Battery light comes on intermittently 98 crown Vic police interceptor

Thanks

Check the tension on the drive serpentine belt. It should be taunt and you shouldn't be able to wiggle it. If the light is coming on when the engine is cold or when it's raining or damp outside then the belt might be slipping (loose) causing the Alternator not to charge correctly. This would cause the "ALT" light to come on then go off once the belt starts gripping again once the engine gets hot enough to dry up the moisture on it. Any moisture in the air will cause a loose or worn belt to slip enough to cause a squealing noise and/or the ALT light to come on and off intermittently. When was the last time the serpentine belt was changed? Belts wear out and stretch and should be checked and retightened or replaced on a regular basis. Usually ever two years or 24,000 miles on average. Generic belts will need to be replaced sooner. Buy and use Genuine Ford-Motorcraft belts, built to last. .Serpentine belts are much cheaper than an alternator to replace. With a bad alternator, they usually will just go out completely and your dashboard "ALT" idiot light will come on and stay on and your headlights will be very dim and your car battery will go dead very quickly and your car will be dead on the side of the road needing a tow.. Good Luck, Kenny / MrBlueOval

Alternator belt, low voltage to the alternator, loose wire, bad fuse, loose light connections. Changing the brushes is cheap enough. Check wires to coil and connections to starter. Disconnect battery before troubleshooting.

Check battery levels, add fluid as required, charge system by running the car for a few minutes. Shut it off and check again, if while on the road this happens it is a generating problem. Get it serviced and diagnosed.

our battery light is doing the same, but our headlights are dimming as well occasonially, just replaced the battery, will be trying to replace alternator. But Im not sure if we absolutely have to buy the police edition alternator or if we can just buy the standard one.

Sounds like the voltage regulator built in to the alternator has gone bad. Since you aren't using it as a police vehicle with all the extra lights, sirens, police radio, police computer, etc., you won't need the extra amperage so the passenger car regular alternator should work fine for your application. Just remember to disconnect the battery before hooking up the new alternator and have the battery fully charged before hooking back up AFTER installation or you could burnout the new alternator in a few seconds. . Good Luck, Kenny/MrBlueOval