A few odd questions

[Jeff-B]

First off, my truck is a '90 Eliminator shortbox, 4x4 5 speed, 4.0. The electrical system seems weak. The charge needle drops quite a bit for each thing turned on. It only gets to the red zone when trying to jump start another vehicle, but it gets close to it when using a turn signal and wipers at the same time. Or even the heater by itself. I've already replaced the serpentine belt, and adjust the tension every few weeks. A parts store tested the system and said it was fine. Would a higher amp alternator or better battery help? I'd really like to put in a decent sound system, but I don't think think it can handle it as is.

The oil pressure gauge pegs the needle as soon as I start it and it stays there all the time it's running, is that normal?

Is there an easy way to change the angle of the shifter? When I plug in my phone charger, I can't use 1st or 3rd gear.

Or are these just things I have to deal with?

 

On the positive side, I carried about 1200 pounds of concrete mix in the bed the other day, and it didn't break a sweat!

[tjbliley]

When things go haywire they usually mean a bad groud somewhere. Check all the grounds. Engine and everything else you can find.

[ROADLESS]

Yea, check all of your grounds, especially the one between the block and firewall. Make sure your battery is good too (along with the cables) and clean the posts really well. If this doesn't help then the fun really begins :x !

[87manche]

I''d recommend that you bond the battery neg terminal to a solid part. I chose the inner fender. It really helped a lot. Now everything works better. I'd also say that you need to pull the grounding strap from the firewall, take some sandpaper to the surface it mounts to and clean the whole thing well. Then use some OX-Guard to keep it clean. Doing those things made my truck start faster and run better. Lights were brighter and the like.

The stock guage isn't too terribly accurate.

Turning on the heater in my truck instantly registers a 2 volt drop on the guage, but measuring the voltage at the battery it doesn't change. I suspect that the guage shares a circuit with a few things, and the wire is undersized, just like every other wire.

[Eagle]

The older voltmeters aren't very accurate. As noted, corrosion in the circuit gets in the way. My '88 Cherokee shows about 12.5 volts on the gauge, but a voltmeter on the battery shows about 13.9 volts. Before you start shelling out big bucks for an alternator you may not need, check the actual output at the battery.

[Jeff-B]

Thanks for the replies. I'll try cleaning up the ground tomorrow.