Alternator wire

[Hoodbj]

I have a wire unhooked on my alternator that is pink with a black stripe coming out of the two prong connector. The battery has been draining and I'm curious if this could be the culprit. I'm a Moran as far as reading electrical schematics. Is this wire suppose to be hooked to an "ignition on"? And if so can I hook it up to any wire that is powered when key is on?

 

[89Suburban]

Yes should have power only when key in IGN positon. You can use a test light to determine if that is the point of power loss. Disconnect the wire and put the test light between the wire and the connection on the alternator to see if it lights up with the key in OFF position.

 

[Hoodbj]

Thanks 89, the wire right now is just cut and not hooked to anything. I didn't know if this would affect charging or not.

 

[Hoodbj]

I found a cause of the battery draining. An aftermarket alarm system installed in the center dash speaker hole. Hopefully this stops the battery being dead. I replaced the battery too since the old one was no bueno no more. What does the pink and black wire on the alternator actually do? The alternator seems to charge and the volt meter registers, is it even necessary?

 

[NOPHO84K30]

Maybe exciter wire to create magnetic field

 

[chengny]

Maybe exciter wire to create magnetic field

Or sensing leg from battery to voltage regulator. Schematic below shows it straight from the diode set to the battery positive (unswitched):

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It should be connected.

 

[Hoodbj]

Maybe exciter wire to create magnetic field

Or sensing leg from battery to voltage regulator. Schematic below shows it straight from the diode set to the battery positive (unswitched):

You must be registered for see images attach

It should be connected.

So you're saying it should go to the positive post? I think the old alternator wire may have been looped to the stud on the rear which also went to the battery positive post so that would make sense. Should've taken a picture of it, it's been about 6 months ago. It doesn't seem to be affecting anything. The battery was up today after removing the aftermarket hidden alarm. My volt gauge registers the voltage. Thanks for the replies

 

[chengny]

It might take a while for you to notice a difference. If the battery is fully charged and you don't run headlights, wipers, heater blower, etc - it could be a day or so before the voltage begins to drop.

That wire doesn't necessarily have to go to the battery positive - it can tie in anywhere in the system that sees your battery voltage.

 

[bwilhite1]

I was doing a search and found this thread. I'm having a similar issue and posted about it here....

http://www.gmsquarebody.com/forum/showthread.php?p=271733#post271733

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[chengny]

Some thought on this over there.