My 1965 ford pickup stopped starting so I had a new battery installed and the Gen light now come on. I asked to have that checked and they say it’s over Charging. I want to fix the problem but don’t know where to start. The Generator is working or it wouldn’t be over charging they said it was putting out 16 volts of charge.
It could be the voltage regulator.
+1 to texases’ comment.
My prime suspect would be the voltage regulator, which–in 1965–was still separate from the alternator, IIRC.
+2 for texases. You need a new voltage regulator.
Comments above are spot on. fyi, the voltage regulator is what determines the generator’s output (charging) voltage. A generator works similar to an alternator, by the principle of spinning a coil of wires through a magnetic field. That sort of confuses the electrons in the wire comprising the coil, and instead of all the electrons being equally distributed along the wire, after spinning through the magnetic field, they all head towards one end of the wire, producing a voltage in the wire. It’s a good thing that works, otherwise we’d have to charge up our car batteries with a battery charger at home every day.
The generator’s output voltage is affected by the vehicle’s electrical system load, by the engine rpm, and the amount of amperage (current) in the generator’s coils (wires). The VR is the gadget that determines how much current to send to the generator’s coils so the output voltage is correct, to compensate for the engine rpm and the system’s electrical load at the time. For example, if you turn on the headlights, the VR will automatically increase the current to the coils.
So as the posts above suggest, if the generator is putting out too much voltage, the VR is the most likely first suspect.
If that doesn’t work, the second most likely is the generator itself is on the fritz. A bad ground could cause this too.
The voltage regulator would look similar to this
http://www.cjponyparts.com/voltage-regulator-black-silver-correct-autolite-stamping-1965-1967/p/VR3/
and attached to the firewall or the fender well near the battery. The connector and mounting bracket at opposite corners distinguish Fords from other makes.When a warning light is used there are 4 pins and when an amp gauge is used there are only 3. After all these years yours could be any brand on the market and any of several colors. It’s always advisable to disconnect the battery (-) cable before disconnecting the regulator but replacing it is just as simple as it looks. Just lift up lightly on the plastic guard over the wiring connector and it will pull away from the unit.
Also note that the regulator should not be connected and the key turned on unless it is properly mounted to provide a ground.
On many of those older regulators, you could take off the cover and manually adjust the voltage. I don’t remember if a 65 Ford regulator is one of the adjustable types.
But given it’s 50 years old (if it’s original), then as others noted, just replace it.
Replace the voltage regulator and hope that the overcharging condition hasn’t burned out the diodes in you alternator. If I remember by 1965 Fords had alternators and not generators.
Keep driving like this much longer and you’ll be replacing all the bulbs that burn out from 16 volts.
I remember years ago, I was helping a colleague diagnose a car. There were all sorts of weird codes and warning lights illuminated. In fact, some of the control modules would not communicate with the scanner
I looked at the live data on the scanner, and saw about 16 or 17 volts . . . !
We decided to replace the voltage regulator, and that brought it back down to 14V at idle. And all the codes instantly became “history” codes, and the warning lights didn’t come on when we started it with the new regulator. Cleared those codes and they never did come back
It was “external” . . . I put that in parentheses because it was bolted onto the back of the alternator, but it was easily removed. The bonus was that the regulator was also the brush holder, so we killed 2 birds with 1 stone. The regulator was in stock, and not particularly expensive, so it was a relatively minor repair, in the end
1965 was the era when generators were replaced with alternators. While most cars had alternators in '65 a few still had generators. A basic Ford pickup - not sure. A generator puts out DC current and has a voltage regulator. An alternator puts out AC current and has a voltage regulator too - but a different type. Generators were fine but needed more maintenance, specifically new brushes every few years. Alternators don’t have this problem, but the AC current has to be converted to DC and the voltage regulator had that additional task in those early days.
The OP may just have used the word “generator” loosely - or may in fact have a generator in his old truck. A generator should be pulled, taken apart and cleaned and get new brushes. Then retest the charging output. Generator output at idle will be low, check it at 2,500 rpm. Then decide the fate of the regulator.
“The OP may just have used the word “generator” loosely”
Didn’t we go through this already? I thought it was determined an Alternator produces A/C; a dynamo produces D/C; a generator is anything that generates electricity–but in actual practice is reserved for D/C generation (much like how you don’t refer to squares as rectangles, even though they are).
We are beating a dead horse
