LiteraCola

So I haven't had a chance to get back down to check the car out. He has had the battery out of the car and on the tender. He hooked the battery back up to the car and unplugged the two-wire connector from the alternator (What is the purpose of this connector?), let it sit overnight and the car fired right up in the morning. He neglected to check the voltage at the battery though. So to me it's safe to assume something is awry with the alternator. I am still going to try the parasitic draw test the next time I'm down there. I'd hate for him to spend the money on a new alt and that not be the issue.

MelWff

The connector is attached to the internal regulator. Why not remove the alternator and take it to a local auto parts store to test it. You can then decide whether to rebuild or replace.

Kacyc3

Does the 73 have an external voltage regulator? I had a similar problem with a car that would would completely drain the battery in a very short amount of time, the problem was the voltage regulator.

MelWff

The regulator is internal starting in 1969

LiteraCola

Not trying to bring back a dead thread, but I want to mark this resolved in case anyone finds this in a future search for the same issue! Took the alternator to "one of those auto parts stores" and had it tested. Turns out the internal regulator was bad. Swapped in a new alternator (From Ecklers) and everything is fine. I'm thinking that hooking the battery up backwards had nothing to do with the alternator being fried.

Car is currently in running order with no noticeable draw on the battery.


Jesse

7T1vette

Thanks for the follow-up feedback. Nice to hear the completion of a thread, for a change.

Alternator problem could have been faulty regulator OR shorted diode. Makes little difference, since a replacement would fix it in either case.

LiteraCola

Absolutely! If I remember correctly, both the regulator and diode trio tested bad. Oh well, all good now!