13V while driving?

[Nas Escobar]

Re: 13V while driving?

13 volts is normal in our cars, and in GM cars in general. When I had my old Grand Am, I had installed a voltmeter, and it would always read 13.6-13.9. IIRC, a car only gets the full 14 volts when it's being driven, not when it is at a standstill. The higher RPM's have something to do with it.

The moral of the story is that if the gauge is reading 13, it's probably around the 13.5-14 range. That's pretty normal unless you did the big 3 or have a souped up alt.

[darkflare999]

Re: 13V while driving?

13 volts is normal in our cars, and in GM cars in general. When I had my old Grand Am, I had installed a voltmeter, and it would always read 13.6-13.9. IIRC, a car only gets the full 14 volts when it's being driven, not when it is at a standstill. The higher RPM's have something to do with it.

The moral of the story is that if the gauge is reading 13, it's probably around the 13.5-14 range. That's pretty normal unless you did the big 3 or have a souped up alt.

yeaa i have a 220amp alt..the big 3.....2 optimas...and a 24 farad cap and its still the same :(

[Ibanezz]

Does your car run and run decently?

[Nas Escobar]

Re: 13V while driving?

yeaa i have a 220amp alt..the big 3.....2 optimas...and a 24 farad cap and its still the same :(

I did the big 3 on my Grand Am as well... How are the volts when you're driving it? As far as I know, you won't get all 14 volts when idling in park/stand still.

[darkflare999]

Re: 13V while driving?

I did the big 3 on my Grand Am as well... How are the volts when you're driving it? As far as I know, you won't get all 14 volts when idling in park/stand still.

not really, but i do realize sometimes when im speeding on the highway and in high rpms the gauge does go to normal. and then soon as slow down or stop it goes right back down in the orange

[nwilson44]

Re: 13V while driving?

its so aggravating!!

[thebeewantsboost]

Re: 13V while driving?

if that's the biggest problem you've got i'd say you're doing pretty good.

[Mogobs30th]

Re: 13V while driving?

Why would anyone want more voltage than what is required? All of the electronics in the car are made to run at 12v, which has a window of 8ish to around 16v in real time. Any higher than that and you're going to start screwing up stock electronics and electromechanical parts. If you're getting 11-14 volts off the system, its fine.