Plug in to alternator replacement/fix ?

[JIMJAM]

These problems still exist today. How long has Ford been making cars? I gave in down back in 2006 and bought a brand new 2006 GT with all the fixins as a impulse buy. Fun,fast and I liked its retro looks. Problem is every 3-5 days if I do not drive it the battery runs slap to zero. I have killed 2 batteries doing this. Its only got 10 thousand miles on it so you can see i rarely drive it.
Anyways went online and others with my same year and model,GT Premium have this issue. The forums were full of maybe this ,maybe that,alarm leak,stereo leak,basically anything electrical was suspect. So I emailed Ford and after a few weeks was surprised to see a email from Ford's head of the division that deals with electrical issues. THE guy who probably designed or at least had a large influence in its design. His response to my battery running down after sitting for only a few days?
"Drive the car more often."

And while you are here. Problems come in bunches. My trusty 20 yr old charger bought from when Sears had good stuff died. I need a good quality charger with a good trickle capability. No aerospace digital readouts and a dozen menus but just a good old fashion well made charger that I can leave hooked up to keep the batteries peaked.
Any suggestions?

[David T]

These problems still exist today. How long has Ford been making cars? I gave in down back in 2006 and bought a brand new 2006 GT with all the fixins as a impulse buy. Fun,fast and I liked its retro looks. Problem is every 3-5 days if I do not drive it the battery runs slap to zero. I have killed 2 batteries doing this. Its only got 10 thousand miles on it so you can see i rarely drive it.
Anyways went online and others with my same year and model,GT Premium have this issue. The forums were full of maybe this ,maybe that,alarm leak,stereo leak,basically anything electrical was suspect. So I emailed Ford and after a few weeks was surprised to see a email from Ford's head of the division that deals with electrical issues. THE guy who probably designed or at least had a large influence in its design. His response to my battery running down after sitting for only a few days?
"Drive the car more often."

And while you are here. Problems come in bunches. My trusty 20 yr old charger bought from when Sears had good stuff died. I need a good quality charger with a good trickle capability. No aerospace digital readouts and a dozen menus but just a good old fashion well made charger that I can leave hooked up to keep the batteries peaked.
Any suggestions?

This problem of standby drain has become a big issue on modern cars. With all of the computers running even when the car is "off", if the car is not used regularly the starting battery can be drained so much that the car won't start. My parents bought a Jaguar, drove it home and went on a 2 week trip. When they got home the car was so flat the dealer had to tow the car back, put a new battery in it and reprogram everything to get it to work again. You can't leave your new car in long-term parking at the airport and expect it to work when you get back. One of the better chargers is the Battery Tender but there are several on the market, many with just 1 or 2 LED's to tell you what it is doing. They are MUCH better than the older technology because they will adjust themselves, reducing the charging current as the battery gets fully charged. I do not recommend leaving them connected continuously. If there is ANY AC leakage it is disastrous. One day every 2 weeks is plenty to keep things charged enough. For a Delorean 1 day every month is enough. I recently bought a Porsche for my wife. The dealer offered to sell me a charger to use if we travel a lot. Guess what, all the cars in the showroom had a trickle charger on them! I wonder why!

[Bitsyncmaster]

The part in John's alternator plug is a 6.8 ohm resistor. Looks like a one watt resistor. I am guessing John puts that resistor into the plug to limit the current if someone connects the wire to 12 volts without a light bulb to limit current. My plug also had another pin on the end position but was not connected to anything. Looks like a red wire was crimped into that extra pin but was cut off.

I just cut off John's plug and installed the DMCH plug supplied with the new alternator. I will cover the back side of that new plug with RTV to keep water out of the connector.

[DeLorean937]

I'm having the same issue with my car as well. The securing clip that holds the harness/plug broke on my old connector so I went and purchased the GM connector that was mentioned earlier in this post. But I'm confused on which of the 4 wires to connect to the car. It seems the like the system is charging around 14.2v when idling, but no battery light comes on when turning the key to the second position then to on. I have the instrument cluster out and replaced the battery bulb with the correct replacement. Still no light. When I meter it out on the printed circuit, it meters between 10.1v-12v on both sides of the battery light socket. ?

[Ron]

When I meter it out on the printed circuit, it meters between 10.1v-12v on both sides of the battery light socket. ?

Sounds like you have the NY (Brown/Yellow) wire connected to the wrong place -- It goes on the alternator terminal marked "L". (Then one side of the bulb's socket will show ground). If there is no "L", it goes on the one marked "F"...all depends on the type of alternator.

[DeLorean937]

I have DAP D120 alternator. Tried switching between L and F on the plug and the result is the same, system charges no light. When I pull the lead out the car drop in voltage and wants to die.

Sounds like you have the NY (Brown/Yellow) wire connected to the wrong place -- It goes on the alternator terminal marked "L". (Then one side of the bulb's socket will show ground). If there is no "L", it goes on the one marked "F"...all depends on the type of alternator.

[Ron]

Can you still get to the Batt Light to measure the two socket connections??

You can test the light circuit by turning the key to "Run", unplugging the N/Y wire and grounding it. This should make the light come on. (Just in case- LED bulbs do not work here). But I don't suggest you try it yet since you say you have 12V on both sides of the bulb socket...something is wrong!

If you can still get to the socket, unplug the N/Y wire at the alternator, remove the bulb, turn the key to "Run" and see if you still have voltage on both sides. If so, note one side of the socket goes to the Oil, Fuel, Brake and lights, and, the Oil Gauge. This side should have power now. The other side should not have power. It should be connected to the N/Y wire only (via trace #7). It is somehow connected to a power source which needs to be removed.

Once you find and repair the short/miswire/??, replace the bulb and perform the other test above. If now OK, turn the key to "OFF", plug the N/Y wire back in and see if the light comes on with the key and goes out after starting the engine.

You might want to get another pigtail from John -- IIRC he has a resistor/diode to help protect the alternator/regulator.....

Be very careful working with the light socket -- The printed circuit is not very forgiving. You can burn a trace out in an instant!

Let us know.....