interesting. I did put new OEM Battery cables on the car years ago.

 

Good point. Make sure battery connections are clean and shiny and not a bad idea to clean the negative cable ground.

 

ok thanks! Ill take a close look!

 

you got me thinking now that its a grounding issue. I wonder if I need a new engine ground and/or a new negative battery ground as you mentioned. ill get to the bottom of this! I hope! lol

as far as engine grounding straps is it advisable to upgrade to a higher gauge or is 4 gauge sufficient?

 

no need for larger grade wire

 

so factory gauge is 2 or 4?

 

When I read the issue with the alternator I thought ground cable. Honda has a lot of their cables with a portion not covered and it corrodes from the inside. It also rust where the cable meets the body and the transmission ground will turn green.

 

I want to caution you about replacing the alternator or the engine grounds based on the symptoms you described. What lights are pulsing? Is it local with just the dash lights or global with the headlights, etc? The issue you are seeing could be isolated to the dash lights, could be the alternator, and some other things. I always recommend testing results as the guide on what to check/replace next. If you don't test, then you are guessing at the problem.

Before replacing anything, put a volt meter on the battery to see how the alternator is performing with voltage with about any volt meter. Voltage should stay above ~13.3V. If it is fluctuating, then working back from the battery to the alternator is necessary.

Testing for a good ground is quick with a volt meter. With the engine running, measure the voltage between the battery negative post and the housing of alternator. The voltage idealy would be zero, but <0.5V is acceptable. There are other ways to test using a test light that work too.

 

I agree that a logical approach to troubleshooting should be used. Randomly changing out parts can be costly.

 

Take a jumper cable from battery negative terminal to alternator. If the dash light don't improve move on from the cables for now.
I disagree with PAhonda on changing parts. When I worked in a dealership at some point in troubleshooting you may have to replace a part just to get to the next point. I see certain parts as having a certain life span like the Negative cables Honda uses and the way they are run. The negative goes through a lot of body connections before the engine. I expected at this point that the Alternator is being replace for low or high amps or volts. If voltage/Amps are normal the cables may not help but if at the bare cables areas are corroded or green they still might. They were not made to last thirty years as most parts of your Accord.