My latest round of problems with 98 Malibu (86k miles) started about a month
ago when alternator died. The indicator on the dash said battery was not
being recharged. Local repair shop said alternator was dead.

I barely got the car home after 5 minute drive and it started acting up...
1) car would sound rough when at idle
2) radio would stop producing sound for a split second

After driving it for about 60 more miles, the roughness deteriorated...
1) car would sometimes stall if came to stop, but would immediately restart
2) dashboard lights would go blank
3) radio/clock continue to flake out
4) air bag indicator on dash would ocassionally appear for about 5-15 secs

Took it back to shop... they recommended cleaning fuel injectors and other
cleaning (even though I swore to them that I thought they were treating a
symptom and not identifying the real problem... obviously I caved and
problems remain).

So, car still runs rough, though it doesnt stall. All the other electrical
symptoms remain. Any ideas??? I have multimeter and would be willing to
purchase equipment under $70 to conduct any necessary tests that help
isolate the source of the electrical gremlins.

-Paul


PS ... dont buy one of the POS cars. The $4k i saved (vs Toyota or Honda)
up front is gone after all the crap I've went through.

low voltage, enough amps to start engine but voltage below what the computer
needs to function correctly. have alt checked at parts house for free.
"Raven513" <pbconnorRAVEN513 (AT) comcast (DOT) net> wrote

Today, when i first started driving, the car would whine whenever turning
the steering wheel. I drove it for about 5 miles and started getting smell
of something burning. Pulled over and noticed puddle of dark liquid near
bottom of engine -- sitting on some brackets -- basically directly below the
power steering fluid box. Power steering fluid is NOT empty though and
engine oil is not empty.

Returned home to find a small puddle where i was parked -- position of
puddle matched with what I'm seeing in engine -- below the power steering
area.

I've loaded some pictures of this into following directory .... my site is
really slow for downloads tho. You'll also see the new alternator.

http://dpway.homeip.net:7979/malibu/nov-05/

1) Any ideas where this leak is coming from?
2) Could this leak be original source for my electrical problems, and if so,
any ideas then how to further isolate the electrical problems?

This just smells like another $1000+ fix if i take it to dealer or other
repair shop... like that stupid air coolant leak problem that I've already
had fixed about a year ago.

-Paul

"Raven513" <pbconnorRAVEN513 (AT) comcast (DOT) net> wrote

Not sure about your electrical problems but your puddle could be coming
from the water pump.

Power steering pump leaking... onto serpentine belt common to
alternator... belt kept slipping... which was responsible for
deficient battery charging... and eventual alternator failure...

POS=piece of sh*t

(LOL=laughing out loud)