Electric system issues, please help.
Electric system issues, please help. It all started about 3 weeks ago when the weather here in California started to get really cold at night. I work the graveyard shift so the last couple of times it happened when my shift was over it was really foggy outside. Started to drive a couple of miles from work, suddenly I notice the gauge lights blinking and getting dim. Looked at the volt gauge, it had dropped to 9 or 10 volts and would jump upto normal then back down to 9/10 volts occasionally. Downshifted so the RPM's would be around 2-3k, it seems to help alittle but after a few minutes continuing to drive the volts would go back to normal and wouldn't drop anymore. Oh by the way this always happens when I'm crusing around 40-50mph in 5th gear (M6 tranny) and doesn't seem to effect how the motor is running at all. Noticed the last couple of rain storms we've had here it would do that same thing, but during the daytime or when there is very little moisture in the air it doesn't occur.
Now I had a billet tensioner pulley which started to make noise like the bearing was going out about a week & a half ago. Replaced it with a stock tensioner pulley from napa thinking maybe the pulley was locking up thus slowing the belt down. Nope when it lightly rained today it did the same thing, voltage dropped and returned to normal after a few minutes. Sorry for the novel, want to get as many details as I can. Any and all help is appreciated, thanks.
P.S. Could this be the internal voltage regular getting wet or my alternator about to take a ****?
Now I had a billet tensioner pulley which started to make noise like the bearing was going out about a week & a half ago. Replaced it with a stock tensioner pulley from napa thinking maybe the pulley was locking up thus slowing the belt down. Nope when it lightly rained today it did the same thing, voltage dropped and returned to normal after a few minutes. Sorry for the novel, want to get as many details as I can. Any and all help is appreciated, thanks.
P.S. Could this be the internal voltage regular getting wet or my alternator about to take a ****?
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 717
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From: Georgetown, DE
I had my SS do something like what you described. It's never done it again, so I didn't worry about it. If I remember correctly, it was also a cool and rainy night, when my SS acted up. So, cold and moisture may be a factor. The next time it's wet out, try spraying some WD-40 on the back of the alternator and anywhere else you think water might be a problem. WD-40 was originally designed as a water repellant for the military.
It's also possible that it could be one of the engine control sensors. Although, I am not entirely sure which one would cause those symptoms(perhaps MAF or TPS).
It's also possible that it could be one of the engine control sensors. Although, I am not entirely sure which one would cause those symptoms(perhaps MAF or TPS).
Last edited by HiTechGent; Dec 28, 2006 at 07:28 PM.
