Battery light turns on and off

[PhroZen101]

For the past few days my battery light has been turning on and off like there is a short somewhere. I checked the poles on the battery and they are on tight. What else should I look for before i take it into the shop?? The only mod i have done that deals anywhere close to the battery is the subs I put in a while back, but it was fine when i first put them in, so i don't think that is the problem. Let me know what you think.

[4kQuad]

Lots of times that point to a dieing alt. If other lights start flashing it's even a better sign the alt is on it's way out.

The cables may be tight, but crap can and does still build up under the connections. It may be well worth your time to just remove the + and - and clean them up good and the battery were they hook to.

If you have a meter and know how to use it, see how much juice is going through the system. If it reads less than 12, it's the alt.

[true_cal]

Have you recently had a recall done on your ignition relay ?
I had mine done and Gm f*cked the wiring on it which totally screwed up my charging system, at first they lied and claimed the charge fault (battery) light was on, then i requested a wiring diagram from them, upon receiving that, i proved to them that they had messed up on wiring the relay.. (at first they said its not true, but when i brought the sales manager out and showed him the car still starts when the relay is disonnected, and showed him the wires running off to the alternator) ... took the idiots 3hrs to fix and cost me nothing.!.. cept the $200 alternator.. which i am gonna go fight to get reimbursed for...(its their fault mine broke) .... other than that like 4kQuad said its the alternator on its way out, or bad connections... another way to test it is to take out the alternator and bring it in for a bench test. Good Luck!

[PhroZen101]

Well, i just replaced the alt about 3 months ago and yes I did get a recall on the ignition relay a little over a year ago and its just now starting to flash on and off. Well, I will try cleaning the poles, hopfully that helps.

[RocketFast321]

Bench test at a place like autozone are 90% correct. They test out good on the bench but bad when they run the test with it on the car. Example a man came in to the zone one day got an rebuilt alt, with life time replacement for his astro. He put it on his van and the thing did not work. It tested out good on the bench when he brought it back. So we relly could not exchange it. So he came back in in teh van and we tested it while it was still on it. Guess what, it was bad. The point of that was.....
1. Alt(s) from autozone suck
2. I say test it while it's still on the car.

[buckeyejack]

That's one thing I don't like about my car,no alt. gauge, just idiot lights for such a cruesial componet as the charging system. Though about putting my own gauge in ,but where would I put it for a clean look? And yeah, auto zone alt. suck.

[rixGAphx]

Like 4k said ^ ^ ^.

And, I've had replacement alts. die in less than 3 months, so don't *assume* "It's pretty new so that can't be the problem."

Another issue: As the old alternator was failing, did the battery go dead and need recharging?
Everytime that happens, the battery suffers a little permanent damage and it won't ever recover. Something about a film or coating developing on the plates that inhibits the ability to be recharged, I dunno, I'm not a chemical engineer.
Anyhow, in 3 months, the batteries condition has further deteriorated (just basic age), the terminals have gotten a little dirtier/more corroded, and the weather is much colder causing more stress on the battery.
Heck, it might even be low on water (distilled water) if it's the type you can check.

Finally, a set of really bad/corroded/loose/dirty cables, or a very bad battery, can cause the alternator to work extremely hard trying to charge a battery that won't take a charge or connections that can't pass the charge.
The result is the alternator fries a diode (a small internal part), and the alternator fails (again).

Good luck.
-Rick

[RocketFast321]

Originally posted by buckeyejack
That's one thing I don't like about my car,no alt. gauge, just idiot lights for such a cruesial componet as the charging system. Though about putting my own gauge in ,but where would I put it for a clean look? And yeah, auto zone alt. suck.

You can put one in first air vent in the center since not that much air comes out of it. anyways