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Check Gages light flickers

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Old Sep 25, 2008 | 09:32 PM
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Default Check Gages light flickers

as the title says the check gages (GM spells it wrong not me ) keeps flickering on and off when i throw it through some gears.... it just flickers, it doesnt stay on, the only thing that i have is i recently put 2 10" subs in the trunk, i dont think this has anything to do with it... but everything looks fine and it has a full tank of gas.
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Old Sep 25, 2008 | 10:09 PM
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woah...i have NEVER heard this before did you install the system? when you took the radio out did you touch anything behind the head unit? how do you have your ignition wire ran? do you have ignition or is it ran off a fuse?
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Old Sep 26, 2008 | 07:20 AM
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Originally Posted by 2004RST
woah...i have NEVER heard this before did you install the system? when you took the radio out did you touch anything behind the head unit? how do you have your ignition wire ran? do you have ignition or is it ran off a fuse?
the cable running from the amp comes off fuse and accesories post... the only thing i noticed is today that my battery gage is going into the yellow when the light is going on, its a brand new alternator tho so it couldnt be that.... i remember that i broke the cable going off the alternator and had to solder it back together... anyone got any ideas?
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Old Sep 26, 2008 | 08:41 AM
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EDT:

Ooopppsss. I need to read better. I thought it was SES flickering.

Last edited by VIP1; Sep 26, 2008 at 01:10 PM.
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Old Sep 26, 2008 | 12:36 PM
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Is your gas tank full?
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Old Sep 26, 2008 | 01:11 PM
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Originally Posted by wssix99
Is your gas tank full?
Good point. The "Check Gages" light comes on when the needle hits "E". You might be shifting hard enough to slosh the fuel in the tank and if the level is low enough, you might trigger the light.

But that wouldn't explain the battery gauge reading low when that happens. I'd say double check the solder connection you did and other nearby connections in case something came apart.

Last edited by VIP1; Sep 27, 2008 at 10:35 PM. Reason: spelling
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Old Sep 27, 2008 | 09:51 PM
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Originally Posted by VIP1
Good point. The "Check Gages" light comes on when the needle hits "E". You might be shifting hard enough to slosh the fuel in the tank and if the level is low enough, you might trigger the light.

But that wouldn't explain the batter gauge reading low when that happens. I'd say double check the solder connection you did and other nearby connections in case something came apart.
nope full tank, i looked at my oil tho and it was kinda low... i noticed that the oil pressure "gage" was kinda low could this be it? i couldnt get any royal purple this late at night so ill get it tomorrow.
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Old Sep 27, 2008 | 11:03 PM
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It has to do with your alternator/battery. Have them both checked. They could both be fine, but maybe you're drawing more power than your alternator can put out. Try looking into a high output alternator, it'll save you from these headaches in the future, especially if you're running a system.
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Old Sep 28, 2008 | 06:07 PM
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Originally Posted by blindxeyed
It has to do with your alternator/battery. Have them both checked. They could both be fine, but maybe you're drawing more power than your alternator can put out. Try looking into a high output alternator, it'll save you from these headaches in the future, especially if you're running a system.
its only a 600W amp and 2 10" subs and an alternator thats maybe 6 mo old, should it be doing this? can i just get a smaller pulley for it?
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Old Sep 28, 2008 | 06:12 PM
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Originally Posted by NeedaV8foundation
its only a 600W amp and 2 10" subs and an alternator thats maybe 6 mo old, should it be doing this? can i just get a smaller pulley for it?
I'm just going by what I've dealt with in the past. I've gone through 3 alternators with a year and a half. All crappy rebuilt ones from Advance Auto. Everytime one starts to go out, the voltage gauge starts dipping and the check gauges light comes on.

I still suggest you have the battery and alternator both checked. But I'm 99% sure it has to do with your alternator, or the connection going to it.
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Old Sep 28, 2008 | 11:41 PM
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it's def. the alternator connection, i just had this problem and it turned out the connection was loose and worn out, it would flicker every time it shifted and if i hit a bump in the road, the connection would just wiggle in and out of the plug when there was a jerk or bump, and every time my battery gauge would drop when the light flickered and shoot back up when it went off.
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Old Sep 30, 2008 | 10:30 PM
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found the problem, the wire for the gauge was burnt and hitting the alt causing it to short... fixed. thanks guys
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