alternator question

[yuro]

I had to replace my alternator past weekend and noticed that there is a plug with two thin wires going to alternator. one wire just before the socket looked broken, so i reconnected it (please see pic)

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-z_CoeheE_Gc/VEZacjjUn8I/AAAAAAAAKHY/ddgKAjZ1PoY/w1000-h750-no/photo.jpg

my question is what are those wires for? I'm not taking about positive wire that runs from alternator to battery, i'm talking about two thin wires that with plastic plug on the end that run from alternator to wire harness. what are those wires used for and what happens if I unplug them from alternator? would I get "CEL"?

[morganc]

I realize it's a late reply, but FYI, those wires are for the alternator field windings. An alternator is a rotating electromagnet (coil of wire that is energized and adjusted based on electrical demand). When you rotate a 'magnet' around another coil of wire (the stator---big red lead output), you get electrical generation.

[Lumberjack]

Looks like he butchered it with a knife or screwdriver to get it off- look at the side of the housing.

[yuro]

thanks a lot for a reply... for some reason i thought that those wires has something to do with voltage regulator, but then I was told that voltage regulator is inside of alternator on mazda 3...

basically to make the story short, I didn't break this wire. it happened on it's own.... back on October I was stuck in Upstate New York in a very small town with dead alternator. while waiting for tow truck in motel parking lot, I started looking at all the wires and found this broken wire (I had to cut electrical tape and take plug apart in order to fix this break, this break looks very similar to MAF sensor wire breaks that happens on early mazda 3 ). I fixed it, but battery light didn't go away. eventually tow truck showed up and towed my car to mazda dealer in Watertown, NY. to my surprise they didn't have spare alternator so I had to buy new one from AutoZone, bring it to mazda and they installed it for me.

I tried searching internet in regards to what happens if this wire breaks and I don't think battery light will come on. Check engine light might come on because it provides power to some sensor, but I don't think by dead alternator was related to this broken wire... or I might be wrong