I have always heard that you should get about 13.8-14max, so I'd say the 16-17 is too high. I would check that. For the sake of experimenting, disconnect the signal wire from the generator/VR to prevent it from charging (or somehow disable the generator charging system) and see if they work. If they do, then you will have narrowed it down, if not, then keep looking, but figure out why you have 16+ volts!!!