Dimming lights.

[Hrududu]

This problem just arose yesterday. When I am driving at night with my headlights running and I hit the breaks, for a split second all the lights inside and out of the car dim. The volt meter drops to about 11 and the turn signals are really slow when the breaks are pushed in. This only happens when the clutch is in and the car is running at idle speed. If I hit the breaks without using the clutch, this problem doesn't happen. Basically if the car is at less than 1500rpms and the breaks are pushed, I am robbed of this power. My question is, does this sound like a weak battery or a bad alternator? Its also been giving me some trouble starting too, which is why I am thinking battery. Any thoughts?

[EScanlon]

At idle I would blame the battery, since the rpm's aren't high enough to really be producing any kind of current. That doesn't mean that the alternator or the voltage regulator aren't partly to blame, especially if they're starting to fail.

You might also check to see if you have corrosion in one or more of the tail-light bulb sockets or the ground straps to the lights. That causes more problems than you think.

FWIW

E