Saturn Repair: 93 saturn battery light, saturn sl2, 1993 saturn sl2

Question
i have a 1993 Saturn SL2 (DOHC). the battery light has come on and i am getting conflicting reasons and different ways to fix it. Is it a bad battery, is it the alternater, is it the belt, can i drive it and can i fix it myself to save money. any help please.

Answer
Peter,
  The battery light on your dash illuminates when you have a voltage problem in the electrical system of your car.  More than likely you have an alternator that is producing too much / not enough voltage.  Given that you have a good belt driving your alternator, I would suspect a faulty voltage regulator inside your alternator.  Either that or the alternator shorted out the fusible link (wire-like fuse connecting alternator to starter).  I would suggest that you replace the alternator and fusible link and your problem should go away.  Alternator replacement is not hard on your vehicle, just a little messy and time consuming.  You can fix it yourself.  Just allow yourself a few hours on a Saturday or something.  Hope this helps.
Chris