Where do I begin this story? The XE 218/224 cam, Lloyd Elliot Heads P&P heads, 1.6 RRs & springs, CSI pump, vented opti, double roller chain & gears, Jet Hot LTs, heated 02 sensors and new PCMforless chip are finally all in and I fired it up today. For now all I have on the end of the long tubes is a short 90 turndown that goes from a 3"-2" pipe. I powder coated a whole bunch of parts including the alternator, this will come up later in the story.
http://www.cardomain.com/member_page...=344630&page=3
It turned over within a few seconds and all seemed good. We ran it for about 5 minutes @ 2K rpm then shut it down and allowed it to cool down. We then fired it up again and I noticed that the volts were really low so I shut it down. After I coated the alternator I took it to a shop to get a heavy duty regulator installed. When the guy tested it he said that there was a problem and then he put a ground wire on it and all was good. So, I thought that a ground wire would solve the voltage problem. I put a 10g ground wire on and the voltage came back up to normal. Then about 20 seconds later the ground wire started to melt. We shut the car off and figured that the 10g wire wasn't enough so I went and bought a braided ground strap. Hooked it up and w/in 20 seconds it also got VERY hot along w/ the alternator, AGAIN! I called the alternator guy and he said to bring it up to him so he could check it out. He looked at it and hooked it up to a machine and tested it. It worked fine and didn't even get warm after a few minutes. He said that the powder was insulating it and that it wasn't getting a good ground. I came home and ground off the metal to metal contacts and added two extra ground wires that connected at different spots on the alt. and car. Fire it up and the wires got warm but didn't melt. The alt. got warm at first so I took it for a spin in a parking lot next door for about 45 seconds. I shut it down and the alt. was very hot but the wires are good. The whole time I was driving the ABS INOP light was on and the Brake light was fluttering on and off. The car was smooth but it seemed to be bogged down and there was no real power, actually a lot less than before the mods. I can only assume that's due to no real back pressure. It drove the same way once when I had to disconnect the cat back and drive it for a few miles.
So, my first real question after all of that is - What would be causing the ABS and Brake lights to be acting like that? There are plenty of questions that I have but I'll start w/ that one.
THANKS FOR ANY INPUT!!! :bow

 

Well, the alternator grounding wires should NOT be getting hot. The alternator will be warm, that's normal. But melting the grounding wire definitely shows a problem.

Brake light flickering on and off could be because of low fluid in the resevoir.

Power shouldn't be down. Especially not with P&P heads and a cam.

 

The alternator works...when it's not in my car. I may have to grind some more or something to get a better ground.
Brake fluid is full and never touched during this mod install.
Power is down

 

did you pull an Atljar and install it 1 tooth off?

 

I hope not. I guess I better re-read that post more closely.

 

take the car to Sears or someplace that can test the alternator/battery/starter in the car, that will help. You shouldn't need any more than the stock grounding points if your not running a hotter alternator, something is definitely wrong and its probably causing the rest of your problems.

 

Is there anyway to test the alt in the car at home? I don't want to drive the car that far since the alt gets hot quickly. I may just be getting another alt. and try that but if I can test it in the car myself I'd like ot do it first.