ford taurus: battery light & abs, does weird things &amp

Apr 27, 2005 4 Replies
A

hello all,



I could really use some help with this odd-ball problem. I have a ford taurus and the ABS light has been on for ever. Took it to the dealer and they couldn't find a problem with it. The last couple of days the battery light has been comming on as well. I sort of ignored it as the ABS light has been on and the car runs fine. Then today out of the blue while I was driving the doors unlocked, the radio turned off and the mile gauge went to 0 even though I was going about 40. shortly after the car started sputtering and died.



When I tried to restart the car it did nothing. However after maybe



30 min. or so it ran fine again, for maybe 5 blocks and then did the same thing. Good news is we were able to drive it home this way. However I have no idea what it could be. Can the Altenater or battery cause a Ford to do this sort of thing?? I would really appreciate any theories on this one.
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A

check the output from the alternator, its likely that its a low voltage problem as the ABS is (sometimes) the first thing to show a warning as this circuit requires good voltage to operate correctly. its possible that a diode packed up (in the alternator) a while back when your ABS light came on, it will still charge in this state but at a reduced current. it also puts extra strain on the remaining 2 diodes. steve.

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J

If you were able to start your car several times, it was not the battery or alternator.

I suspect that it is a problem a computer or sensor.

Jeff

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I

l;mfao

good one jeff

check alt and battery voltage

hurc ast

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M

I faced the same problem with my 99 Taurus SE. Unfortunately on my way when it died out I could not restart and had to tow it back. I tried jum starting it later and it worked. But a local mechanic told me that it may not solve the problem for good.

I too am getting flickering battery indicator but am not sure if the battery is causing the problem or the alternator/power cables. Any help would be appreciated since I don't want to take it right away to a mechanic and get a hefty estimate and scary theories of what not all needs to be replaced.

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