Leave the charging items stock to eliminate a potential problem. I think your making plenty of power with the D1SC without soliciting help from a underdriven crank pulley. The only reason I can think of for you using a UD pulley is to get a certain ratio for impeller rpm on the blower ? :secret:

[Fire67]

No it's an ATI balancer. I honestly didn't realize the thing was a smaller diameter untill I had it. Right now, it only drives the altenator. And the blower has it's own 7.65" diameter 12 rib pulley on the crank. At this point I cannot go back to a stock balancer as I have already modified the spacer for the blower pulley to fit with the ATI balancer. And my hub requires a BBC seal in the timing cover due to it being larger diameter and dual keyed. The underdriven balancer never caused an issue before and I am certainly not using it for more power.

A 10% overdrive pulley on the altenator would get it spinning at stock levels.

[Fire67]

Checking everything I can tonight and tomorrow. I'll get this figured out soon. Got a new battery to try, and some wire to experiment with. Also going to trade the altenator out in the morning.

I'm also adding up all the amp draw from all my electronic items to make sure everything's not trying to draw more than the altenator can produce. This was a suggestion from a buddy who runs no altenator in his race truck.

[96SilverRam]

Cool, let us know the results :D

[Fire67]

96SilverRam, I started a new thread : http://ltxtech.com/forums/showthread.php?p=21384#post21384