I having electrical problems the lights are dimming and every electronic display also when I check to power on the DIC it under 13 usually 12,5 and jumps down. I did drained the battery one, but I don think it has to do with that also when I start the car the DIC will tell me like above 13 then I drive fore some time and I drops. What should I check ?

 

PM Bill Curlee, he can help you

 

Check the battery connections.

 

Check the alternator output. If it has good voltage, then check the battery voltage. If it is low, then check continuity in between and check all connections in between.

 

 

what year is the car? how old is the battery?

 

car is 97 the battery i dont know but it looks newer like 2-3 years

 

If you don't have an amp/volt meter to check the alternator output and battery voltage just take it by a local Autozone or any auto parts store and they will usually check it for free! Good luck

 

what is the AMP/voltage that i should get ?

 

With the engine off, you should see a solid 12.5 volts on the battery. With the engine running you should see 13.8 to 14.3. Changing loads such as turning on the lights and off again, you should see the voltage change a little then recover right away.

 

with the car running im under 13

 

Bill, Wow what a weekend I had finding my electrical issue. I basically went through every ground and removed my aftermarket alarm system that was installed on the car before I bought it. That all still didn't work. I read your thread about the ignition contacts having burnt carbon on them. Well what do you think I found. I took my dash apart and removed the ignition. I took the green connector off and found that all of the contact had burnt carbon on them. I took my dremel tool and clean them. Put everything back together and the dreaded electrical issue are GONE!!!!!. Well i ques now that my grounds are clean and the ignition switch is clean as well.

Thanks for all of your hard work on all of these threads. I couldn't of figured it out for people like yourself and others on the forum.

Thanks again

 

Kimil

Man,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,owning a 97,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,you most likely have LOTs to do to solve your electrical issues. Your car is 11+ years old and some of the grounds are most likely compromised. I have a post that you probably take a look at. It explains a lot about common electrical issues. If you service your grounds,,,,make SURE you soak them over night in some sort of penetrating oil. Even then,,they might ring off when you remove them for cleaning/inspection. If they do,,,just repalce the stud witha self tapping sheet metal screw.

Here are some of the things that may be causing you electrical issues :

1. Chassis Grounds. Examine each one and clean them.
2. Battery Connections. Clean the connections and MAKE SURE that you torque the battery terminals to 11 FT /LBS

3. Examine your STARTER solenoid connections. They can and do work loose. Your alternator charging circuit goes THROUGH the solenoid connections. They MUST be tight, clean and in good condition.

Examine the connection on the back of the alternator. It MUST be clean and tight.

4. Battery condition. Have your battery tested and make sure that its in good shape.

5. Ignition switch> As our cars age, electrical switches will start to fail. The ignition switch is one that will sooner or later. I will be cleaning mine SOON! I have a post on how to clean it for FREEEEEE

Dont get me wrong. Theres NOTHING wrong with a 97. Its just aged more than the other C5s and will need some extra attention.

BC

 

bill I’m gone clean the grounds *** sun as I can but how would you explain that the voltage starts to drop after 4-5 minutes of driving,

start up it tells me 9 V then in a second it jumps to 14 I drive it fore 4-5 minutes and then I get the lights dimming and 11-12.5 V also on startup I started getting a noise like its coming from the drive belt.

so far I check my connection to the battery and alternator and they are perfect can you plays help my I want to put HID and some other things in the car and I want to fixed this problem first.


also at the same time that I started to get the V drop I put in the harness bypass because of the LED DRL I put in this is the post for that,

and also my head lights will not come on if I have the driving lights on I have to turn them off and the turn the **** feast then they come on


http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1995689

is it possible fore the harness to be doing this ?

 

One thing that must be checked and not assumed is the battery condition. It may be something else, but you must confirm that the battery is good before running in circles. A heavily sulphated battery will act like a full battery to the charging circuit, even though it will not take a full charge. When the reg reads the battery acting like it is full it cuts down the charging rate, which could explain the rate coming down after a few minutes of driving. Do a load test on it to determine if it is in fact good, and look under it under the tray to make sure you did not have a previous acid leak reak havoc with your electronics, after you confirm the battery as good then you can move on to what has been posted.
Good Luck.

 

gone do that today

 

READ #4 in my recommendations! Remove the battery, take it in to a service center that can load test a battery and determine if it is good or bad!

C5s and C6s DO NOT tollerate low voltage very well. It causes all sorts of strange issues. The issues will be different in different cars with the exact same bad battery.

Until you determine the battery condition,,,were just guessing. If your seeing 9 volts at start up, that battery is TOAST!

Remember! Battery voltage is inversly porportional to battery current. When the starter pulls 300-400 amps out of the battery, battery voltage will go low. If the battery cant supply enough voltage ( 9 VDC ) STRANGE THINGS WILL HAPPEN!

BC

 

you right, and thank you fore the time your taking to help my, if I need a new battery what should I buy

 

I would get a standard lead acid battery. WALMart batteries works well. You can purchase THREE walmart batteries for the price of ONE OPTIMA!

The OPTIMAs work well but are EXPENSIVE! I have a red top and the first one failed with in 6 Mo. This one (the other one was replaced under the OPTIMA warranty) is going on its 5th year and is just starting to signs of needing replacement.

 

I’m sorry but can you specify on what kind of battery I need like model # or what should I look fore