My electrical gremlin is back. The alternator went out last Spring and I had it replaced and put a new battery in.

Lately, I have noticed the headlights and map lights pulsing. The dash volt meter is right where it was after the new alternator was installed.

Today, I noticed the passenger front turn signal was 'constant on' as was the inside bulb on the passenger tail light (I have sequentials), the other two were off. This was odd, because the car was locked, the lights off, and the key was in my pocket.

When the alternator went out my car did things that made no sense. This one doesn't make any sense either. Any thoughts?

 

1. What alternator did you install? If it was another Motorcraft, then they may have installed another of the "bad" models. Shysters, all of 'em...

2. Have you had rain lately with the car sitting out? Check the carpet by the front passenger kick panel and let us know.

 

+1 on the passenger carpet kick panel could be the culprit
when my alternator went out it was doing mostly stereo and gauges and then no shifting from the tranny, but that's a given

 

Did you install one from the dealer or do you get an aftermarket one?

Check all your connections make sure you dont have a lose connection on the alt or battery terminals.

 

The dash lights and what not being dim is a normal thing for a struggling alternator. However, the fact that you only had one tail-light with one bulb constantly on- doesn't really point to the alternator being bad. As already mentioned, check the carpet to see if anything is wet/leaking. Chances are you have some electrical shorting.

Good luck find the solution!

Shane

 

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. We got almost 2" of rain yesterday so I was expecting to find the carpet wet -- it was bone dry. I disconnected the battery last night to keep it from draining. When I hooked it up this morning everything is fine and back to normal. That doesn't necessarily mean it will be fine this evening, but we will deal with that then. The damp could have caused the issue.

I was raised by an electrician and was his helper for many years. I know electricity and have scoured the factory wiring diagram book repeatedly. I love my Pony convertible, but it truly has a gremlin that pops up from time to time just to remind me it is there. I guess it is time to recharge my mojo bag. I am still looking for the cause of the pulsing lights and will dig in to that more.

Regarding alternators, from what I have read, it sounds like only Motorcraft alternators were the problem. Is that correct? My mechanic put in a NAPA unit.

 

it's not likely but it's not impossible to get a bad alternator from an aftermarket business. but just disconnecting the battery and hooking it back up and everything being fine is just strange.

 

I replaced my bad OEM alt w/ an Auto-zone model. It was bad out of the box but only intermittently. Was hell to figure out but I eventually went w/ a reman FORD alt & now no problems. Yours sounds like a moisture problem