Alternator Charge Light

Back when I first started the engine I checked the oil pressure light and charge lights were going out once the engine was started. The oil pressure light went out showing I had oil pressure and the wiring was correct. Sadly the charge warning light connected to the alternator stayed lit. So stuck it on my ToDo list and got on with more fun stuff like getting the clutch fixed :-)

So why is the charge light staying on when the engine is running. Alternator is new, but could be faulty or my wiring. Turned out to be neither.

I understand that one side of the light has 12v and it is then earthed through the alternator spade connector. When the engine is running and the alternator is working that same spade connector switches to 12v and therefore the light is no longer earthed and goes out. However, what I didn't know is that the 12v supplied to the alternator also provides an initial magnetic charge to energize rotating field coil.

Back when I was testing the oil pressure light and alternator charge light the engine wasn't running too well. So I focused on getting the engine started and then connected up the test light to see if a) the oil pressure light was out - check! and b) charge light was out. But of course it didn't go out because I connected my test light AFTER the engine was started. Doh!! So I wired it all up this morning, ignition on, light on, engine started, light off - simple.

Column Switches

This diagram has to be the most helpful I've ever seen. This combined with the writing diagram and the Pilgrim manual has made wiring the column switches fairly straight forward. I've only blown 1 fuse when I let a loose wire touch the chassis while testing the indicators.

Alternator

Fitting the alternator should have been an easy job. Simply take the Pilgrim Alternator bracket and fit to the Rover V8, then attach the alternator... Sadly, the alternator pulley didn't line up with the water pump and so the bracket needing cutting back to allow the alternator to slide back.

Since the alternator is situated on the other side of the engine then it needs a slight modification. This involved removing the 3 long bolts and rotating the front section - this allows the pivot bolt to sit at the bottom and the 3rd bolt hole to be top-right as shown:

Now the alternator, fans, horn, temperature sender, oil pressure sensor, and coil are fitted the loom can be tidied up and tied down around the front end of the chassis:

Preparing to "fire it up"

Lots of little jobs (sorry no photos).
 - Wired fuel pump
 - Connected fuel tank to fuel pump, disconnected it all and added in a fuel filter
 - Connected fuel pipe in engine bay to carbs remembering the 2nd fuel filter - not really necessary, but can't hurt and since it is clear plastic you can see the fuel is being pumped to the carbs
 - Blanked off the 2nd fuel pipe to the fuel tank (not needed as not using fuel injection)
 - Connected the Sierra ignition switch to the loom and tested fuel pump (tick!):
Red - live
Yellow - key position I
Black/Yellow - key position II
Black/Blue - key position III (starting)
 - Wired the coil to the DLM8 Distributor (actually to the amplifier/ignition module on the side). No where could I find a circuit diagram for this, but finally figured it out Red to Coil +ve, and Blue to coil -ve.
 - Wired coil to ignition switch mkey position II
 - Finally wired the oil pressure sensor.

4 things left to do:
 - Fill with oil and turn over to ensure the oil pressure light goes out (pump may need priming)
 - Bolt on exhausts
 - Put some petrol in the tank
 - Cross all fingers and pray before turning ignition switch

The Loom

The hardest part about the loom is working out which wire is which. From experience I have learnt that labelling every wire saves so much time later on. So in front of the fire I laid out the loom front to back and labelled each wire. I also spotted a few mistakes in the wiring diagram and Pilgrim had supplied the wrong type of relay (Type A and Type B are not the same pin-out).

The next tricky bit is feeding all the wires through a hole in the bulkhead (not forgetting the rubber grommet - thanks ebay!). After that the fuse and relay holders need securing to the side (and top in my case) of the drivers side footwell:

The rest of the loom has been "laid" onto the chassis and temporarily cable tied in roughly the right place.
Sadly the Pilgrim loom is generic, so a number of the engine bay wires need to be shorten, e.g. the RoverV8 starter is drivers side. Not a difficult job, but a shame to un-bind the loom to remove wires.