okay, so the clutch is in, engine runs, everything should be happy, right?

no, i'm getting "check charging system"

is there any obvious, stupid thing that it could be before i start ripping **** apart to get at the alternator?

 

check and make sure the belt isnt slipping or anything

and make sure u have all good connections aka to the battery and alternator and the ground.

 

first thing that i checked.

everything is spinning happily. good tension on the belt.

funny thing, i can't find the output on the alternator to even hit it with a meter.

i found a thinner (12-10 gaugeish) black cable coming out on the right hand side of it, but that looks way too thin to be a charge cable

 

There are two huge wires you can use to see if the alternator is charging. They're connected to the battery.

 

lmao... the world loves a smart ass.

 

What did you find out?

BTW, Although I was being a smart ass, I wasn't kidding about using the battery to check your voltage. If you're not getting ~14.4V at the battery with the car running, your alt. is shot, or there's a fault in the wiring somewhere.

 

Cobalts have a variable charging system depending on the battery state of charge, it can run anything from 12.6V - 14.4V depending on where the computer feels it wants to be at that moment in time. You need a proper tester that can do ripple and amp output to see if its pooched.

Also that thin gauge wire is most likely the voltage sensor wire, it is not hooked up well it will cause this problem. $20 says you need an alternator though.