Auto Meter bva-350 Operator's Manual
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Auto Meter bva-350 Operator's Manual

Hand held-accuracy with a 40 amp load
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BVA-350
Operator's Manual
Hand Held-Accuracy with a 40 Amp Load
The BVA-350 is the a hand-held tester that is the auto industry's answer
to portability in a professionally accurate battery load tester, charging
system analysis and voltage drop testing.

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Summary of Contents for Auto Meter bva-350

  • Page 1 BVA-350 Operator’s Manual Hand Held-Accuracy with a 40 Amp Load The BVA-350 is the a hand-held tester that is the auto industry’s answer to portability in a professionally accurate battery load tester, charging system analysis and voltage drop testing.

  • Page 2: Specifications

    Auto Meter's Pulsed Load. Preliminary quick battery checks will increase charging productivity. The BVA-350 is user friendly. It tells you what to do. The stator-diode test automatically indicates open or shorted stator-diodes. It is professionally accurate.

  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    6 volt and 12 volt batteries and tests 12 Volt and 24 Volt starting and charging systems. The following examples illustrated are for a 12 Volt system. The BVA-350 automatically identifies the appropriate voltage and displays the menu selection and...

  • Page 4: Safety

    20 degrees. Allow the battery to warm to room temperature before testing or charging. Warning! Never attach the BVA-350 to a battery that is connected to any other tester or charging unit. Damage may result. CAUSE OF BATTERY FAILURE Incorrect Application: Wrong size battery may have inadequate cold cranking Amp rating for original vehicle specifications.

  • Page 5: Inspection And Visual Check

    INSPECTION Valid automotive electrical system testing depends on all the components being in good operating condition. In addition, the battery MUST have sufficient charge for testing. Carefully perform the following before attempting any electrical diagnosis. VISUAL CHECK Inspect Belts and Pulleys for cracks, glazed surface and fraying.

  • Page 6: Controls And Functions

    Cancels a test or progression. It also returns to the previous menu. Print Key: External Leads: Point the BVA-350 infrared print light towards the Jacks for external Optional AC-22 infrared printer (up to 40 ft.) receiver lead sets. and press the print key.

  • Page 7: Maintenance

    MAINTENANCE CLAMP MAINTENANCE CHECK OFTEN FOR LOOSE JAWS Both jaws of each OR DAMAGED INTERNAL INSULATOR clamp must firmly engage the battery terminal. The wire soldered to the copper insert jaw must be insulated from the other wire soldered to the opposite handle. This insulation is required so than one can read the Amps and the other reads the Volts.

  • Page 8: Test Sections Test Sections Hook Hook

    HOOK UP Press the On/Off button: Connect the clamps as instructed on the LCD. AUTO METER >ENTER BATTERY BVA 350 TEMP SYSTEM ANALYZER USE +/- READY TO CONNECT ‘Y’ TO CONTINUE Enter the approximate battery temperature in degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius (seen note) then press (Y Enter).

  • Page 9: Battery Preliminary Battery Preliminary Check

    PRELIMINARY CHECK If connections are proper the following will be displayed: CHECKING BATTERY PLEASE WAIT… After the battery check is complete the results will be displayed. The following are two sample results. PRELIM. CHECK 12.24V CHRG 50% EST. CCA 1100 Press (Y Enter) and continue the ‘Y’...

  • Page 10: Battery Load Test

    BATTERY LOAD TEST You can also select Battery After the Preliminary Check the Test from the main menu and following will appear: then press (Y Enter). >BATTERY >ENTER RATED CCA STARTER ALTERNATOR USE +/-. VOLTAGE DROP ‘Y’ TO CONTINUE Press the (+Up) or (-Down) key to The down arrow indicate more increment or decrement to the rated menu items...
  • Page 11 After the Load Test is completed one of the following sample results will appear. #32 12V BATTERY GOOD BATTERY. 12.84V CHG 100% Ready for service. EST CCA #32 12V BATTERY If the battery is marginal, it should be replaced under adverse driving MARGINAL BATTERY.

  • Page 12: Starter Draw Test

    Use (+Up) and (-Down) to move You will be prompted to connect cursor to the desired test. large clamps if disconnected after previous test. Press (Y Enter) to continue. CHECKING BATTERY PLEASE WAIT… Press (Y Enter) and the BVA-350 will do a preliminary check.
  • Page 13 STARTER DRAW AND DIESEL ENGINES There are a few points to consider in testing a starter on a diesel engine. The BVA-350 is designed to recognize any significant amount of draw; this includes glow plugs in small diesel engines. In heavy-duty applications consider computer and accessory draw.

