yes its true im feelin stupid right now, battery went dead the other day put the trusty charger on my beater and got er up to full charge. started the 88 back up and when i rev er up the little battery light comes on then goes out when she goes back to idle. do i need an alternator or battery? steve

Several things to consider, How old is the battery?, Is the belt too loose? Corroded wires? If it has a serpentine belt, the tensioner could be weak. Check alt.output with a voltmeter. If no light when idiling-I would lean towards the belt slipping.

Even better if you have a Advance Auto Parts, Auto Zone or Wal-Mart near you take the battery to them, they will check it for free. Make sure you connections are clean and tight, sometimes it's the simple things. If it's not the battery they can test the alternator too. You'd have to bring it in for a core charge anyway, might as well test it.