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Flickering interior / exterior lights

17K views 16 replies 8 participants last post by  John Clark 
#1 ·
I mentioned this in my HID install thread. All lights (dome, tail, head, mirror, door) lights pulse or flicker when car is in idle or in drive but stopped (like a stop light). As soon as I accelerate flicker stops.

I originally thought it was my HID kit, but I completely removed and the problem is still present. Just harder to notice because the halogens are not as bright.

Had the dealer check alternator and battery. Both are fine. I also checked the voltages myself and everything is fine. Note: battery is only a couple months old. I did not apply any grease to terminals.

All grounds seem okay. I've only found 3.

could it be a voltage regulator? I suggested to dealer, they said we will have to wait till the alternator fails or fails the test. I'm currently at 52k miles on a 2012 but have the 8yr 120k that will cover alternator.

Any ideas? Maybe some fuses I can check?

At a loss, pretty frustrating.
 
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#4 ·
The reason I ask is a volt meter won't always show a problem like this. If the alternator has some issue where it's varying the power output enough to make the lights flicker then it's probably too fast for a volt meter to see. Remember that your volt meter is pretty slow and will show the average of the voltage it sees. If the voltage is normal most of the time and the drop in voltage is very fast and then back to normal again then you could still see 14.3 volts on a volt meter. The only way to know for sure is to use a scope on the voltage to see what's going on. You might be able to see it with a test light at the battery. If you're seeing it at the battery I don't know how it could be anything other than the alternator or possibly the Electronic Load Detector (ELD.) An ELD problem is a bit more rare but then so is a failing alternator at 52K.
 
#6 ·
They might. I've never tested for this using a scope and haven't seen it done. It just makes sense, though, as that flickering has to be coming from somewhere. Even if they see the voltage fluctuations they have no frame of reference to say the alternator is bad or good. There is always some level of ripple in alternator voltage but how much is too much is where it gets sticky. The problem is you have them looking for a problem they don't want to find because they have to pay for the repair.

My 98 Nissan 200SX started doing this once in a while when its alternator started failing. It did it only occasionally at first but it then started doing it more often. I never saw the battery light at first but after a while I started seeing the battery light once in a while. I never checked it with a meter or scope when it was doing it, though. I just replaced the alternator and it solved it.
 
#7 ·
I know this is an older thread, but I am having this issue too. I read that the OE batteries can't handle the load, so I replaced it with one that has more CCA. The flickering has slowly gotten worse. It is much worse with the interior lights, but the headlights flicker as well. My brother hooked a multimeter up, and it was staying around 14.3. Stayed steady when I turned the interior lights on, and they seemed ok. Same with radio. Turned the tv on and the meter/lights went nuts, shooting back and forth from 14 and 15.7 and flickering. Turned tv off and everything went normal. Turned TV on again and it went crazy, stayed crazy after I turned it back off. Anyone know what I need to do to fix this?
 
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