Flickering lights - voodoo?

My lights, both dashboard and headlights, are flickering. My mechanic checked all electrical connections (or so he said - he did it for free), and it stopped for a few weeks. However, it is back. The flickering does not appear to happen when the car is idling, but kicks up when gas is applied and the engine revs up.



Can someone explain this to me?



Thanks!





Make, model, year, miles, condition?

1999 Chevy Tracker, 130K miles, well kept. Both computers have been replaced.

Thanks.

If there’s a mechanic who’s willing to check ALL electrical connections for free, I want to move closer to his or her shop. What’s the address.

This could be a bad alternator, a bad battery, a bad electrical connection, or all three. How old is the battery? How old is the alternator? Have they been tested recently?

I suggest you have the battery and the charging system tested, preferably by someone other than the mechanic who checked all the electrical connections a few weeks ago. Many auto parts stores will do this at no charge.

If the battery and the charging system are OK, you need to find someone who really will start checking electrical connections. I don’t think they ALL need to be checked (there are hundreds), but the major connections, including grounds, may need to be looked at, and perhaps cleaned up.

Okay, so it wasn’t totally free - he owed me one - but thanks for the great input. He really is a pretty good mechanic, by the way, and very fair with his fees. I’m in Austin. Sounds like I need to start with the battery and work back from there.

Big thanks.