Loose battery connection or tuneup needed?

A bad connection on the battery is more likely to cause difficult starting.

Also, when the engine is running, the alternator is supplying all the voltage the vehicle needs.

What about at night, do the lights sometimes dim slightly?

A possibility is a faulty alternator or maybe an intermittent fault in the charging circuit. That would explain the gauge fluctuating, but I don't know how that would cause surging.

HTH Trefor

Air conditioner clutch engaging/disengaging?

Bill =================

Trefor wrote:

In my case , on my '94, those were the symptoms of the battery itself dieing.

It would start right up, run just long enough to get onto the main, busy street, then it would begin bucking, stalling, dieing, and not restarting. Let it sit for a few minutes, and it'd start right up again and run like a champ. About a month later, it died entirely and stopped starting. I replaced the battery and the problem never returned.

So it could giving you an early indication of an impending battery failure.

-dickm

My A/C isn't working, due to a bad compressor and low end pressure switch.

Jarrod

I noticed yesterday that there is no surge when I start it up initially, it runs smoothly. It's only after it's warmed up that this happens.

Jarrod

I noticed yesterday that there is no surge when I start it up initially, it runs smoothly. It's only after it's warmed up that this happens.

Jarrod

Another thing to check is the battery cables, especially the positive cable. This is a common problem on the early Explorers. They can deteriorate on the inside of the insulation and still look OK on the outside.