Ammeter question, M1009

[danewerle]

Where is the ammeter needle supposed to sit when the ignition is turned to the off position with the key out? I assumed it would sit all the way to the far left (red) side of the ammeter guage since I'm assuming there should be no power going to the guage. My ammeter needle sits in the middle of the yellow with ignition off/key out. When I turn the ignition to the ON position the ammeter does not flinch. When I turn the ignition to the START position the needle drops to the left side of the yellow,the engine turns over fine, starts immediatly (even in 10 degree Wisconsin cold) and the ammeter jumps to the proper position in the middle of the green. The question again.....where is the ammeter needle supposed to sit with the ignition off/key out? Thanks

 

[cpf240]

Is there anything added to the panel where the voltmeter, not ammeter, is mounted? The voltmeter has 24v at all times, but the ground connection to it is switched by a relay when the key is turned on. But, if say, another gauge is added next to the voltmeter, it might be providing a ground path for the voltmeter, making it stay on all the time.

 

[danewerle]

The instrument panel is all original.The previous owner had added a manual glowplug pushbutton and a manual start pushbutton. I have noticed that when the ignition switch/key is in the OFF position and the manual glowplug pushbuton is depressed the glowplugs do not activate. Although when the ignition is in the same OFF position the manual start pushbutton when depressed WILL turn over the engine. (the engine will not start, just turn over when in OFF position). As it should, with the ignition in the ON position the glowplug pushbutton works properly , the starter pushbutton cranks the engine and the engine starts. As I posted earlier when the ignition is OFF the voltmeter reads at the top of the yellow. When the engine is running the voltmeter is in the middle of the green. Im thinking that when the manual start pushbutton was intsalled the ground to the relay may have been attatched to a permanent ground instead of the ignition OFF switch position? I'll check that out first. Thanks

 

[Warthog]

Pull the very bottom fuse and see what the voltmeter does. You may also want to remove all the "additional" wiring and start over.

 

[danewerle]

Thanks, I'll dig into it when its warmer. -20 degrees is to cold to be messin around. Stupid Polar Vortex!