Does revving the engine make the alternator put out more amps/volts (not sure what term to use)?

Question

Does revving the engine make the alternator put out more amps/volts (not sure what term to use)?

Answer 1

Only to a point. Most alternators are not capable of producing their maximum rated voltage of idle speeds, however, all alternators have a voltage regulator that limits the output to prevent the alternator from over charging, or damaging the electrical system on the car. Once the limit is reached in terms of rpms of the armature, the alternator will not charge above the limit. If the alternator charges above the limit it will over heat and quit working at all

Answer 2

It does but effectively it doesn't because a properly functioning voltage regulator will syphon off the extra above about 16 volts so as to not ruin your battery. Feel free to email me if you have any further question about this.

Answer 3

Well, the best short answer is yes and no. LOL

In order to help you understand the terms used, think of the "garden hose analogy". Amps are similar to the amount of water coming out of a hose, whereas Volts is more like the amount of water pressure you have.

First of all, the Alternator will only put out as many Amps as is necessary to maintain battery Voltage. The Voltage Regulator monitors battery Voltage, and then controls the Alternator Field circuit, which determines Alternator output.

One factor that comes into play here, is the fact that because of the way Alternators work, they are not capable of full output when the engine is running at idle, even if the voltage is low. This is unavoidable, as if the Alternator was run faster at idle, it would be going too fast at high RPM.

If you monitor Battery Voltage while you turn on a lot of electrical accessories while you're at idle, you will see the Voltage drop. The Battery covers the shortfall, and is recharged later, when you start driving.

Given the above circumstances, one of the advantages of a high output Alternator is that it is capable of more output at any given speed. But all Alternators are only capable of full output with the engine running at approximately 1500 RPM.

So to sum up, if you have a heavy load on the battery, to raise engine speed above idle will usually increase amperage output, but only until regulated Voltage level is reached. But raising engine speed above about 1500 RPM will have no further effect, as the Alternator is already capable of full output at that speed.

In order to get a better understanding of the basics of how Alternators work, you might be interested in checking out this link;

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/alternator...

Answer 4

It will momentarily until the voltage regulator kicks in and "regulates" the voltage back to what it feels is necessary to keep the battery fully charged.

Answer 5

When the motor is revved, the current output (Amps) will increase. As said above, a regulated alternator will only put out approx 14V maximum, but an alternator is capable of exceeding 125V when not regulated!

Answer 6

yes it will put out more amps and volts but only slightly more than idling because of the voltage regulator and how the alternator is design and the elcectrical system of your vehicle.