Blinky battery light..but only in second gear??

[Chris Benvie]

Well i know its alternator time with this light, stock alternator with 131k on it will do that I guess..

But why is it blinking only in the lower RPM ranges of second gear?? Just doesn't make sense, is there something else i should know about?

 

[Rob94]

It's not your alternator. Or at least I don't think it is. I have a brand new alternator, two weeks old. At idle, I'm reading 15 volts with a multimeter. I have the same exact problem you are having. I assume you are traveling at approximately 20 MPH when the light blinks?? That is when the ABS motor cycles for a second as part of it's self-test. My battery light illuminates for a fraction of a second also. Working on hunting down the cause. I'll let you know when/if I find what is wrong if you'll do the same for me.

 

[Chris Benvie]

Rob94:
It's not your alternator. Or at least I don't think it is. I have a brand new alternator, two weeks old. At idle, I'm reading 15 volts with a multimeter. I have the same exact problem you are having. I assume you are traveling at approximately 20 MPH when the light blinks?? That is when the ABS motor cycles for a second as part of it's self-test. My battery light illuminates for a fraction of a second also. Working on hunting down the cause. I'll let you know when/if I find what is wrong if you'll do the same for me.

No shit, lemme know what its all about

 

[COliveira95]

AutobahnSHO1130:
Well i know its alternator time with this light, stock alternator with 131k on it will do that I guess..

But why is it blinking only in the lower RPM ranges of second gear?? Just doesn't make sense, is there something else i should know about?

It's your hood... You should give it to me...

 

[Chris Benvie]

COliveira95:

AutobahnSHO1130:
Well i know its alternator time with this light, stock alternator with 131k on it will do that I guess..

But why is it blinking only in the lower RPM ranges of second gear?? Just doesn't make sense, is there something else i should know about?

It's your hood... You should give it to me...

haha riight...thats gotta be it
$800 and its yours finger

 

[DigDeez]

Yeah, let me know too. Mines, though comes on whenever for brief moments, and I know it isn't the alternator too. It doesn't dim or brighten with more/less revving.

 

[oh_SHO]

Check the single (grey I think) wire running into the alt. Mine is strained due to a bad motor mount. Mine does sorta the samething...

 

[Bizzy]

yeah check the single wire with the little grey connector on the alt. My connector looks to have had someone melt it a little or something and it dosen't make a tight contact with the spade. I had alt troubles like what your decsribing only on acceleration in 2nd and 3rd gears. Sometimes it was worse in the rain. Well I wedged a part of a plastic pen cap in there, and since then I have never had any alt problems. I have 14.2 at idle with no load and 13.8 under full load at idle.

 

[Chris Benvie]

thanks everyone, i'll be trying these things tomm

if nothing works, then maybe it is the ABS

 

[Rob94]

It's not any of the wires. Anyone else have any ideas/suggestions. Interesting observation...if the headlights are ON, the battery light doesn't flicker. Now I'm beginning to lean towards a possible loose wire or questionable ground in the wiring behind the dashboard. Either way, I'm not too worried about it. If the car dies, it gets junked and replaced.

 

[rangerj]

Gentlemen,

Make sure you have clean connections, i.e. no corrosion hampering conductivity. Start at the battery terminals, then the grounds and positive cabels at ALL connections. Corrosion inside the battery cables is a possibility.

Clean all the connections at the alternator. You may want to have the alternator tested as well as the battery. The alternator could have a bad diode, faulty regulator, or brushes, or the battery could have a bad cell.

One additional thought. Pull a few fuses (gauges, lights, etc) and look for a light coating of oxidation (discoloring). Clean the spades of the fuses with fine sandpaper or emory cloth.
Just some thoughts, rangerj

 

[screaminsho]

Had the same problem myself, turned out to be a bad power lead going to the alternater.