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1997 Buick Regal electrical problem

I am having an intermittent battery light indication on my 97 Regal. The electrical system was inspected Friday and all is well; charging level is

14.2 volts. This battery light occasionally comes on and will flicker a bit, but then "disappear" for weeks. The battery was replaced in the Fall; battery cables are tight. Could this be a voltage regulator that's going bad? If so, would that show up as a very intermittent type of battery light indication? Please e-mail off-list if you require more information.

Jeff jhermanwood(at)yahoodotcom

Reply to
Jeff W
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Could be. Could also be brushes worn down after 10 years and making intermittent contact.

Reply to
Paul

Alternator is aftermarket. I do not know when it replaced OEM. I bought car used 18 months ago. MORE INFO: Original engine (literally) blew up on me last summer driving over the continental divide near East Glacier, Montana. Mechanic who swapped engines (replaced w/2001 3.8L from salvage yard) thinks main bearing let go and that destroyed engine from the inside out. He re-used alternator that was on vehicle at the time.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff W

Wow! Sound like when my trans went out going over the divide in Colorado. Ok, I would take the wires off and clean and inspect them. Make sure the battery cables are clean. Same for all the grounds that you can find. If that does not help, then my next step would be to take the alternator apart and clean and inspect. Make sure the brushes are free to move easily.

Reply to
Paul

When I encounter a flickering battery light and the dashboard voltmeter indicates good voltage, in my experience the culprit has been a bad diode.

Reply to
James Goforth

When I encounter a flickering battery light and the dashboard voltmeter indicates good voltage, in my experience the culprit has been a bad diode.

Reply to
James Goforth

Excuse my naivete, but by "diode" do you mean the "light bulb" that comes on showing red? At any rate, I'm taking it into Buick dealer for oil change, etc., Friday and I'll have them take a look-see. Thanks for the tip, though.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff W

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