My Alternator light (looks like a battery with a + and - on it) is blinking on and off intermittently. It is still running like a top and I replaced the alternator a year (20,000 miles) ago. The owner's manual said that it might be a loose belt, because the other electrical warning lights are not on. Right? Wrong?
Thanks,
Joning

Hmmm,

My 240 wagon was doing the same thing and it was the alternator that was faulty. We replaced the brushes and checked the connections and ultimately had to replace the alternator. Was your alternator a new or a rebuild?

The BAT light is coming on but other warnings are not? That, by itself, is odd because the terminal of the alternator used to trigger the light is also connected (via diodes in the dash panel) to some other warnings to prove those bulbs before starting the engine.

What warning lights are on with key in II (run) position but engine not running?

I'd start by checking the battery terminals making sure that their clean and tight.

This is what I would do:

There is a wiring harness that runs under the front of the engine. It has some protection, but that is a hot grimy oily location.

There are three wires in there, a fat red that carries the heavy alternator output to the battery (via a connection at the starter), a thin black wire that connects to the oil pressure sensor, and a thin red wire connected to a spade lug on the alternator.

If that thin red wire grounds the amp light turns on. And the alternator will not begin charging.

You have intermittent flashing, so I would guess that one or more of the metal tabs that hold the harness in place has, over 17 years, abraded its way into the harness and into that thin red wire.

There are easy DIY repairs, check FAQs and archives. Many 240s have done them.

Good Luck,

Bob

:>)