  • Page 14: Alternator Test

    Does the battery have a low state of charge? (See section 2 and 3) Make sure all electrical items are off. Check for Alternator noise indicating worn out bearings or loose or glazed belt. ALTERNATOR SETUP AUTO METER BVA-350 SYSTEM ANALYZER READY TO CONNECT VDrop...

  • Page 15: Alternator Test

    Start engine. ‘N’ TO CANCEL >ALLOW VOLTAGE TO STABILIZE Allow the voltage to stabilize 14.74V until it stops rising. Press (Y ‘Y’ TO CONTINUE. Enter) TESTING ALTER. Allow the BVA-350 to finish PLEASE WAIT… the test (approximately 3 to 5 seconds).

  • Page 16: Alternator Test Results

    ALTERNATIOR TEST RESULTS ALTER. ALTER. HIGH REG. 15.03V GOOD REG. 14.13V GOOD DIODE GOOD DIODES OUTPUT OVER 50A. OUTPUT 20-50A. High Regulation will damage Alternator has GOOD regulation the system. Replace or repair and GOOD output. (See Note 2 the Alternator. No indication of below) cable condition if clips are not connected to the alternator.

  • Page 17: Voltage Drop Test Voltage Drop Test

    The generic setup can be used in all the previous applications as well as it can be used to test the entire circuit, or any particular sections of any circuit that includes battery, cables and any load. AUTO METER System BVA-350...
  • Page 18 VOLTAGE DROP TEST (Cont.) >CONNECT SMALL CLIPS TO THE Connect small leads to the battery BATTERY. or along the circuit being tested as illustrated in the setup and press ‘Y’ TO CONTINUE (Y Enter). >CONNECT LARGE CLAMPS TO OTHER Then connect large leads to either END OF CIRCUIT.

  • Page 19: Review Tests

    The optional AC-22 printer provides an opportunity to print any test displayed on the LCD. This can be done after each test or from review. An invisible infrared beam links the BVA-350 to the printer from up to 40 ft away. No connection cords are needed. For more instructions on how to operate the printer consult the printer manual.

  • Page 20: Printing Test Results

    PRINTING TEST RESULTS Point the BVA-350 in the direction of the AC-22 printer (in or out of the case) with the printer’s IR receiver pointed in the direction of the BVA- 350. Press (Print). You should be within 40 ft of the printer. Wait for the screen to clear before moving the BVA-350.

  • Page 21: Voltmeter

    VOLT METER Unusual problems with a battery and the need to localize loss of current can be determined with the manual volt reading. From the main menu scroll down to Volt Meter. ALTERNATOR Press (Y Enter). The following will VOLTAGE DROP be displayed.

  • Page 22: Setup

    ‘N’ TO CANCEL Using Auto Meter's optional adapter cord AC-12 insert the stereo plug into the jack on the BVA-350 (see page 6) and then plug the serial adapter into a free serial port on the rear of your computer.

  • Page 23: Using Window

    USING WINDOWS 98/2000/NT/XP Note: The BVA-350 will interface with any basic (ANSI) terminal emulation software. Most operating systems contain a program that will do this. Following are instructions for Windows 98. For other operating systems consult the Manual for that system.

  • Page 24: Download Test Information

    DOWNLOAD TEST INFORMATION PC Screen Menu If the BVA-350 is properly connected to your PC and the LCD shows " " the menu should CONNECT ANALYZER TO A PC automatically be displayed in Hyper Terminal. Press 1 to download the last 50 tests.

  • Page 25: Capturing Text Into Microsoft Excel

    CAPTURING TEXT Using Microsoft Excel Note: For other software applications consult your software manual. Make sure menu is displayed as shown in illustration page 20 #3. Select “Capture Text” in the Transfer Menu. Type in c:\my documents\download.txt and then select Start. Press “1”...

  • Page 26: Error Messages

    SETUP ABOUT is the last menu DOWNLOAD item. The up arrow >ABOUT indicates previous menu selections. BVA-350 Press (Y Enter) and the VERSION 2.0 version will be displayed. DATE 07/15/2003 COPYRIGHT 1999 VOLTAGE DROP TEST ERROR MESSAGES One of the following may appear during any drop test sequence. Correct the situation before continuing.

  • Page 27: Warranty Information

    LIMITED WARRANTY 12 MONTHS FROM DATE OF PURCHASE- CABLES 90 DAYS The manufacturer warrants to the consumer that this product will be free from defects in material or workmanship for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of original purchase.

  • Page 28: Contact Information

    • To return to this page navigate to last page. • Press ESC to Exit full view. Auto Meter Products Inc. � � � � � � � � � � � � � 350 West Center Street Pleasant Grove, Utah 84062 Service (801) 785-0051 ext.

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