Ford Fiesta Problem

O.P.H

Car - 2003, Ford Fiesta LX, 1.25L

Problem - Car no longer starts on its own, always need the odd rev. When in idle there is this very feint wheezing noise from the engine that goes slowly up and down, kinda like the sound of an alarm way off in the distance. The headlights brightness goes up and down in conjunction with the wheezing noise, so when the sound is at its loudest the lights get brighter and then lower when the sound goes down etc. Battery light has been coming on the odd few times lately but not for long. I checked the 6 cells of the battery and they were all bone dry so topped them up with distilled water but problem still persists. I obviously figure its a battery problem, just hope I don't need a new one.

Any suggestion?

kirving

Gotta say I don't really know, but would that effect be caused by the ECU charging the battery for a second, then stopping, then starting again? Charging the battery will cause a load on the engine which will cause the change in note.

David09

If the battery wasn't holding charge, it would cause an extra load on the alternator which is driven by the belt, possibly hence the noise you're hearing.

dharn

sounds to me like your battery is not holding charge, and the alternator is working harder keeping it charged, so it is making more noise than usual ,also an alternator under load is harder turned so car need extra revs to compensate

corktina

could the alternator belt be slipiing?