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<blockquote data-quote="McIntosh" data-source="post: 5770379" data-attributes="member: 605496"><p>Your math is a bit flawed. An amp draws more power than it outputs, not less. Using your numbers you'd divide 700 by .8, not multiply (and 80% is being pretty generous). I'm also unsure where your 40% load for the alternator came from as there a lot of variable loads larger than an A/C compressor clutch. Start your car on a cold winter night, turn on headlights, rear defroster, heater blower, stereo AND charge the battery. Its gonna be pretty maxed out. At the other extreme starting your car on a warm summer day and turning the A/C and stereo on will be much less than 40%. My point certainly wasn't that increasing the wire size from the alternator to the battery would cause it to output 100% capacity, rather that the wire size is correct for the alternator's 100% capacity. If you install a HO alternator, you certainly will gain by increasing the wire size. Your definition of "basic system" is also an unknown. I'll try to reword my intent: Increasing the wire size from the alternator will not increase it's output by any meaningful amount. Increasing the battery wires' size WILL, but you'll be discharging your battery all the time if you don't get a HO alternator. If you just turn it up occaisionally (then turn it down for a longer time to actually let the alternator charge the battery) I guess you're "gaining" something (impressing people at stoplights?). Installing amps that draw too high a percentage of the alternator's output will ensure three things: Your alternator will fail prematurely, your battery will never be fully charged (and will fail prematurely) and your voltage will be reduced at the point of utilization (unless you only crank it at stoplights). As to how much stereo power over stock is an acceptable load? More variables, of course. The bean counters don't allow too much "over-engineering" nowadays. Weight (MPG), production cost (and subsequent consumer cost), etc have been cut to bare bones for economic reasons. Its profit driven, they're not going to give you too much more than you actually need. A turnip only holds so much blood.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="McIntosh, post: 5770379, member: 605496"] Your math is a bit flawed. An amp draws more power than it outputs, not less. Using your numbers you'd divide 700 by .8, not multiply (and 80% is being pretty generous). I'm also unsure where your 40% load for the alternator came from as there a lot of variable loads larger than an A/C compressor clutch. Start your car on a cold winter night, turn on headlights, rear defroster, heater blower, stereo AND charge the battery. Its gonna be pretty maxed out. At the other extreme starting your car on a warm summer day and turning the A/C and stereo on will be much less than 40%. My point certainly wasn't that increasing the wire size from the alternator to the battery would cause it to output 100% capacity, rather that the wire size is correct for the alternator's 100% capacity. If you install a HO alternator, you certainly will gain by increasing the wire size. Your definition of "basic system" is also an unknown. I'll try to reword my intent: Increasing the wire size from the alternator will not increase it's output by any meaningful amount. Increasing the battery wires' size WILL, but you'll be discharging your battery all the time if you don't get a HO alternator. If you just turn it up occaisionally (then turn it down for a longer time to actually let the alternator charge the battery) I guess you're "gaining" something (impressing people at stoplights?). Installing amps that draw too high a percentage of the alternator's output will ensure three things: Your alternator will fail prematurely, your battery will never be fully charged (and will fail prematurely) and your voltage will be reduced at the point of utilization (unless you only crank it at stoplights). As to how much stereo power over stock is an acceptable load? More variables, of course. The bean counters don't allow too much "over-engineering" nowadays. Weight (MPG), production cost (and subsequent consumer cost), etc have been cut to bare bones for economic reasons. Its profit driven, they're not going to give you too much more than you actually need. A turnip only holds so much blood. [/QUOTE]
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