CEL and Code 46 on a 97 TJ

[wes]

Howdee Jeep brains trust,
Today my CEL lit up, voltmeter on the dash maxed out and upon further inspection, discovered Code 46 was the cause -
Charging System Voltage Too High - Battery voltage sense input above target charging during engine operation.
Apart from CEL and voltmeter, there was no other indication that anything was wrong.

I immediately pulled over, turned off the engine and restarted it.
After restarting, the Jeep ran normally... until the same thing happened again.

This happened 5 or 6 times in a 52km drive this morning.

I then cleared the code and reset the PCM.
Same thing happened once more - pulled over, turned off engine, restarted and good to go.

Spent the rest of the day 4wding and the same 52km trip home and it hasn't happened again.

Jeep seems OK now, but does anyone know what would cause this?

[sht50]

The regulator for the alternator is dead. So it will be pushing out max amps/volts. Could potentially blow the battery.

[wes]

That doesn't sound good.
Having an automatic, I've always been paranoid about battery issues.
Do you know if the regulator is an easy fix?

[sht50]

I would be getting the whole thing overhauled by an auto elec or buy a new one.

[wes]

Thanks sht50 I will see what I can find.

[sht50]

Do you have a multimeter at all. I would first see what the alternator is actually putting out. But going by the code and the gauge I would be saying alternator.

[bonza]

Originally Posted by sht50

The regulator for the alternator is dead. So it will be pushing out max amps/volts. Could potentially blow the battery.

In a TJ, the voltage regulator is located in the engine computer

whats causing your problem I dont know. but I would be doing the basics first, like clean battery to alternator connections, grounds and checking out the alternator output