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I was out driving today (albeit on some bumpy roads), made a pit stop shutting off the car for about 15min, got back in the car and it was totally dead - no lights, no click, nothing. I had a battery pack, put it on the battery, and the car started right back up, no issues. Now, I am noticing that the battery voltage DIC is hopping all over the place ranging from about 13.5-14.2.
Now, the car is driving fine, made another stop for about an hour with the car off, got back in the car, started right back up, no DIC warnings/lights, battery voltage still fluctuating.
On my way home, I get ABS/Traction, Security, Reduced Engine Power, Shocks In-op. Get home, shut off the car, it starts right back up, and all the lights are gone, battery voltage still fluctuating.
Other Notes: I have not had this issue prior to today, battery is 1 year old, alternator may be original.
99 C5 with 96k miles
Thanks for the test chart. My guess is that your voltage regulator getting wonky on you. Sometimes they go intermittently and sometimes they just....go. I think that yours is the former.
Thanks for the test chart. My guess is that your voltage regulator getting wonky on you. Sometimes they go intermittently and sometimes they just....go. I think that yours is the former.
Thanks for the reply. Is the regulator a separate part? Or is it part of the alternator?
Have you checked your battery terminals, making sure they are clean and tight. Throughout my year of corvette ownership I have experienced problems that were corrected by simply tightening the battery terminals.
I forgot to mention that you should check the cable connections at the starter solenoid, this is where the cable from the alternator connects to the battery. Many charging problems can be caused by dirty loose connections at the starter solenoid.
Voltage all over the place on the instrument cluster and symptoms like "ABS/Traction, Security, Reduced Engine Power," point to a failing ignition switch. Other symptoms of a failing ignition switch are that all symptoms disappear on restart but some or all come back on another later start.
A failing ignition switch is difficult to positively identify because of the (at first) intermittent and seemingly widely different symptoms. As the contacts in the switch become burned from arcing at contact, the conductivity to various systems becomes more and more intermittent.
And-- of course it could be something else.
My car is on its third ignition switch in 21 years and 118,000 miles.
Voltage all over the place on the instrument cluster and symptoms like "ABS/Traction, Security, Reduced Engine Power," point to a failing ignition switch. Other symptoms of a failing ignition switch are that all symptoms disappear on restart but some or all come back on another later start.
A failing ignition switch is difficult to positively identify because of the (at first) intermittent and seemingly widely different symptoms. As the contacts in the switch become burned from arcing at contact, the conductivity to various systems becomes more and more intermittent.
And-- of course it could be something else.
My car is on its third ignition switch in 21 years and 118,000 miles.
The more I research, the more I think you might be on to something with the ignition switch...
Just a thought. Before replacing the ignition switch, try squirting some CRC Mass Air Flow Sensor Cleaner into the switch. Several years ago I had similar issues and did the 'squirt'. No further problems. I do the 'squirt' twice a year as part of my maintenance on the C5.
Just a thought. Before replacing the ignition switch, try squirting some CRC Mass Air Flow Sensor Cleaner into the switch. Several years ago I had similar issues and did the 'squirt'. No further problems. I do the 'squirt' twice a year as part of my maintenance on the C5.
Thank you, looked through that earlier. Honestly, If I am going to go through the time to get to the switch, and the part is relatively inexpensive, I might as well just replace the part.
Before you go replacing the Ignition switch try measuring the voltage at the alternator output terminal and ground and then measuring at the positive battery terminal and ground they should be the same.
Gave the battery terminals a crank, seemed fairly tight. Sprayed some MAF cleaner in the ignition. Car seems OK. I will continue to monitor and see if anyone else has suggestions.
St. Jude Donor '14-'15-'16-'17-'18-'19-'20-'21-'22-'23
Originally Posted by Vader_C5
Thank you, looked through that earlier. Honestly, If I am going to go through the time to get to the switch, and the part is relatively inexpensive, I might as well just replace the part.
We are back on the road, turns out that the cables to the battery were bad, and had them replaced at my local dealer (Hawthore Chevy)...Happy Motoring!
Battery/Charging Issue
