Advice on installing a voltmeter

[98TrackerMan]

Hi All,
Just finished replacing my alternator- I have real large hands and whew, what a chore- I was thinking of putting in an aftermarket voltmeter so i can see what's going on. I crawled home with old alternator. Going to the store, I had the radio on and all of a sudden , no matter what channel, music became garbled. I felt something was amiss.I turned around and 1/2 block from my driveway was losing power & I crawled in home at 5MPH and she went off when I got in the yard. It's fine now new alternator-charged my year old battery -no problems- but I was thinking of an aftermarket voltmeter. Is there any real difficulties hooking one up or should I just forget about it. Thx Regards -98TrackerMan
1998 Chevy Tracker 4x4, 4dr- 97k

[fixkick]

the volt meter is one of the most simple devices to add, no plumbing, senders, just 2 wires.
one wire is ground (body) and other to the Cig lighter hot pin (rear)
the only hard part is finding a way to connect it and not damage factory wiring.
one way is to use and inline 1amp fuse. to the battery Red post. fuse as close to battery as possible.


yes, ive driving 55 miles with a dead alt. (no lights) just EFI running.
i made it to 1 mile from home.... and bam, the ECU stalls.
more than once....

[barnbiketom]

I ordered some of these from EBAY.. really CHEEP like 3 bucks apeice, andthey work GREAT. I install them on motorcycles, but just realized I need one on the TRACKER TOO!!
CLICK HERE FOR EBAY LINK
The ones I got have TWO wires, and will be on with the key depending where you hook it.. I see the newer ones have three wires.. probably one is a trigger? to switch it on or maybe a dimmer you hook to the instrument bulb, for dimming with the dimmer knob?

[fixkick]

3rd wire would be the decimal point? , back light, or range setting, or mode , or gain. RTM
the LED 7 seg.display's come in near infinite form (this is voltmeter)
the data sheet for these answers that question, 100s of brands.
what this is , is a dedicated, digital volt meter. (uses a display and a analog to digital converter inside) just like A DMM but with no ranging.

[98TrackerMan]

Hi All
Hey youse Guys,Thx for the info- sounds like a plan- I'm sold- I'll be cking Ebay too
Have a Great (upcoming) weekend!
98TrackerMan

[barnbiketom]

HEY THIS IS EVEN BETTER!!!!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/LCD-Cigarette-Li...19f0aae5fd

[fixkick]

walmart sells one too , in the battery car section.. cheap.
a real good thing to have. if you suspect something is wrong.

[maulithani]

Hi All
Hey youse Guys,Thx for the info- sounds like a plan- I'm sold- I'll be cking Ebay too
Have a Great (upcoming) weekend!
98TrackerMan

Thanks for sharing.