14 thoughts on “This is as simple as it should be.”
Not a miniature circuit board anywhere in the diagram.
Can tell it isn’t a car made anytime in the last twenty years.
Leigh
Whitehall, NY
20 years? Hell, modules and electronics were already taking over in the late 80’s. I remember the first Mercury Sable (Ford Taurus) I ever saw, probably around 86-87. Belonged to my uncle who’d bought it new, and had a fully digital instrument cluster, keyless entry number pad on the door, and the engine was under full electronic control via an ECU.
I’ll confess that I enjoy the added features and convenience that complexity adds, but when it breaks, it’s a real pain in the ass.
Wylie coyote design
This follows the keep it simple stupid philosophy. Best in the world.
Perfect. The alternator looks to be a standard GM with internal voltage regulator.
When I was in junior college, I took some auto shop classes. This was one of my text books. Still have it.
After the ordeal of even replacing a signal lamp bulb on a Liebherr, that pic gives me an uncomfortable erection.
For those unaware, everything, and I mean everything on today’s vehicles and machinery is controlled through the CECU. Most lamps now are LED, and factory/proprietary ones have a specific resistance in them which is monitored by the CECU. When the lamp fails, or the circuit is damaged, the CECU flags that circuit as failed – that is why you hear stories of people using perfectly good lamps that still don’t work, and/or set codes stating non-factory parts are used…. it also can be used as an excuse for voiding warranty.
This was part of the class action lawsuit against John Deere – not because they were the only ones, but they were the ones really pushing back against the consumers (you know, the people who buy their products and feed those assholes.
My ’85 Square is looking better every day.
i have done a lot more with a lot less.
Pretty good, other than there’s nothing charging the battery.
Yes there is, the thick dark line(dark lines on an automotive schematic denotes high current/large gauge wire) off of the single terminal on the alternator to the terminal block, then continues to one side of the starter solenoid through the fusible link unto the positive side of the battery.
I’ll get new glasses next year when I’m on Medicare.
Last week: one of our old chiller mechanics took his still under warranty escalade on a trip thru out the west. It quit dead way outside of prescott az. Towed in, no engine, locked in park, had to spray roll back with oil and skid on. Cadillac dealer clueless. Changed starter finally which was clearly fried and other antics
Finally started on day 3 and he headed home. 70 mi east of albuquerque it quit again.Dead.Towed to albuquerque. Dealer too busy for 1.5 to 2 weeks to even take a quick lool at it. Called cadillac in st paul and they arranged for a hotshot to pock up. 2 days later he showed up and said he couldnt take the escalade because it couldnt roll and he had to shuffle vehicles around for the en route deliveries.
The poor guy has to leave this POS there and rent a nissan shitbox and drive home.
His 67 ford PU was warmly embraced when he finally got home after a week+ of broke down with out the dealer not having the tranny unlock tool.
Aint it all so wonderful?
Could see this shit coming long ago. Back in the 90’s, I was a first hand observer to a situation with a Dodge pickup. Don’t recall which model now, only that it was white. We lived in Chico, CA at the time. Seems that on this pickup model, Dodge had the bright idea of doing away with the old external engine compartment voltage regulator, and instead incorporated voltage regulation into the ECM.
Yeah, it quit. Idiot light on, alternator no worky. A simple solution was to just install one of the old style regulators and wire around the ECM. Pickup would have run just fine. But nooo…. ECM not happy. ECM cause state inspection fail, which means no registration. Only solution is to buy new ECM.
Pickup was still parked last time I saw it.
Only thing we could well do without is the “Fusible Link.”
What was wrong with a fuse? Now, when it blows, it may be in the loom somewhere and good luck finding it. Seen ’em go with absolutely zero visual indication. And then to replace it, you gotta cut and splice in a new one (if you can even find the right one, anymore) which is a huge PITA compared with popping in a new fuse.
But, yes, as a species, we seem to have lost our minds.
Not a miniature circuit board anywhere in the diagram.
Can tell it isn’t a car made anytime in the last twenty years.
Leigh
Whitehall, NY
20 years? Hell, modules and electronics were already taking over in the late 80’s. I remember the first Mercury Sable (Ford Taurus) I ever saw, probably around 86-87. Belonged to my uncle who’d bought it new, and had a fully digital instrument cluster, keyless entry number pad on the door, and the engine was under full electronic control via an ECU.
