what can cause the battery light to be on

92sclikenew

Registered User
like it ask what can cause the battery light on the dash to come on. ok this is kind of weird the light only comes on after the car warms up after say 20min then after it has been warmed up it stays on untill the next day and its sat and got cold again.the car dont seem like its getting a dead battery in anyway.so....


is it time for an alternator?
 
It comes on when voltage drops below a certain point. I have a voltage gauge on my car. When my light came on the voltage was below 12 v. with the engine running and my lights were getting dim. I had the alternator rebuilt the next day.
 
It comes on when voltage drops below a certain point. I have a voltage gauge on my car. When my light came on the voltage was below 12 v. with the engine running and my lights were getting dim. I had the alternator rebuilt the next day.


see what i dont get the lights dont dim or anything.:rolleyes: could it be time for new ground and power cables?
 
Wouldn't hurt.

I'd pull the alternator and bench test it. Or just have it rebuilt or replaced. Your voltage regulator could be going bad or the brushes in the alt are wearing down.
 
yeah, sounds like the alternator is on the was out..... next time the light comes, measure the voltage at the battery post. if its reading in the 12V range its time for a new alternator.
 
Wouldn't hurt.

I'd pull the alternator and bench test it. Or just have it rebuilt or replaced. Your voltage regulator could be going bad or the brushes in the alt are wearing down.

yea its a reman its about 2 years old.:rolleyes: ;) cost me like 60$ i guess thats not bad .
 
response

i work at a propane company and always have problems with alternator lights, even with a new batery and alternator. my problem on one truck was dirty connections to the battery. just ran a battery cleaner on the posts put on a lil vasalene to keep them clean and no more problems with that truck.


another truck had the same new parts and the problem was battery cables were corroded inside the insulation. changed the wires and problem was gone.

idd say look at you battery posts and make sure they are clean and inspect the battery cables for signs of corrosion.
much cheaper than an alternator
 
I have a 98 Crown Victoria that has a bat light that comes and goes. WHen its on, I can put a volt meter on it and its fine. I even had it load tested and it tests fine. I was told that it "Could" be brushes. His came on at about 80,000 miles and at 130,000 it finally went out. My alternator is $200 for that car. I'll wait for it to die. I would definatley look at your cables. These can cause all kinds of weird problems. I have an F350 with the 7.3PS that would be really hard to start. I would have to Jump it to start. After cleaning the cables, I haven't had a problem it 6 months.
 
Wouldn't hurt.

I'd pull the alternator and bench test it. Or just have it rebuilt or replaced. Your voltage regulator could be going bad or the brushes in the alt are wearing down.

Scott, I tried that with the alternator in my 92 and the knuckleheads at both AutoZone and Advanced Auto couldn't figure out how to test the alternator because they didn't have the correct connectors.
 
Scott, I tried that with the alternator in my 92 and the knuckleheads at both AutoZone and Advanced Auto couldn't figure out how to test the alternator because they didn't have the correct connectors.

thats so funny same for me when i replaced the one that is going bad now:rolleyes: ;)
 
When I worked there I never had a problem checking alternators. I brought in my alternator and tested it when I was changing my head gaskets.

I don't remember the adapter harness to use anymore but they should have it. Probably just never learned how to use the test equipment. I used to test everything, starters/alternators/sensors/batteries/ignition modules.

We had a machine that could test them on the car, but then you could get a bad reading due to ground or cable issues. I always preferred to test the component off the vehicle. If it tests good on the bench, then you know the problem lies with the wiring or the ground.
 
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