Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Battery Light Flashing off Idle

My battery light started flashing when I was above idle. I took it and had it check. They said the battery was bad. OK 4 1/2 years old and 70k miles. I installed a new battery. At first no light but then it started again. Back to have the system checked again. This time everything checks OK. After I drove it for a while, No light! Great!
But again this morning it started flashing if the rpm's go above idle. While driving at speed and the light flashing I turned on the lights, no change. Then I turned on the driving lights too. It stop flashing and didn't do it agian even with the lights off. P.S. The clock light pulses at the same time the light is flashing.

Is your accessory belt tight? Perhps the tensioner is loose or installed wrong?

I haven't checked it. When they do a test on the system they put a load on the battery and then the alternator. I would have thought this would have shown up a loose belt.

Sounds like problem is coming from alternator; either charge indicator circuit faulty, or it is OK and the alternator is in fact not charging properly.

By clock flashing I presume you mean the ":", which ticks of the seconds, rather than the actual clock illumination.

If you paid to have bat/alt checked and new battery installed I would go back to shop that did it.

I didn't say clock flashing, I said pulsing. This means the brightness of the clock back light is going dim-bright-dim-bright.... along with the battery light going on and off. I took it back where I had the battery replaced. They did another check on the system and it checked out OK.

OK, OK. I can read.
Let me think about this ... on a full stomach ... I'll repost after lunch.

First thing to check for is loose connections. Of course the shop 'should' have checked this too but you never know. I just had the flashing battery light, it was caused by a corroded bad connection at the alternator output. You may notice the intensity of your headlights pulsating, also. Check all the following connections:

- alternator (3 connectors: 3-pin to voltage regulator, 1-pin to stator, eyelet connector to alternator output).

- eyelet connectors to power distribution box.

- battery cables (probly not the problem since you replaced the battery).

If you are sure all the connections are good and tight, then you *probably* need to replace the alternator or regulator. There are a few more diagnostics that are pretty easy to do yourself, I have just gone through it and have a '95 Factory Manual, PM me if you want more details. Of course, not sure if all this info will be perfectly valid for '98 SVT but it could give you some idea what to look for.

Sorry for delay, that was not a long lunch, computer froze up when proof-reading my post and I had to re-boot and start from scratch.

I have thought about your problem and have a strong feeling its the alternator. Here's a quick check, when you get the pulsing on clock turn on either dome light or vanity mirror light and see if they pulse too. If so, then I believe your bat light is telling the truth, i.e., something wrong with alt.

I have avoided further diagnostics on alt since you paid for problem to be fixed and they should fix it right. My suspicion is alt regulator or diode (both internal) and that alt is putting out some amps. When heavy load (headlights) applied battery smooths volts but on light load (clock illum.) fluctuations show up.

Pls try above and we'll keep an eye for your next post