I’ll confess that I enjoy the added features and convenience that complexity adds, but when it breaks, it’s a real pain in the ass.
Wylie coyote design
This follows the keep it simple stupid philosophy. Best in the world.
Perfect. The alternator looks to be a standard GM with internal voltage regulator.
When I was in junior college, I took some auto shop classes. This was one of my text books. Still have it.
https://www.amazon.com/Engines-Electrical-Systems-Blanchard-Ritchen/dp/B000O6EBAK?Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.x=0&Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.y=0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.nP-Z3jqL444rDqO8NyFTDUiZXoWwT–g2nTY6I_ECocZ1PnoXbbb_2cFMkralb2-8FYMqXKbcIqH1y1DD2LjCW3NdtnBd6mElSNfXTi0phe0zssyt0en6aSQ1DRxoDeVdZY1BQ0LUalaO_Z3cPQigGPGrmn6cnnnBMOf-748SjboOXDemXShbOoFja9Lj3zuUTF1MLpcVeYiPcIQ0O4B8W9WiuqNfxPDih45PNKHn6Q.rolendWORHQq3M8N3dGv8TjecKwKxNZKs15jot9EZlQ&dib_tag=se&keywords=auto+engines+and+electrical+systems&qid=1761328476&s=books&sr=1-1&unfiltered=1
After the ordeal of even replacing a signal lamp bulb on a Liebherr, that pic gives me an uncomfortable erection.
For those unaware, everything, and I mean everything on today’s vehicles and machinery is controlled through the CECU. Most lamps now are LED, and factory/proprietary ones have a specific resistance in them which is monitored by the CECU. When the lamp fails, or the circuit is damaged, the CECU flags that circuit as failed – that is why you hear stories of people using perfectly good lamps that still don’t work, and/or set codes stating non-factory parts are used…. it also can be used as an excuse for voiding warranty.
This was part of the class action lawsuit against John Deere – not because they were the only ones, but they were the ones really pushing back against the consumers (you know, the people who buy their products and feed those assholes.
My ’85 Square is looking better every day.
i have done a lot more with a lot less.
Pretty good, other than there’s nothing charging the battery.
Yes there is, the thick dark line(dark lines on an automotive schematic denotes high current/large gauge wire) off of the single terminal on the alternator to the terminal block, then continues to one side of the starter solenoid through the fusible link unto the positive side of the battery.
I’ll get new glasses next year when I’m on Medicare.
Last week: one of our old chiller mechanics took his still under warranty escalade on a trip thru out the west. It quit dead way outside of prescott az. Towed in, no engine, locked in park, had to spray roll back with oil and skid on. Cadillac dealer clueless. Changed starter finally which was clearly fried and other antics
Finally started on day 3 and he headed home. 70 mi east of albuquerque it quit again.Dead.Towed to albuquerque. Dealer too busy for 1.5 to 2 weeks to even take a quick lool at it. Called cadillac in st paul and they arranged for a hotshot to pock up. 2 days later he showed up and said he couldnt take the escalade because it couldnt roll and he had to shuffle vehicles around for the en route deliveries.
The poor guy has to leave this POS there and rent a nissan shitbox and drive home.
His 67 ford PU was warmly embraced when he finally got home after a week+ of broke down with out the dealer not having the tranny unlock tool.
Aint it all so wonderful?
Could see this shit coming long ago. Back in the 90’s, I was a first hand observer to a situation with a Dodge pickup. Don’t recall which model now, only that it was white. We lived in Chico, CA at the time. Seems that on this pickup model, Dodge had the bright idea of doing away with the old external engine compartment voltage regulator, and instead incorporated voltage regulation into the ECM.
Yeah, it quit. Idiot light on, alternator no worky. A simple solution was to just install one of the old style regulators and wire around the ECM. Pickup would have run just fine. But nooo…. ECM not happy. ECM cause state inspection fail, which means no registration. Only solution is to buy new ECM.
Pickup was still parked last time I saw it.
Only thing we could well do without is the “Fusible Link.”
What was wrong with a fuse? Now, when it blows, it may be in the loom somewhere and good luck finding it. Seen ’em go with absolutely zero visual indication. And then to replace it, you gotta cut and splice in a new one (if you can even find the right one, anymore) which is a huge PITA compared with popping in a new fuse.
But, yes, as a species, we seem to have lost our minds.