NOT your typical charging system question...

[mpj76]

I discovered the same problem when I was changing out my heater core and had to drive to work without a dash. When I reconnected the instrument cluster, one of the thin contacts was severed. I noticed my volt meter was too low. If you need to drive the car before you finish the wiring, you can still get it to charge. There are two easy ways. 1.) Blip your throttle to redline once or twice. It will excite the alternator to charge (I discovered this because I got mad at my car after yet ANOTHER problem). OR 2.) Bypass the circuit (make your own) : Manually excite the alternator by running a lead from the positive terminal from your battery (assuming it's not dead) to one of the wires (splice into it - can't remember exactly which) that connects into the back of your alternator. Good luck.