Uh-Oh! Blinky Lights...

[tresola]

I've noticed a few times now, especially in the morning, the lights on the dash around the odometer, the dome light and ever so slightly even the headlights are blinky. By this, I mean it looks as though they're not getting full power or there's a short because you can see them going from full power to dim, full power to dim, etc. They don't go out or anything, but they're not a constant. This morning the dome light was erratic enough it drove me nuts while I was finding something in my glove box. I have noticed the car running slightly rougher lately but that may be due to sitting in traffic a bit in the morning. I just had the oil changed Saturday morning. I am assuming this problem means something is going out in the charging system, probably the alternator? Ugh.

So if it is the alternator, what's a good replacement and what's the average cost for the part, and then for labour? I have the 6 cylinder.

I guess I can't say too much, its at 162,500 and I've had about what, 4,000 trouble-free miles and 500 miles past the oil change mark (I'm so sorry!). It still beats out any vehicle I have owned at this point!

[Dawgz]

well, you could check the voltage when ur car is off, and then check when its on.

You can also go to autozone and get the alternator checked for free.

[tresola]

Yeah, that's a great idea, I didn't even think of that. I think my bf mentioned having a voltage meter that you plug into the cigarette lighter.

I remember when the alternator went out in my Topass the car just plain didn't start one night. Just like that. At least if I have warning right now...! I also have a squeaky belt from that side of the car even though my belts are new. I don't know if it has anything to do with this or not either, I was thinking sometimes the squeaking may be a bearing somewhere?

[Dawgz]

Yeah, that's a great idea, I didn't even think of that. I think my bf mentioned having a voltage meter that you plug into the cigarette lighter.

I remember when the alternator went out in my Topass the car just plain didn't start one night. Just like that. At least if I have warning right now...! I also have a squeaky belt from that side of the car even though my belts are new. I don't know if it has anything to do with this or not either, I was thinking sometimes the squeaking may be a bearing somewhere?

U could try a silicone spray on the belt, just a quick dab to see if its the belt or something else making the noise.

[Ilovemylara]

Mine does this usually at really low rpms, and ALWAYS on cold mornings. I can see my blue reverse glow gauges kinda "flickering". Pretty sure its normal, becuase my car has done it since the first day I got it, and no alternator failure of any kind. Come to think of it, I'm pushing close to 1000 watts through my subs, on the stock alternator, and it STILL hasn't crapped out on me. I wouldn't worry about it.

[youngblood]

Saw something similar on a '08 chrysler town and country with low miles. I told my co-worker (who had just purchased it w/ warranty) to take it in to have it checked out. She hadn't even noticed it but I noticed right away. It was a very rhythmic pulsation of every light including the gauge lighting. I'm pretty sure she never took it in and hasn't had any related problems. That was months ago....

My '04 with orig. battery and alternator (69k miles) doesn't do it at all.

[gnegroni]

Voltage regulator (part of the alternator)?

[tresola]

I used my bf's voltage meter to test it last night and this morning. You plug this thing into the cigarette lighter, and its supposed to flash yellow when the car's not running and green when its running. The good news is that it is yellow when not running and green when running, however the red light on the meter is flashing constantly, which means the system is overcharging. Its actually blinking quite well, so that really worries me! What's going on, and what can I do about it? I am worried about things going rampant in the system, and I wonder if that's why I have some bulbs out in the dash.

Any advice?

[BLACK V6]

Mine does it when I listen to music...

[tresola]

Well this morning about halfway to work the lights started really flash- the D on the dash, odometer, clock, headlights etc. The cd player also started cutting out a few times too! The car has seemed a little more sluggish lately as well. Oh yeah, the first time the cd skipped I had turned on the front defrost because my window was fogging up on me again (I think I have a slight leak on the corner of the windshield). I really don't think this is a good sign! There are a couple of dealers by where I live but I don't think much of any of them. My favourite is now about twenty five minutes away from me. But would the overcharge that we read from the tester mean a bad alternator still? My friend also suggested it might be a loose cable. ?? Any last thoughts before I take my wonderful savings to the dealership?

[gnegroni]

Any electromechanic or autozone should be able to point out the problem for free...

[tresola]

We're assuming its the voltage regulator. I ran the entire commute with the tester on, I do get a solid yellow light on the tester whenever I especially hit the rear defrost. It also flashed yellow when it was warming up when I was stopping for stop lights. Nothing on the onramp tho, where we crawled for a couple of minutes to be let on the highway. It seems to be at its worst the longer it runs, especially in the coldest mornings. This morning nothing was flashing but like I said I was afraid the car was going to die yesterday! So we can safely say that this problem is tied to colder weather.

