lights randomly dimming

[silvercivic4]

i got a 97 honda civic dx...ever since i have had the car the lights have been dimming spuraticaly. When it happens even the lights in the car go dim, like the dash lights. What is up with this? i just had a bunch of work done and the distributor cap and rotor were replaced, along with the plugs and wires... What could be causing my lights to randomly go dim and bright all the time?? any help would be well appreciated...peace

[marked001]

do you have a big system or anything?

does the battery light come on?

[fritz_269]

Could be a dying alternator or regulator. Does the engine stumble when the lights dim? Do the lights ever dim when you're going (like on the freeway)?
:smoker2:

[silvercivic4]

to answer your questions, no idont have a big system, just a 300 watt amp to power 2 12 inch subs, but this problem existed long before the installation of the amp. To answer your question fritz, yes it does happen on the highway, thats when i notice it most, the lights dim so much it almost looks like i am flashing the people in front of me, it gets to be quite a pain in the ass..any advice you could offer is greatly appreciated..thanks

[ACCSlvCivic]

Yeah, i have the same problem.. It's been realy bugging me! Any ideas on what the problem is would be very helpful
Thanks

[Tofuboy]

Could be a dying alternator or regulator

Actually fritz, I think it might be best to check the specific gravity of the battery first, It might be sulfated or low on electrolyte. This will cause low amperage output to the battery and low stage of charge. In this case, it seems to me the battery is taking charge, but probably in a very low stage. If there is nothing wrong with the battery than it would probably be the charging system (Correct me if I am wrong).

Try to find out the Specific Gravity first and then we can follow up after that by doing some more tests to qualify the battery.

Sometimes it could be a very simple connection problem, so be aware of any loose connection from your battery to your charging system as well.



PS. Is there anyway I can reclaim my posts from before?

[91HBSi]

Mine does that when the AC is on. I am sure you would kinda figure it out if that were the problem. :licker:

[fritz_269]

As it happens at freeway speeds, my first and best guess is that you have an intermittent short and/or open somewhere in main charging circuit. This can be an absolute b*tch to track down.

Clean the alternator terminals and track the positive wire as far as you can to make sure it's insulation is all intact and in good condition. Do the same for the positive battery cable(s). Clean the top of the battery to make sure the terminals aren't shorting across the crud that accumulates there. As tofuboy suggests, checking the water level in the battery is a good idea too. Could also be an internal short or open in either the alternator, regulator, or battery.

As a catch-all, take it to Sears or someplace that has a free charging system test. See what they say.

Sorry I can't be of more help. Good luck.

[ACCSlvCivic]

With my car it all kinda happened at once. My speedometer quit working (it reads 0 mph, execpt and occational time when it spikes up to 100+mph (not an accurate reading most of the time)). my tripometer isn't working either, so that's kinda cool. My check engine light came on at the same time. Also now when i'm driving my lights dim and brighten almost at all time. I can turn AC, radio, everything you can think of, off and it's -still- dims. When i'm idling at a stoplight my RPMs bounce between 500 and 1.2k.. as the RPMs go up, my lights dim, and as they go down, the lights brighten back up again. Also if i manually give it a tap of gas it has the same effect. Any ideas or am i stuck having to pay some fags $80 just to get my check engine light checked?
thanks

[sparq]

Just as a stupid pointless comment...

Back when I had my 1988 cutlass Supreme (first year with the newer body style) I had some electrical problems and I didnt really notice the problem till I got the car back from Florida. I would turn the car off, and the driver side seat would move (power seats) and it would adjust itself, it was kinda freaky... but I figured the short had to be here since I figured a seat moving after the car was shut off probably was a good sign... I had to yank the power for it, and presto no more problems. I would say you have a short some place, and/or possibly loose connections somewhere along the way (ground on the car from batter... at the battery positive and negative themselves) or possibly your alternator is going... Such a pain in the arse, once one thing goes ~ everything wants to go with it... lol!

[ric]

just for informations sake check alldata and you will find that some of the 97 civics had voltage regulator problems and there was a bulletin put out about it. call honda and fight with them, who knows they might give you a new alternator like they did with my old civic (which is a 97).

also in the mean time reinforce your grounds....engine to chassis, tranny to chassis and the big one battery to chassis. i actually had the messed up alternator in th car while i put three huge 4 gauge wires from the - terminal to the chassis (requires drilling) and had my 700 watt stereo at full blast with sine waves and it only dimmed the lights a very small bit. when i got the new juice maker it was all good from there out.