Golf IV R32 :: Lights Seemed To Be Flickering And Dimming
Jan 27, 2011
Last night, I was driving around and noticed that my lights seemed to be flickering and dimming like CRAZY. It was really bad. Not just the headlights, but all the lights. The climatronic, radio, dash, map etc. The climatronic seemed to make things worse, but it did it even without it on.
Then I was in my buddys driveway in neutral and noticed that if i gave it some gas, the lights got brighter...it wasn't a small difference either...like when the lights dimmed, it was nearly HALF as bright! its like the car was losing juice big time...
I checked my battery cables this morning and they're tight. the car starts right up in the cold so I don't think its my battery. what other signs of alternator failure would i be noticing, or could it be something else?
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I recently have been running into some problems with my 03 jetta 2.0. Last night as I was driving home my radio start to turn off followed by ABS, airbag and battery lights coming on and then lights on the dashboard were dimming followed by headlights going out for a few secs then returning on but dim. I stopped in my drive way to open door and when I tried to press the accelerator, my car completely died.
Over the past 2 weeks or so I have had to change the fuel pump and the alternator because i thought that was the problem. I noticed when i first had problems the fuel pump wasn't charging so i changed that. then days later my car started to completely die when I tried to start it(not turning over, no lights no nothing). i tried a new battery it would still die. So I installed a new alternator. My car worked fine for about a week-week and a half before last night.
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I have an 03 Golf VR6 and only has 76k on it. Ive only had it a week but I have come to notice a couple peculiarities. So first off at night regardless of speed or RPMs, ALL OF MY LIGHTS have a slight flicker. Its not a huge difference, but its definitely noticeable. Engine runs fine. No battery light. Additionally, twice when I go to start it in the morning, after starting the alternator workshop light will kick on. after giving it a tiny bit of gas it goes away and doesn't come back. Everything else seems fine. no check engine lights, no trip meter resetting, and the flickering seems to be sporadically. Tonight I tested the battery and alternator and both tested good. My only thought is that it might be a loose ground. Tomorrow I plan on taking a look at the ground under the battery. I've tried searching the threads here, but Im having trouble finding any relevant info. Also, is the voltage regulator inside the alternator, a separate piece, or in the ecm?
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I have an automatic (ugh) 2002 Jetta 1.8T that is displaying some fun stuff. My kneejerk reaction is that the ECU is croaking but wanted to run it by some people with more experience/smarts.
Here's the deal. I don't get any codes, ever. Sometimes, when I turn the ignition to on (Before starting) all of my warning lights are dim and will flicker, and the gear indicator at the bottom of the cluster rapidly switches between each gear. If I start the car like this, I can hear the shift lock randomly engaging and disengaging. If I actually try to drive, it'll shift hard into reverse, shift normally into drive, and then drive in limp mode. I only drove this way three times before figuring out the next bit. Each time, either the traction control or air bag warning lights came on and stayed on.
I've noticed that if I turn the ignition to "on" and it's acting up, all I have to do is leave it on for a few seconds, turn the ignition back off, and turn it back on; sometimes it'll take 2-3 tries but it always seems to work. Then the warning lights come on bright and steady, the car starts like normal, and drives great.
So, is it the ECU? Is it demons?
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I went to get in car today, and the driver screen, needles, and dash lighting was flicking or pulsing.. like a wave rolling through the lcd. its got 1k miles on it, jsw tdi.
i did open the trunk, without unlocking from fob, just trunk button, then it auto locked again when i shut it. have never done that before, so maybe this causes it? i let it sit awhile, and all back to normal.
on a side note, got my 20% tint on all around today and looking good need a drop then wheels.
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Lights in my 01 Vitara dim and fade every now and then. This includes everything from the Brake lights, to the dash.
Trying to find solution, so the electronics need to be checked out, could it a be a fuse or something?
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Just installed my new fogs in my 2012 LE and the install went GREAT! The switch has an LED in it to illuminate it AND one that comes on when you turn fogs on. What circuit I could tap into to dim that led? In lieu of that can you just put a resistor in the circuit to permanently dim it? I have the factory Wire diagram, so I will look for a light that is dimmed with the dash lights.
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I have done some vag com mods, and noticed that the front dome lights and one of rear lights in the roof, are dimming very low, is it some kind of convenience stuff or something is messed up?
Done all the coding through long coding so it should be fine, however I think it might be the case (of wrong voltage, I am using leds in interior lighting, or it is due to some comfort options....)
