To Vic and all that had comments and suggestions on my problem:
To briefly recap - When winter hit and I started using the lights and
heater booster more often, I discovered that my alternator was less than
marginal. Running around with a sub-par alternator took out the
battery. I discovered this when I accidently tried to start it in gear,
when the car lurched and EVERYTHING died. I got a jump and nursed it
home, with the lights going from dim to dimmer in a sort of random
manner. I installed a new battery and alternator. Things seemed OK in
the garage, but when I got on the road, the lights still fluctated in a
sort of random manner. I asked if there was a fusible link someplace
that maybe got damaged. Vic suggested that I shouldn't assume the
alternator was good just because it was new. Sure enough, once I got
under the hood with a voltmeter, I discovered that the lights weren't
going from bright to dim, they were going from bright to very bright.
The alternator was taking trips up to 16 - 17 volts. The parts store
took it back without question (or testing it), and gave me another. Now
everything is great and I'm back on the road.
Thanks again to all who responded.
Mark Gardner
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