Yes, something's going on for sure. You're drawing a lot of current somewhere, or passing through a large pile of resistance. Ideally all the connections should be cool, so keep cleaning/tightening them and trying to cool them down - the heat represents resistance that a lot of current is passing through, voltage/amperage turned into heat instead of powering your devices. You might have a partial short somewhere, but because you haven't blown any fuses you don't appear to be overdrawing any circuits. I'm still convinced that you've got a dirty connection or two.

Did these cars ever suffer from bad engine wiring harnesses? That would do the trick as well. Step one - unscrew all the grounds, clean ground, clean screw, clean sheet metal and reattach with some of this stuff http://www.grote.com/cgi-bin/goc/goc.cgi?product_number=99170

So am I looking for a bad ground or power? All my connections look really good under the hood. I dont even know where to start with other ones behind the dash if they exist

Spent a little while longer and couldnt find any problems so I took off the alternator to get it bench tested. They called me earlier today saying that it is not operating within spec and the bearings, slip ring, and brushes need to be replaced. Ill keep you all posted within the next few days once I get it back on the car.

Good luck. I believe your problem is still in the wires unless you've missed telling us something from your earlier tests, though. You'll find it if you practice good troubleshooting skills and are methodical in your testing, and follow the evidence.

Report back when the alternator is back in, if you've still got problems.

Ur right. Alternator back in and I still have problems. It is actually a lot better. I dont get flicker at idle and no accessories anymore - just at idle with my fan and all accessories on.

Im absolutely stumped.

I've attached a drawing to help me explain a couple things.

But the general rule to remember is this: If you trigger one item and it turns off another like you’re experiencing, the problem lies somewhere “in front” (closer to the battery) than where the wires split off. By the sounds of it, you draw electricity from one circuit and it affects something on a totally different circuit, so the problem is on the battery side of where those circuits split off (fuse box). In some cases you’ve got things on the “IGN” circuit (power windows) affecting things on the unswitched circuit (dome lights), so the problem is somewhere before where all of those things split off (ignition switch).

Said more simply, I believe your problem to be somewhere between the battery and the fuse box.

Depending on how your fuse box / ignition switch are wired up, the power could go to the fuse box first or it could split off en route and feed both at the same time. Looking at my diagram, wire “C” is optional – you’d have one or the other. Power could either go A-B-D-C, or A-B and then split to C and D. Because items on the ACC and IGN circuits are flickering/dimming your dome lights, which are on the unswitched fuse bank, chances are mighty good that you should be looking here. Obviously I’ve ignored the starter in this diagram, but since you’ve got good cold starts I’m betting that the main power wires between alternator and battery, and battery and starter, are fine.

That too-hot wire on the fusebox seems the most likely place to start looking. Power just can’t get through this spot fast enough, and your high-draw devices (power windows & blower motor) suck away all the power from your low-draw devices (comptuers and dash/dome lights). Remember, the issue will be where all of the devices – affected and those that affect – join up. Unaffected devices either require so little voltage/current that they can get by on next to nothing, or they get their power from closer to the battery.

Happy Hunting!

One thing that hasn't been mentioned...when you do find the problem - it will be stupid and you'll wonder how you ever missed it. Do as Matt has indicated and work your way around the wiring maze. Buddies and beer may help with this process.

Thanks guys I like the drafting.

I will tear into my harness on saturday and trace that wire to see if it splits off. Could it be the ignition switch itself getting tired?

Very possibly, but only if it passes power to the fusebox somehow. Since the domes aren't switched a bad ignition switch might not stand between the bulb and the battery.

The diagram is something I whipped up for the occasion. I find it hard to describe anything without Autocad's help anymore...

Are your battery terminals warm after cranking the engine? I had to fix a cable to battery terminal connection on my 960. The wire had corroded inside the crimp which otherwise looked normal. After the repair I could hardly feel any temperature increase on the connection. The same could happen to other crimped connections as well.

RT

Ill disconnect my coil and crank the engine a few times to see if it get hot. I dont think it would that fast. I noticed it most after about 5 minutes of idling and maybe 2 minutes with all my accessories on.

My battery post was warm just from running the engine. Once I fluxed and soldered the inside of the crimp the engine cranked faster and the terminal was always cool to the touch.

If your fuse box is warm it could be suffering from a similar ailment.

Matt is providing the correct methodology to track this down. My warm battery terminal would have shown a voltage difference (voltage drop) by measuring the voltage directly on the battery post and at the other end of the wire. The voltage drop caused by excessive resistance in the crimp created heat which pinpointed the problem to me.

Be alert to the symptoms and go through the wiring methodically and you will identify the source of your problem.

RT

After watching three consecutive episodes of The Big Bang Theory, that post sounded hilarious in my head. I love it when you come by, Richard!

I had to Google that (still don't have a TV!) -- I guess we are pretty much car nerds, eh?

I miss Calgary Pick-N-Pull but I still lurk on CVC!

RT