Rain issues....

[Nick2gGST]

So i've noticed a few things when I drive in the rain ( i have no a/c the compressor dont work so that sucks but i digress)

One: When I'm driving my radio turns off and on and off and on and off...Checked the radio the wires are all connected very good and properly. What could this be?

Two: Some slowwww starting when it's raining out. It'll start right away but its sloww i turn the key and it's like rarrrr rarrrrrrr start.

I had an issue with the battery cable end for the power side so i chopped that off and replaced it with a good one. Seemed to work at first but now it's doing the same thing again, the connections to the terminal are good, no exposed wires or anything. Also at a red light (with my directional on) with every tick of the flasher it clicks up 100rpm and down.

help

 

[Rex2342]

Alright cool well I will see how things go tomorrow. I don't know about swapping to a saturn alt. Just because the wiring and whatever may not be worth it I really don't plan on any more electrical load to speak of.

The Saturn swap is a nice alternative. I've actually been thinking about it myself (4 alternators in 2 years for me). The Saturn alternators are cheaper, more common, and better quality than the DSM units. The downside is that you have to custom fit them or get the relocation kit from jayracing.com. I doubt anywhere but a speed shop would install it for you though. First things first. Get yours tested and see if it's the problem.

 

[dsmtun3r98gst]

I dnt see any good reason for sumone to swap into a saturn alternator when the OEM one works just fine. seem kinda of a dumb thing to do, thats just my opinion. (any alternator is prone to failure sooner or later, its just a matter of how good it gets rebuilt, and also dnt forget the heat factor cus ive seen a lot of people runnig a O2 housing without sum sort of heat shield, heat causes alternators to go bad prematurely as well)

 

[Nick2gGST]

Eh there's something for everyone, everyones got a reason I just need to get my car back on the road asap.

 

[Nick2gGST]

So it was the alternator. The casing itself had the bolts falling out of it, the little thin ones holding it together. So I got it replaced with a 7 year warranty. Anyways since it was cutting out the radio could it have been messing with the fans and stuff turning on and off properly causing the car to run slightly hot? I mean it did effect the radio and other electronics like the headlights.

 

[Rex2342]

I suppose it's possible. If it was putting out to much voltage it would cause all types of problems. Those little bolts you're talking about always back out. I usually remove them and add a bit of thread lock to keep them in place. So did you get it fixed now?

 

[97gst_spyder]

One way to test the alt is to start the car and unplug the battery. If the car keeps running the alt is fine. If the car stops running then the alt is bad.

 

[Nick2gGST]

the alternator is BAD...the bolts fell out and pretty much the alternator was splitting in two pieces...got it fixed car seems to be running great now!

 

[Nick2gGST]

So the car's all fixed, the radio stays on and the lights are much brighter. HOWEVER...there is an issue...at night when my lights are on they pulsate..they don't shut off they just dim and brighten...not too drastically, it's not very noticeable, but why could this be? Alternator was installed professionally. and was tested and all that.

 

[97gst_spyder]

Check the battery, alt connections. Go to autozone and have them check the alt and battery. Just to make sure, that they really are working.

 

[Nick2gGST]

i am bringing it back to the people that fixed it since they said they fixed the problem. i'll keep y'all updated.

 

[Nick2gGST]

Did somewhat of a search, people say it could be the alternator but it was JUST replaced not even a week ago. The guys cleaned up all my grounds and stuff...Now he's saying it could be my regulator???? wtf? The car seems to run fine. Idk. What the hell is he talking about? the gst idle seems to be fine, -vac is 19-20 and boost is 15, idle is a little over 500 i believe.
where is the voltage regulator on a 95 gst???

 

[t25fury]

factory dsm alternators have the voltage regulator built inside of them,your idle needs to be higher than" a little over 500" factory setting is +/- 750(this assumes zero vacuum/boost leaks).Also a week battery will also cause lights to flicker even with the engine running.

 

[Nick2gGST]

ok i'll check it out.

 

[DSM1G90]

Replacing the Alternator is the usual fix. Doesn't mean if you got a reman that it will work good. And if you got it at Autocrapzone, I'd go get my money back and head to NAPA instead.

Weak battery doesn't create the strobing issues since the alternator takes over the battery when running.

 

[Nick2gGST]

dsm i agree with you there...I got the alternator from an alternator and starter specialist they rebuild there own and sell them. It has a 7 year warrenty on it, I tested the alternator and battery today both ran good under load and not. Maybe thats what they meant? The regulator they used is probably no good? Even though it is internal in the alternator...but like I said, they build there own.

 

[DSM1G90]

It's not so much the regulator (tested your setup with the motor idling and putting leads from a VOM across the battery to see if you get the 13.8VDC reading?), but it could be the brushes inside the alternator are beginning to fail (and if it's under that long of warranty, yank it out and take it back for either rebuild or replacement) .. and that is an easy fix with brush replacement..

I've been there with failing brushes in a reman alternator before ...

Oh, on the flickering lights thing: when the alternator breaks connection, the battery takes over and you will see this flickering due to it. I experienced the same problem and figured the alternator was going out. I took out the unit, took it to an alternator shop and it was definitely on it's last legs. Got a good reman alternator and my flickering condition was eliminated.

Best check it out - you aint got nothing to lose.

Good luck - DSM

 

[Nick2gGST]

well said dsm1g90 You made things much more understandable for me. Luckily they installed it as well so I don't have to do any of the work . Problem is I start my new job sometime next week and They have to order parts I guess....sucky....and the three day weekend I think?