I got my car back and took it out for a drive this morning. All of a
sudden three check engine lights come on

1. GEN

2. Oil

3. Coolant?

and my tachometer reads 7,000k while I am idling.

Before I left this morning my battery was fresh and now
it was 92%..is it the alternator? and if so would it throw
these engine lights on?

I re-charged the battery took another 5 min drive with it
and the charge went back down. All three lights are still on and my
tach is still running 7k at idle and increases when I drive 10mph or
faster..

I have plenty of oil and it can't be coolant as my engine
never gets hot etc??

Help

 

If it is the alternator I found this site has them re-built for $50

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sh...azda/rx-7.html

 

unless it has been changed you have a generator system with external regulator. i would look for something disconnected since it just came from the shop, like generator plug. most guys have moved on to alternators and done away with the gen system so post up some engine bay pics

 

It is not a generator, it is an alternator ( a rather small 55 amp alt), however I agree with GB7 that it may be a loose or disconnected elctrical connection, the mechanic that installed your carb may have left a plug disconnected, look around the alternator for a loose plug . The regulator is on the left side of the engine compartment near the firewall so he should not have had to disconnect any wires in that area.

 

I had a friend drive behind me and now it's sitting at school. Going to have my teacher look at it tomorrow he used to be a Ford Master Tech.

I wonder if it has a short in it as when I put on the blinker it makes the tach fluctuate between 5 and 7k???

I tried looking for some lose cables but, haven't found any yet. Crap they have tape on about everything.

 

Man, I really feel for ya. From once bad scenario to another. when you get this car going full tilt i'd sell it for agood deal of money and start over with something else. This mechanic butchered your car

 

when the turn signal makes the tach jump, its because the tach is being a voltmeter, i forget why they do that, it might be not charging or the ignition might not be working right

 

Fear not, I had a similar problem once. I believe the root cause was the voltage regulator. Before it was over I had replaced the battery, alternator and voltage regulator. If all the electrical connections appear to be hooked up I'd first look at the alternator. You can remove the alternator simply by removing the ancor and pivot bolts and a couple electrical conections on the back (disconnect a battery cable first) and have an auto parts store test it for free.

If that checks out, 79's have an external (to the alternator) voltage regulator mounted on the drivers inner fender, in the corner. In the attached pic, it's the rectangluar, zinc plated unit at the top. It also has a condenser mounted with it.
Two screws and an electrical connection gets this out. (one note: under the regulator there will be a few wires comming out of the firewall's main harness that will be disconnected. This is normal, not every car uses every wire in the harness) Not sure if a regulator can be tested, I have a couple spares that I just try if I suspect a problem with one. They are still available at the local parts store too if need be. Make double sure your battery has a good charge too.

You need to realize that things on older cars can break at any time, especially electrical things that can go bad at any time with out any apparent cause.

 

But first, make sure the belt didn't break or fall off....





.

 

Banzai,

I think you figured it out. We checked all the electrical and all was secured.

Then we looked at the voltage meter. After opening it..it smelled absolutely
fried. I ordered a new one that will come in Wednesday, and were going to
put it on at school. At least I don't have to worry about getting ripped off or
labor times now..

I'll keep everyone updated on what happens.

 

the original ones are mechanical, and they are not as good as the new ones which are solid state. this applies when buying from mazda, when you buy from the aftermarket you will probably get a mechanical style one