I'll be going to the parts store tonight to pick up some stuff to scrub up the battery connectors. They're a tiny bit corroded but we thought it wouldn't hurt to try anyways. I might was well have them test the system at the same time. Otherwise we're assuming its the alternator and will be replacing it either this weekend or early next week. I could run on this problem for a long time, but given my commute on a busy highway, with winter coming, I'd be foolish to let it go and see if the car dies. It'll start up great, so it will be when I'm driving its going to die. Um, no thanks!

Depending what all is figured out at Autozone and how much repairs cost me (we're doing it ourselves) I want to throw some Moog sway bar links in the front end to match the rear end. The car is just a little too floaty for my likes, and I want things stiffened up for the awful winter weather ahead. Besides, anything to make you corner faster is good.

[campfire9]

You probably have everything at your house to clean your battery cables. All you need is baking soda and water and a paper cup. Put in about 1/3rd baking soda and fill the rest of the cup with water. Stir very well and then place the battery cable end into the mixture. You will see the mixture bubble indicating that its working. Let it set for a while then use an old toothbrush and the solution to really clean the cable. Don't forget to use the solution on the battery posts also. You can get battery cable protector spray at the parts house to use after you are finished.

One more thing. Always wash a new battery with this solution before you install because there is always acid on the case and you lessen your chances of having troubles later on.

[GreenSolara01]

You probably have everything at your house to clean your battery cables. All you need is baking soda and water and a paper cup. Put in about 1/3rd baking soda and fill the rest of the cup with water. Stir very well and then place the battery cable end into the mixture. You will see the mixture bubble indicating that its working. Let it set for a while then use an old toothbrush and the solution to really clean the cable. Don't forget to use the solution on the battery posts also. You can get battery cable protector spray at the parts house to use after you are finished.

One more thing. Always wash a new battery with this solution before you install because there is always acid on the case and you lessen your chances of having troubles later on.

x2

The charging system on cars can go up to 14 volts, a battery normal range is between 11 and 14 volts. If it is cold out your car will be ideling higher witch would make more volts. Your battery in cold will be lower closer to 11 volts the flickering is probably just you alternator charging the battery.

I wouldn't trust that volt metter that plugs into the cig lighter. parts stores can check both battery and alt if you are really worried.

[tresola]

From Friday-Sunday the car was absolutely perfect. No blinky lights, no low lights, nothing. I got a solid green on the tester (yeah I'm sure they're not as reliable as the regular testers) with a yellow only when turning on the rear defrost. I took two hour long drives, and it was behaving like its normal self.

Of course, this morning back at the commute, the car went totally screwy again! It was the same temperature and same conditions as driving Saturday and Sunday morning, just without all the traffic. I thought maybe it could be slower stop and go speeds causing the problems. The car has never shown any distress on the metered onramp, or on city streets. There seems to be a particular stretch of road in the morning that if the car is going to act up, its that particular stretch. Here's the story in short- I get on the highway at about 50mph, I hit 60-70mph for about a span of 5 minutes, then it will be crawling traffic for about a minute or so, slightly uphill, then it clears out, and I hit about 50-55mph, go in the righthand lane, then hit my exit. Its the spot between where I slow down and then move over to the righthand lane, that's where most often the lights go blinky. Having the lights on, a/c on, etc. does not make a difference. The blinking did not cease until after I was parked and turned off the ignition.

I have noticed the car almost seems like it wants to quit when the blinking's at its worst, but it never has. I also noticed worse mileage than what I was getting a month ago. I was pulling an easy 23-25mpg, same speeds, same commute, and the last two fillups was at about 19mpg. I was reading about engine coolant temp sensors and kind of wondering if I might have a sensor misbehaving or something.

Since the car didn't act up all weekend, I dismissed the problem, well, until this morning that is. I have to make sure there's shoulder where I drive now, because I worry one of the times the electric cuts out, the car's going to too! I am going to Midas when I get off work and have them do a complete charging system check on the car; they do it for free. Depending what their readings say, we'll go from there. We don't know how old or how good the battery is, it has no writing on it that we can see. Its a Wenzer brand I think, wherever they sell that. So, the battery could still be suspect. I wish it was just that, easy replacement!

I'll let you know what happens over at Midas and on the way home today. I've only had the car misbehave a couple of times ever on the way home, it seems to be just on the way to work, that one particular stretch of road especially! But the problem is unpredictable and unduplicatable. Crap.

Any suggestions or thoughts you have, please shoot 'em out! Hopefully these pieces of the puzzle will come together and we can solve it before I have to bring it into the dealer and have them tell me, for $100, there's nothing wrong with the car.