1999 Toyota Camry - slight dim in headlights & whine when accelerating

Asked by Fearthespear2 Jun 27, 2016 at 07:13 PM about the 1999 Toyota Camry CE

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Just bought the car from a private owner
with 157xxx miles and I've been replacing
things here and there has recently been a
whine and it almost sounds electrical.. As I
accelerate the wine gets louder (keep in
mind the radio and a/c are running) I cut
them off and it completely stops and when
I step on the brakes the headlights seem to
have a slight surge of power... Any help or
opinions greatly appreciated!!!

16 Answers

26,815

Could be your alternator is starting to die. Simple to have it checked by your local auto parts store. Maybe the bearings are causing the whine and the weakening of the output is causing your dimming (load) issue.

20

Start it up and while it's running remove the position battery cable making sure to not let it touch anything if car dies it is the alternator

Ok didn't have a chance to make it up there this evening caught some pretty bad thunder storms going tomorrow on my lunch break I'll be there.. Sorry

26,815

Not likely the AC unit is the problem. Since your alternator seems OK, I would continue to other elements of the electrical system. Are you sure the alternator is not slipping on a loose or worn belt? A good output at idle may degrade if the pulley cant hold against the belt as the RPM's rise.

I tightened the belt up a few days ago but I'm not entirely sure what constitutes a worn belt grooves felt pretty good but I also don't know exactly how tight the belt should be either didn't wanna tighten too tight

I also have thought about cleaning out the outside ventilation into the inside and the blower motor behind the glovebox area because when I cut the ac off like I said before it goes away so idk just trying to brainstorm

6,160

This discussion and opinions are very interesting and educational. My opinion....the alt. has a bad diode. If you have a DVOM you can easily check this by placing the red test lead on the fat post on the alt. output term. Black lead of the DVOM to battery ground. Start her up and put on the AC.... Head Lights... etc. placing a huge electrical load on the Alt/Batt/Charging System. Turn the DVOM to AC Volts....That's AC VOLTS not DC. The volt meter should read LESS THAN 0.5v AC when the charging system is electrically Loaded. Anything more than 1/2 volt AC.....Bad alt Diode. If you cannot perform this test....take her to a Auto Parts store in your area that will test your ALT. for...Free.

It was definitely the alternator salvage yard part for 30 bucks changed it and no dimming no funny noises.. My windows were restored to full power and the rough idle smoothed itself right out. Thanks everyone for your help!!!

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