I have an 81 hatch. the volt meter has always read pretty high but then the battery light above it came on and it the meter moved with things were turned on. i got a new altenator and the meter reading came down to 13 or 14 but half my warning lights are on and the battery light is still on. i got a used voltage regulator from the scrap and this made no difference so i put mine back on. if i unplug the electric choke from the carb the lights go off but i get horrible gas milage. where does the electronic choke wire go to? the lights that are on are the brake fluid, parking brake, stop lamp. is there some central location these items meet and could this just be a short? I put the battery on a tester and it read fine.

p.s. waht is a stop lamp and why is there a warning light for it on the dash? thanks in advance for any help.

The warning lights are in the field circuit of the alternator. They are designed this way so they are tested when you turn the key from the Off position to the Run position.

 

I think the replacement alternator you got was defective so I recommend you try another one. There may have been a shorted blocking diode in it.

 

The Stop lamp is a warning for a bad brake light usually. This light along with the others should go out when another alternator is intalled.

I have warning lights on that don't belong. It happened after I replaced the alternator. Cougar was nice enough to suggest that it was probably a faulty alternator even tho it was new. I talked the guy at Schucks into swapping for another and it still does the same thing. Any other suggestions. I replaced the voltage regulator also.

To make sure the alternator isn't causing the trouble try disconnecting the wires that tie to the alternator and see if the trouble is there. If the lights are still on then the alternator isn't affecting them. Be careful if you do this, don't let any of the leads touch each other or anything else, especially the output lead. It is tied to the battery so it is hot.

 

I don't have a manual that goes back that far in time.

definatley not in the alternator. could it possibly be in the ignition switch?

More than likely it's a bad connection or broken wire in the charging circuit. I don't have anything here as far as wiring diagrams to go by, just a thought on it is all.

You stated that the lights go out when the electric choke is disconnected so that is the path the current is going through for some reason. There may be a blocking diode that has shorted causing this problem but a diagram is needed to see if that is really the case. I suggest you invest in a service manual to help you trace out the circuit.

You stated that the lights go out when the electric choke is disconnected so that is the path the current is going through for some reason. There may be a blocking diode that has shorted causing this problem but a diagram is needed to see if that is really the case. I suggest you invest in a service manual to help you trace out the circuit.

thank you my friend. i'm not much on electricity so most of it will be written in greek. would the diagram in a chiltons suffice?

You're very welcome. A Chiltons diagram should be fine. You could also check out Ebay and you may be able to find a factory manual for less than the price you would pay for a new manual. If you need help with the drawing let me know and if you can scan the info and get to me I would be glad to help you with it.

My brat had a similar problem that I just fixed. When my lights were on all the red warning lights on the dash would go on and off with about half the brightness of when they were supposed to come on. There didn't seem to be any reason for it, just kind of randomly flashing on and off. When I lifted my brat I didn't reattach the grounding wire from below the spare tire to the transmission. I just made a longer wire and reattached this ground and now the problem is gone. Hope this helps.

 

Daniel