Battery gauge

[Nnicolasl69]

So my 2008 chevy silverado 1500 was having charging system issues in short I replaced the battery And alternator and the gauge when I start it is above 14 but then when it warms up the gauge goes down to about 12 and stays around there. So I stop the truck and turn it off and when I start it back up it goes back to above 14. Have never drove it a long way so I don't know if it goes back up while driving or not. No batteries lights on or error messages?

[txab]

Sounds like normal operation for the 900 series and up trucks. The alternator is controlled by the ECM basically to help reduce the load on the engine when full charging is not necessary. Read the owners manual, it describes operation perfectly

[MikeNH]

Normal. The system selectively charges the battery based on load. It's disconcerting but mine did it every day for 75,000 miles and it always started right up.

[intheburbs]

Sounds like an RTFM issue.

 

From the owner's manual:

 

 

 

When the engine is running, this gage shows the
condition of the charging system. The gage can transition
from a higher to lower or a lower to higher reading. This is
normal. If the vehicle is operating outside the normal
operating range, the charging system light comes on.