if i hooked up a wire to the back of the "ign" fuse and ran to an aftermarket volt meter, would it measure it, or do i need to get closer to the alternator, where would be the best place to run a wire like that, thanks...gerry

 

if the wire can handle the full amount of current being put into it, yes.

 

no i mean can the fuse for the ignition switch identify how much current is running from the battery so the gauge will actually work, when i hooked it up, it did not, i want to know if there is abetter place to do that and somewhere that will be right for this application, thanks

 

bump, come on guys i know someone knows this...

 

Current or voltage???

Two different things.

Two different places.

 

i need a wire that can measure the output of the battery, obviously, since im installing a volt meter...someone please help

 

Maybe I am having problems with your terminology.

Current is in amps and displayed by an ampmeter.

Voltage is measured in volts and uses a voltmeter.

The battery's output is generally measured in amps as all batteries in FCs are 12.6 volt batteries.

If you are trying to meter running voltage in the car (output from the alternator, and feed from the battery when the engine is off but the key is on), you would want to tap into the large gauge black/white at the ignition switch. Don't forget to use a 1-2 amp fuse at the connection.

 

Im a little lost on this on, are you tryin to hook up an aftermarket meter to measure alternator output?...because the battery should remain constant at 12 to 12.6 volts. If so you will have to run a wire to the back of the alternator to get the reading from the guage not just any hot wire on the car..

 

No, if you are measuring voltage, you can measure from any hot spot in the car. The voltmeter on a non-turbo gets its power to read from the same power that powers all the gauges, not some dedicated line line to the alt.

The battery is only 12.6 volts, yes. But the alternator to charge the battery needs to be putting out at least 13.5 volts.

Now if you are measuring current (amps with an ampmeter) then your connection will be inline with the Alts output or with an inductive pickup at the alt.

Remember there are two ways to see the alt's output, Voltage and Amperage.