chronic139 Posted September 2, 2002 Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 Last night i noticed my car idleing very irregularly. It sounded like increasing then decreasing and so on.This prompted me to do a quick scan of the guages, on which I found the voltage to be below 13 (im guessing around 10 or 11). I parked it last night and went out this morning to check and it is the same. It starts without trouble. I thought maybe alternator but the sounds seem to be coming from the power steering oump. Any suggestions?? :shock: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 2, 2002 Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 I just recently replaced the alternator on my '94 Cutlass. Before I replaced it, the voltage on the gauge was low and the engine seemed to be whining a little more than usual. When I listened to it, I couldn't tell if it was the alternator or the power steering pump. There were two things that verified the alternator was the problem. First, the ABS warning light had come on a couple of times. Both at night. I'm not sure if your car has ABS, but if the light has come on recently, that's a good indicator that the alternator is not charging enough. GM designed the system very well. The ABS system uses quite a bit of electricity. If the system 'notices' that the alternator is not producing enough charge, it disables itself. You will still have brakes, but not anti-lock control. This conserves power to allow the car to make it farther if the alternator has failed. Second, I hooked up a voltmeter to the battery posts while the car was running and stopped. There was very little change when the car was started. Basically, I did this to verify that the gauge was reading correctly. Hope this information is helpful. Tony Graczyk '94 Olds Cutlass SL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted September 2, 2002 Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 Start your car and unhook your battery. If it stalls the alt. isn't charging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronic139 Posted September 2, 2002 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 sorry, the car is a 3.4 by the way if this makes any difference. (besides the huge pain in the ass it gives me if its the alt). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronic139 Posted September 2, 2002 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 oh and one more question. Is there a voltage regulator on these cars? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STR Posted September 2, 2002 Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 oh and one more question. Is there a voltage regulator on these cars? built into the alt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronic139 Posted September 2, 2002 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 thats what I thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted September 2, 2002 Report Share Posted September 2, 2002 sorry, the car is a 3.4 by the way if this makes any difference. (besides the huge pain in the ass it gives me if its the alt). Sorry, didn't know it was a 3.4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead43 Posted September 3, 2002 Report Share Posted September 3, 2002 Sounds to me like it needs an idle relearn.... Try this http://www.60degreev6.com/articles/maint/general/idle.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronic139 Posted September 4, 2002 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2002 well it was the alt. Barely made it to work on no voltage. Spent 4 hours and almost completed. Another half or so tomorrow morning. What a bitch of a job. Hope it dont die again in my ownership of the car. Then again I plan to keep it forever so who knows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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