I had an intermittently bad alternator do a bunch of things you are describing and worse, chased the problem around for months. sometimes the truck would just blow a 40amp fuse as soon as i keyed on and i couldn't drive the truck for a week or two then it would be fine. One day i took it on a 4 hour road trip with no issues and when i got home a ton of smoke came out of my alternator and all the dash lights went on again and my voltage dropped on the gauge. After that i replaced the alternator and never had a problem again.

Not saying that is your problem but it's something to check out.

I updated my original post with what I found out at the garage today. Doubt it will help much. I'm going to try to replace the alternator as soon as I can. Thanks for the information men.

Their box said the same thing about my battery (which was 5yrs old and bulging on the side) and my alternator (that was causing my headlights to pulsate). Doesn't seem to be a very in-depth test unfortunately.

Personally I just replace both if I'm at all in doubt, which I figure costs about the same as having a knowledgeable shop do a thorough diagnosis.

Our 03 stops like a sports car compared to my 00.

Idle should be ~750rpm.

How long does it take to throw the codes, etc.? If it happens fast, come to me and we can throw the 03's in yours. Can't take it out for, say, a week's test as it is the wife's DD. but we could swap for a couple hours.

Man Bill, that's really gracious of you. The codes have always come on shortly after starting. I think the longest they ever went was around 45 minutes, during a highway trip. Around town, they come on within the first few minutes. Not always in the same order, or the same lights at the same time. I'm really worried this is going to turn into a lemon for me <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> Not what I need right now (but then again, when does anyone need a lemon?). Could my car damage your alternator? I really don't want that to happen.

Keith:

She just told me last night that her 'wheel-drive' lights are misbehaving. I'll have to try and take a look at her situation and see what gives.

I don't know either way how readily your truck might thrash her alt if we dropped it in for a few hours. Anyone else have thoughts on this?

Any updates on this bud? Hope you're getting it sorted. Why is it that when things go awry, they occur in multiples? Hope things turn the other way for you soon! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

No, I'm still running with multiple warning lights. Mostly now it is service engine soon, and both the traction control indicators lit. Seems like when I'm on the road for an hour or more, then the rear drive indicator lights go out, and the front diff light blinks. It is running well, and otherwise isn't giving me any trouble. I just don't have the $ to buy a new alt right now, so I'm going to have to cross my fingers and hope it keeps running until I see some daylight.

Another addition to the electrical oddities I'm seeing. I was nearly out of gas yesterday. The dash readout showed that I could drive 38 more miles before running out of gas. I pulled into a gas station and put 20 bucks worth (all I had on me at the moment - no debit/credit cards as I'm in the divorce process) and the mileage didn't change on the dash readout. It kept counting down from 38 until it was blinking 0. At some point it stopped doing that, and now it just shows a blank field where the miles remaining would be displayed. Probably not related to my other issues, but thought I'd throw it out there just in case.

Thanks Phil. It's a tough time for me, but I'm trying to stay positive, and keep in mind how many things I have to be thankful for. The only complaint I could make about my entire life is that I married a crazy woman 14 years ago (self-inflicted wound). LOL Kids and family are healthy, life is good. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

Keith,

Car-Part lists a number of alternators available pretty cheap. May get you past this bump in the road anyways.

I'm seeing them from $35 up. May be worth checking out? <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />