General information
The electrical system of the engine consists mainly of systems for starting and recharging the battery. Because. that the functions of these devices are closely related to the engine, they are described separately from other electrical devices of the car, such as lights, dashboard, etc. (which are described in chapter 12). Description of the engine ignition system is given in chapter 5B.
Vehicle electrical system 12-volt, with "minus" on the mass.
All models have a maintenance-free or low-maintenance battery that is charged by an alternator with a rectifier. The generator is driven by a belt from the crankshaft pulley.
Engine starter with pre-engagement, which is carried out using a built-in electromagnetic traction turnbuckle. When starting, the traction relay engages the starter drive gear with the flywheel ring gear before the starter is energized. Once the engine has started, the freewheel prevents the starter rotor from turning from the engine until the pinion gear disengages from the flywheel.
The negative terminal of the battery is connected to the body. To increase the reliability of electrical circuits, the engine and electrical assembly unit are connected to the body with additional grounding buses (pic. 1.1. a, b).
Precautionary measures
More details about the device and maintenance of various systems will be discussed in the relevant paragraphs of this chapter. Although the book describes some repair procedures, the usual way to repair is to replace the failed item. The owner, who does not want to limit himself to a simple replacement of elements, is recommended to purchase a book "Automobile Electrical £ Electronic Systems Manual ("Electrical and electronic equipment of the car") Haynes Publishing. A Russian translation of this book is available for sale.
Attention! Care must be taken when working on the electrical system of the engine. not to damage semiconductor devices (diodes and transistors) and not hurt yourself. In addition to the precautions listed in section "Safety first!", observe the following when working on the electrical system.
Always remove rings, watches, etc. before working on the electrical system. Even with the battery disconnected, a capacitor may be discharged through the metal object you have to ground. This can cause shock or severe burns.
Be careful not to frighten the battery terminals: you can seriously damage components such as the generator, electronic circuits and other elements that contain semiconductor devices.
If the engine needs to be started from an external battery, use the terminals specially provided for this purpose to connect to an external battery (cm. "Starting the engine from a foreign battery"). You also need to connect an external charger to the battery.
Never disconnect battery terminals, alternator, any wires or control equipment while the engine is running.
Do not allow the engine to turn the generator when the generator is not connected.
Never "check" operation of the generator, shorting its output to ground.
Never use an ohmmeter with a handheld generator to test electrical circuits.
When working on the electrical system, always disconnect the negative battery terminal from ground.
Before using electric welding equipment on a vehicle, disconnect the battery, alternator, and electronic fuel injection/ignition control unit type components to keep them from risk of damage.
If your vehicle is equipped with an anti-theft radio, keep the following in mind. If you interrupt the power supply to the car radio. the protection system is activated. Even if power is restored immediately, the unit will not operate until the correct security code is entered. Therefore, if you do not know the security code, do not disconnect the battery and do not remove the radio from the car. To avoid surprises, read the section in the Appendix "Anti-theft audio system".