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The car has 269,231 miles. A few days ago, my wife said the lights began dimming, the fuel indicator needle began dropping and rising and the low fuel light came on (with 3/4 of a tank). Thinking it was some kind of electrical issue, I took it to the local parts store and had the battery, starter, alternator, etc, checked. There was a little corrosion build up on the positive battery terminal but everything else checked out ok.
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My 2006 Sonata GLS headlights dim along with the entire lighting electrical system when my car slows down past 1500 RPM. Why??? I had the car worked on 2 weeks after i got it because of this and they replaced a timing chain thinking this was the problem, but it wasn't.
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For 8 or 9 months now the dash lights and headlights on my 2001Chevy Tracker are dimming (more like flickering but they don't go completely out). It is not the alternator - it has been checked. For a period of 4 orso months in between the beginning of this and now - the dimming stopped and now it's back. The only thing I can correlate to the dimming stopping was I had to have my car jumped because I left the headlights on and the dimming seemed to stop for the long period of time.
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My car came stock with the LED strip on the grill and was wondering if there's a way to keep the lights from dimming when the headlights are on?
Noticed that with the stock ones but they get dimmer when you're headlights are on. I want to keep a constant brightness.
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Can the speedo and tack lights be dimmed to almost off with the + and - buttons either side of the headlight switch on a 2014 Escape?
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I have a 2007 Taurus and for some odd reason I get a message saying to check the brake system. Its accompanied by dimming dash lights and symptoms of a bad alternator. I'm suspecting the battery (its from 2009). Sometimes the issue goes away and when I drive and get the car above 1300 rpm it will go away until the next stop light/sign.
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So the past week I've noticed that on occasion my dash lights will get really dim then randomly come back to full on (to where I have it set at.). Is this normal?
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My wife has a 2006 Sonata and it ran great up until about a month ago, she started noticing when she hits the brakes and sometimes when she hits the gas the a/c blower motor would stop blowing for a second and all the lights would dim. So i drove the car for a day and she was right. the blower motor shuts off and the lights dim for roughly 1 second during breaking then it all works fine again.
What this could be? the car has no check engine light on or anything. I was hoping this is a common thing with a known fix.
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Our 2010 Santa Fe SE V6 just developed a problem where when we turned the key, the car wouldn't start, and there was a loud clicking sound during start attempt. Battery tested 100% OK.
This often points to a starter problem, but a telling symptom was than the headlights would dim, almost going out, along with the dash lights and most any other lamp. If it was just the starter, unless dead short, this associated dimming would not happen. I also put a volt meter on the battery and watched battery voltage during cranking attempt, and the voltage showed minimal drop, so once again the battery was not the problem.
Traced the problem to the ground strap from the battery which terminates to the driver side front wheel well. Two bolts hold the strap to the wheel well, and they are oxide coated and the contact point on the wheel well is painted. This means all the current returning to the battery is essentially passing through the bolt threads and cap where the oxide has been scratched enough to be conductive.
I sanded underside of the bolt heads to remove oxide, sanded the ground strap itself which seemed to have some sort of clear coating, and sanded the paint away from the wheel well where the strap makes contact. I didn't have star washers, but if I did they would have been a good addition.
Car now starts with no problem.
I am concerned with the possibility of corrosion under the strap where I sanded away the paint, but will monitor this. I think the contact between the strap and fender wall is tight enough with the two screws to seal out moisture and oxygen.
I am also going to locate and check any other chassis to engine ground straps so I don't have any new problems in the future.
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Any work around/fix for the gauge brightness dropping so dramatically with the headlights on? I have it maxed out on the rocker switch (brightest) but would like to be closer or equal to daytime brightness.
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I just noticed that the headlights are flickering like crazy, both of them. I was trying to hold them from the inside but they are still doing it. I dont think they are moving.
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My wagon 2003 l-300 has flickering lights and when the radio is off you can hear the engine whine. Is this a grounding problem or is the alternating system going out? I have checked all the connections and do not see anything obvious. What to check.
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I started the car this morning, plugged the phone charger into the lighter socket, noticed the charger light wasn't on, pressed the charger in tighter, the car started to run funny, then it cut off. Lights work, radio won't work, all fuses are alright upon several visual inspections. Car wants to turn over but won't start. I tried disconnecting the negative battery cable to see if the car would revert back to "normal". I have never had a problem with this car in the two years I've had it; the battery was purchased brand new in November of 2011. I unplugged the cigarette lighter to see if that would work but nothing so far. Could it be the ignition switch?!
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