VMAX trouble but it's my friend's Vmax

[Mike 86 in San Dimas]

Dropped in on buddy yesterday to find him fussing with his VMAX. He has a 5 month old battery so I "assumed" it was OK. He was about to buy another because he continually finds himself with a dead battery. It jumps start from a good battery no problem. His repair manual says it should have 14 volts at the battery with engine at 5000 RPM. I found that he was at  13.2 volts regardless of RPM (with his dead battery installed). Between finding that issue and having to get to Cycle Gear before they closed to buy a loading ramp that was on sale, I did not pursue other possible troubles with him. I suspect his regulator is faulty. What you think? He ordered a new regulator. I am not total convinced the regulator is bad, just suspicious.  His repair manual said there were no dependable ways of checking the regulator/rectifier, just try a known good one.
WCR here I come!

[Mark Olson]

Hey Mike ,

Same as an FJ , you will need to check wiring from batt to alt/regulator . With key on and not started , what voltage reading at alt/reg ? if not the same as the battery then a wiring problem exists. The vmax likes to melt wires same as an FJ.

A new batt never hurts but check voltages anyway.  For fun tell your buddy you need to test ride the vmax . A third gear clutch drop is lot of tire smoking fun .