2002 PT Cruiser Limited. 43K original miles. This is an airporter that for the past 12 years has lived in a parking lot away from home and is driven infrequently. I keep the battery disconnected when it's parked.
The charging system light came on while idling on two consecutive drives (weeks apart). The next time I drove the car, I brought a DMM and I also installed a USB adapter with a voltage indicator in the cabin 12V accessory port.
The system is charging 13.5V-14V while the RPM is off-idle. While at idle, the voltage is in the low 12's, especially with the AC and/or headlights on. Charging voltage increases as soon as RPM is increased.
For two consecutive drives after I began monitoring the charging voltage on the USB adapter, the instrument panel charging light did not illuminate. However, on the next drive, while at cruising RPM, I noticed the USB suddenly indicated 12V. After a few seconds, the charging system light illuminated.
A few seconds later, the indicated charging voltage started to creep back toward 14V. But the charging system light remained illuminated for the remainder of the 15 minute drive.
I'm wondering if the regulator is the likely culprit? I believe the regulator is a function of the PCM in this vehicle?
The only other thing I can think of would be a bad ground or a chaffed wire but I would think either of those would result in a consistently low charging voltage.
The charging system light came on while idling on two consecutive drives (weeks apart). The next time I drove the car, I brought a DMM and I also installed a USB adapter with a voltage indicator in the cabin 12V accessory port.
The system is charging 13.5V-14V while the RPM is off-idle. While at idle, the voltage is in the low 12's, especially with the AC and/or headlights on. Charging voltage increases as soon as RPM is increased.
For two consecutive drives after I began monitoring the charging voltage on the USB adapter, the instrument panel charging light did not illuminate. However, on the next drive, while at cruising RPM, I noticed the USB suddenly indicated 12V. After a few seconds, the charging system light illuminated.
A few seconds later, the indicated charging voltage started to creep back toward 14V. But the charging system light remained illuminated for the remainder of the 15 minute drive.
I'm wondering if the regulator is the likely culprit? I believe the regulator is a function of the PCM in this vehicle?
The only other thing I can think of would be a bad ground or a chaffed wire but I would think either of those would result in a consistently low charging voltage.
