[kencbs]

I hooked a volt meter to the battery on the Ranger.When the machine is idling it is putting out about 14.6 volts.When you raise the rpm,s to about 3000 the meter reads up to 17 volts.Will this cause a future battery problem?I just installed a new battery.

 

[commanderjjones]

Sounds like it may need a new voltage regulator......but I'm not sure if the regulator was a separate part on the '04 or if it was integrated into the ECM.

 

[pede58]

They do list a separate regulator I think, it's called regulator/rectifier and yes it will cause failure.

 

[commanderjjones]

They do list a separate regulator I think, it's called regulator/rectifier and yes it will cause failure.

Thanks for clarifying, Larry.
Yes, 17 volts is too much. You shouldn't be seeing any higher than the lower reading of 14.6 volts that you mentioned. Typically, one would see somewhere around 12.5 to 13 volts at idle, and 14 to 14.5 volts in the upper RPM range.