Hello all,
My extended warranty expired a few months ago and now I have to work on this car myself.
I replaced the CPS a couple of months ago and now I am having the infamous electrical problems.
The headlights have flickered for years. My wife left the parking lights on a couple of weeks ago, so I replaced the battery. I figured it was about 5 yrs old and I didn't trust the charging system as it seemed the headlights were going dim for several minutes at a time, so why chance it.
Christmas Eve my wife calls me to tell me the car died. After having it towed to the house this is what I found. The battery was about completely dead. I charged the battery and started the car. Using my Fluke meter I noticed 14.5 volts at the battery. Then, the engine RPMs jump up a couple of hundred and the voltage creeps down to 12 volts and below. I notice the engine drops a few hundred RPM and the voltage kicks back up again. This is all within about 1 to 2 minutes time. It did this cycle several times just sitting in the driveway.
Either something is happening where the alternator craps out, or it is not getting pulled for anything. I guess this is why the rpms rise when the voltage drops. No load on the alternator means more horsepower for the engine. Something happens to tell it to come back on, and the load on the engine comes in. Either that, or I am totally wrong.
I would hate to spend the $$$ and time to attempt a replacement (I figure Bosch) to find it is something else. Anyone else experience these symptoms? I wish these things had external regulators, as I would assume it is more of the problem then the alternator itself.
BTW...my dealer supposedly replaced the alternator under our extended warranty some time ago to fix the headlight issue, which it didn't fix. The part does look pretty clean, although I can't see too much of it.
And finally....how do I replace this thing? I am dreading removing the thermostat housing to introduce air into the cooling system. I know that would be my next project if I do.
Thanks,
Don