We have just purchased a 1999 911 coupe with low (28K) miles. We did, however, have to replace the alternator becauseit wasgenerating too low a voltage by about 1-2 volts. Turned out thatthe internal diode in the alternator was bad. Another symptom of an electrical issue was that the panel lights, radio lights and the sound of theradio or cd player itselfon the dashboard(whether headlamps were on or not)and even the headlamps themselves, had a rapid but fairly subtle "flicker". The flicker disappears as soon as the RPM exceeds approximately1,200. Is this normal or not? If not,could it be aweak or corrodedground somewhere? Thanks for any help.

 

I too have a 1999 996 coupe, and my car doesn't do any light flickering, however the radio has always gotten horrible AM radio reception. I had a C5 Corvette with a similar light dimming problem. It turned out to be loose battery terminals arcing, and causing carbon buildup and not making a clean connection. Quite hard on the alternator as all the electrical components were running directly off of it, and probably why yours died such an early death. Is it the original battery? If so, probably time for a new one even thought the car doesn't have that many miles on it. Sorry I can't be more help.

Kevin