Charging system problem

My car is making a whistling sound and gets louder thru the rpms. Alt light stays on also. I have replaced the voltage regulator, starter solenoid and had the alternator rebuilt. My volts gauge read at about 11. Any ideas? Thanks...

 

Youre dropping voltage somewhere. Id get out a Meter and go through the wireing harness.

 

Are you having any issues other than the low voltage reading and whinning? I would consider checking the guage if nothing else is wrong. Is the whine coming through the radio or where is it coming from?

 

Check to see if you have 12V power at the battery connection on your alternator when the engine is off.( the larger wire ) If you don't there is a fuse link that attaches to the + battery cable side of the starter solenoid. You'll have to cut it out and replace it if it's bad. Any auto parts store should have them.

 

The sound does not come thru the radio.

 

Whining is coming from the engine are. I cant tell exactly where though.

 

When I did this test I got a reading of 12.73.

 

Usually alternators whine when you put a heavy load on em. Check your ground connections. If all are good...Theres a problem with the alt/voltage regulator or the belt is loose and the alt isnt spinning as fast as it should be...Good luck!!!

 

I never had a whine until the light came on. Like I said alt was rebuilt and volt regulator is new.

 

Either you have a ground issue, or something is pulling mass quantities of current with it running...OR... Something new/rebuilt was not/is not up to par...

 

Ok, try your meter on your voltage gauge in the car. if you have 11V still, you do have a severe voltage drop. I've seen voltage gauges that weren't too accurate either! If you're getting the same 12.73V reading at your gauge hookup, you're good as far as the wiring goes. Now I have seen some alternators that do emit an annoying whistle, but function fine. Do you have a spare alternator you can swap to see if that is the problem? You can also try and listen around with a piece of hose up to your ear. Just be careful not to hit the radiator fan or alternator fan, that tends to leave a ringing in your ear for a bit!

 

Back of the gauge reads 11.98. I get the same 12.73 from the battery with the car off and running. The whine noise started the same time as the alt light coming on. I have rebuilt/replaced everything I can think of. Also gauge was reading correct before the light/whine starting.

 

Is the alternator belt slipping?

 

Belt is nice and snug with no slipping.

 

Also the I started the car with alt off and car didnt make the whining noise. I thought after being rebuilt the whining and alt light would go off.