I have a strange issue with my little car, in the last few days when I put the headlights on at night the car feels like it's going to stall and looking at the rev counter the revs dip significantly and then begin to rise. Along with this the alternator sounds like it's whining, so this morning I thought I'd check the stereo to see if everything was connected correctly and while I was at that I changed one of the blown bulbs in the instrument cluster.
To cut a long story short I figured I'd start the car with the instrument cluster disconnected and the car was idling superbly and even putting the headlights on the alternator didn't whine, so I tried connecting a spare instrument cluster and I was back to a whining alternator. In my mind I thought I'd leave that connected and unplug the alternator while the car was running and lo and behold the idling returned to normal.
My question therefore is do I have a knackered alternator or am I barking up the wrong tree? Any and all input is welcome. Thanks
To cut a long story short I figured I'd start the car with the instrument cluster disconnected and the car was idling superbly and even putting the headlights on the alternator didn't whine, so I tried connecting a spare instrument cluster and I was back to a whining alternator. In my mind I thought I'd leave that connected and unplug the alternator while the car was running and lo and behold the idling returned to normal.
My question therefore is do I have a knackered alternator or am I barking up the wrong tree? Any and all input is welcome. Thanks